H-S | H-S
| H-S |
Charlotte
| N&O | W-S
| W-S
| Rocky
Mount | Kinston
| <!u>Notes
| <!u>Boxscore<!u>
| AP
Photo | Gallery | <!u>Photo
Gallery | <!u>Quotes
The final score was 81-68, but if this was an 13 point win then the South won
the war. State gave Duke all it wanted. The difference was that Duke knew
what to do in the closing minutes and State hasnt completely figured it out
yet. We said the other day that they were good enough to win the
national championship, and nothing we saw Wednesday convinced us
otherwise. That's a heck of a team they have in Raleigh.
State is a team with amazing balance, but that went out the window in this
game, as Duke did what they did against Indiana, and chose to shut down the
three point shot and let State score inside.
Much like I.U.'s Marco Killingsworth, State's Cedric Simmons had a career
day, scoring 28. It was a good thing Simmons went off. If he hadn't,
State might have been destroyed. Cameron Bennerman and Gavin
Grant scored 13 and 12 points between them, meaning that three players scored 53
out of State's 68 points. Since balance has been their hallmark this
season, we'd say Duke's defens put them in a bind.
For the rest of the team, however, it was a different story. State, a
very fine three point team, only hit one in each half. And Ilian Evtimov,
Engin Atsur, and Tony Bethel were limited to one shot each for the entire game.
Duke by contrast scored 33 from behind the line, hitting 11-28, which pretty
much settles the argument about which team defends the three better.
But still, in spite of the fact that Duke significantly disrupted State's
offense and forced several players into near offensive invisibility, State was
in this game, and playing with immense heart, up until 62-62. But at that
point, things changed: Duke outscored State 19-6 in the last 6:53.
Sean Dockery was fouled on a three point shot, missed, got the rebound, and
then he passed it to Lee Melchionni who hit his own three, and Duke was up 71-65.
And that was pretty much game, set, and match, to borrow from the outdoor
set.
And just like in the Indiana game, the workhorse, Killingsworth then, Simmons
last night, wore down at the end. Simmons made several crucial mistakes:
he fouled Shelden Williams a long ways away from the basket, then he went up
weak on a shot, which was blocked, and missed another chippie he would have hit
earlier.
But you can't blame him. He was the one who kept State in the game, and
he worked as hard as a man can work to do it. Duke just knocked State off
balance, and there wasn't much they could do to recover - and psychologically,
when you see Redick hit a three, and then Dockery's four point play, and
Melchionni's ensuing three, and all you can do is turn to a center who is
getting tired and less and less effective, you know, you have to think at that
point that you're basically cooked.
And so State was.
In the last minute of the game, Duke was up by six, and State started fouling
to get the ball back. But Greg Paulus, hit a pair, then Williams, then
Redick hit four, and State hit nothing. Simmons had a pair of free
throws, and two chippies. Of six potential points, he only scored
one.
But still: despite being throughly taken out of their offense, State was in
this game, down only five with a minute to go. They're a very good team;
they just ran into a better one.
For Duke, J.J. Redick continued his offensive tear, scoring 28, with six
assists, and Shelden Williams had a big night, with 21 points, nine boards, and
four blocked shots, which gave him the Duke record for blocks, eclipsing former
Devil Mike Gminski.
Next up for the Devils is an out-of-conference tiff with the Georgetown Hoyas
on Saturday at 1:30.
H-S | H-S
| H-S |
Charlotte
| N&O | W-S
| W-S
| Rocky
Mount | Kinston
| <!u>Notes
| <!u>Boxscore<!u>
| AP
Photo | Gallery | <!u>Photo
Gallery | <!u>Quotes
The final score was 81-68, but if this was an 13 point win then the South won
the war. State gave Duke all it wanted. The difference was that Duke knew
what to do in the closing minutes and State hasn't completely figured it out
yet. We said the other day that they were good enough to win the
national championship, and nothing we saw Wednesday convinced us
otherwise. That's a heck of a team they have in Raleigh.
State is a team with amazing balance, but that went out the window in this
game, as Duke did what they did against Indiana, and chose to shut down the
three point shot and let State score inside.
Much like I.U.'s Marco Killingsworth, State's Cedric Simmons had a career
day, scoring 28. It was a good thing Simmons went off. If he hadn't,
State might have been destroyed. Cameron Bennerman and Gavin
Grant scored 13 and 12 points between them, meaning that three players scored 53
out of State's 68 points.
For the rest of the team, however, it was a different story. State, a
very fine three point team, only hit one in each half. And Ilian Evtimov,
Engin Atsur, and Tony Bethel were limited to one shot each for the entire game.
Duke by contrast scored 33 from behind the line, hitting 11-28, which pretty
much settles the argument about which team defends the three better.
But still, in spite of the fact that Duke significantly disrupted State's
offense and forced several players into near offensive invisibility, State was
in this game, and playing with immense heart, up until 62-62. But at that
point, things changed: Duke outscored State 19-6 in the last 6:53.
Sean Dockery was fouled on a three point shot, missed, got the rebound, and
then he passed it to Lee Melchionni who hit his own three, and Duke was up 71-65.
And that was pretty much game, set, and match, to borrow from another sport.
And just like in the Indiana game, the workhorse, Killingsworth then, Simmons
last night, wore down at the end. Simmons made several crucial mistakes:
he fouled Shelden Williams a long ways away from the basket, then he went up
weak on a shot, which was blocked, and missed another chippie he would have hit
earlier.
But you can't blame him. He was the one who kept State in the game, and
he worked as hard as a man can work to do it. Duke just knocked State off
balance, and there wasn't much they could do to recover - and psychologically,
when you see Redick hit a three, and then Dockery's four point play, and
Melchionni's ensuing three, and all you can do is turn to a center who is
getting tired and less and less effective, you know, you have to think at that
point that you're basically cooked.
And so State was.
In the last minute of the game, Duke was up by six, and State started fouling
to get the ball back. But Greg Paulus hit a pair, then Williams, then
Redick hit four, and State hit nothing. Simmons had a pair of free
throws, and two chippies. Of six potential points, he only scored
one.
But still: despite being throughly taken out of their offense, State was in
this game, down only five with a minute to go. They're a very good team;
they just ran into a better one.
For Duke, J.J. Redick continued his offensive tear, scoring 28, with six
assists, and Shelden Williams had a big night, with 21 points, nine boards, and
four blocked shots, which gave him the Duke record for blocks, eclipsing former
Devil Mike Gminski. He also grabbed five steals.
Next up for the Devils is an out-of-conference tiff with the Georgetown Hoyas
on Saturday at 1:30.