Seniors lead Duke basketball past Virginia Tech on senior night

The Devils took down the Florida State Seminoles, previously undefeated in the ACC, Saturday at Indoor Cameron Stadium
The Devils took down the Florida State Seminoles, previously undefeated in the ACC, Saturday at Indoor Cameron Stadium

Duke turned to its three most veteran players on senior night to take care of Virginia Tech and finish the regular season undefeated at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the third time in the past four years.

Seniors Seth Curry, Ryan Kelly and Mason Plumlee combined for 52 points as the No. 3 Blue Devils outpaced the Hokies (13-17, 4-13 in the ACC) in the second half to pull away for an 85-57 victory. Curry, Kelly and Plumlee became the second senior class in program history to win all of their home games in three of their four seasons.

“I’m so proud of my seniors,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “They’ve been absolutely amazing—their four years and being a part of 120 wins and championships and how they’ve gone through this whole year. One has played hurt the entire year. And one was out for 13 games and he’s coming back. They’ve been great.”

The Blue Devils (26-4, 13-4) struggled in the early going after their emotional win against Miami just three days prior, which marked the return of the previously injured Kelly.

After Duke got on the board first with a Plumlee free throw, Jarrell Eddie knocked down two 3-pointers to give Virginia Tech a lead it would maintain for much of the half. Erick Green started off the first period much like he did in the Hokies’ February matchup against the Blue Devils when he poured in 22 points.

“Tonight’s game was a difficult one for us,” Krzyzewski said. “I think we’re emotionally spent with the February we’ve had and these last three days. We’re not as physically spent as we are emotionally. It’s been a heck of a thing.”

Leading the nation with 25.0 points per game entering Tuesday, Green went 5-of-10 from the field in the first half to lead the Hokies with 12 points at the break.

Defensive rebounding woes plagued Duke to start the game, even with Virginia Tech big men Cadarian Raines and Joey van Zegeren both in early foul trouble. The Blue Devils could not find Plumlee and take advantage of a large size differential in the paint, but instead relied on outside shooting and Kelly’s inside-and-out scoring to take a 38-35 lead into halftime.

Kelly paced the Blue Devils in the first half with 14 points.

Plumlee, who finished the night with 14 points and seven rebounds, made his presence felt immediately in the second half, converting a tough look inside for two points on the Blue Devils’ opening possession and then throwing down a dunk on his next trip down the court.

The Cameron Crazies then erupted after Curry knocked down his third and fourth 3-pointers of the game, forcing a Virginia Tech timeout and giving Duke a 12-point lead fewer than five minutes into the period. Curry ended the game with a team-high 20 points, including five 3-pointers, while Kelly added 18 points, nine rebounds and a block.

“We picked up our defense, especially our ball screen defense, and made it hard for guys to get in the lane,” Kelly said. “It’s amazing, when our defense picks up our offense picks up almost immediately. That has to be something we learn form. We’ve seen it in the past, and we have to continue to have that.”

The Hokies only shrunk the lead to single digits once during the remainder of the game, bringing the score within six with 12:37 left after another Eddie 3-pointer. But Green was the one carrying the Virginia Tech offense, as the Winchester, Va. native improved on his previous performance against Duke, racking up 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting.

But even with the complement of Eddie’s 13 points, Virginia Tech could not find the offensive production to match the Blue Devil seniors and Quinn Cook, who finished the game with 14 points.

“I thought the three seniors just asserted themselves in that second half,” Krzyzewski said. “Mason was a bull inside. Ryan, again, he’s playing a lot of minutes without being in condition, and Seth’s two threes got us going.”

With 2:20 left to play and Duke amid a 20-2 run that put the game out of reach, Krzyzewski began the ritualistic process of subbing out Kelly, Curry and Plumlee to standing ovations from the crowd at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

And as a special treat for Duke fans—with 1:11 left to play, Krzyzewski called a substitution timeout to insert senior and former walk-on Todd Zafirovski, who still has a year of eligibility remaining, to the wild cheers of the Crazies.

After the game, the emotions flowed freely on Coach K Court as Plumlee, Curry and Kelly all gave speeches to a still-packed stadium.

“It’s sad,” Kelly said. “That’s the last time we’re going to play in Cameron. We won’t have that feeling as a player again.”

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