Back door shut: Duke handles Princeton

The Blue Devils can play all the CBA, national and synagogue-league teams they want, but nothing ever compares to the rush of the regular season. "Over the summer you forget how exciting it is to play at Duke," senior Shane Battier said. "You come in here with the band and the crowd; it's really special." Know what else is special? Hitting 9-of-12 from three-point land and scoring 29 points against a team that has led the NCAA in defense the last 12 years. "I had great looks," Battier said nonchalantly. "I had great teammates to get me the ball. Chris [Duhon] and Jason [Williams] did a fantastic job of that tonight." Even though he knocked down as many three-pointers as Princeton had first-half field goals, Battier did not surprise anybody with his play last night. "It is not unusual," coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It's not a once-in-a-career type of thing. He can flat-out shoot and our players look for him." Duke sought to use this contest to respond to several question marks that loomed over the team during the preseason. Williams answered some questions about 10 minutes into the evening. While Battier may be the Blue Devils' ambassador, Williams has fully assumed his rightful position as their court general. When Duke had a narrow 22-20 lead midway through the first half, Williams, obviously irritated by the closeness of the game, charged up the court screaming at his troops to improve their play. Later that possession, he splashed a three-pointer. Before the Tigers could figure out why they had ever chosen to come to Cameron in the first place, they found themselves on the wrong end of a 27-5 run, hopelessly trailing 49-25 at the half. In contrast to Williams' successful 17-point, seven-assist performance, highly touted freshman guard Duhon did not put to rest any questions about his abilities. Instead, he wrote an entirely new chapter. "I think Duhon was just wanting to play defense and find other players," Krzyzewski said. "He wasn't hunting for his shot because he knows he can play well without shooting." While Krzyzewski has seen too many youngsters come through Cameron to know not to rail on them on their first night, it was obvious that he was trying to put a positive spin on a mediocre situation. Duhon did pass for eight assists in his 24-minute debut, but he also led the team in both personal fouls and turnovers. In addition, he only took three shots, all tentative and from behind the arc, making none of them. The other East Campus warrior, Andre Sweet, did not look very comfortable in his first regular-season game either. Sweet, who finished with four points on 1-of-5 shooting from the floor, looked noticeably flustered when fighting for position under the boards. Despite the freshman jitters, Duke still displayed remarkable chemistry for a mid-November battle. Williams and Duhon spread the offense out well enough to drain 15 threes, the defense forced 20 Tiger turnovers which were converted into 34 of Duke's 87 points and the front line crashed the boards to the tune of 12 offensive rebounds and 15 second-chance points. Duke's play also shattered several Princeton records, new and old. The Tigers had not allowed as many as 87 points since yielding 88 to UMass in the 1995-96 campaign. And Princeton had not suffered such a lopsided defeat since falling to Cornell by 37 in 1946. Last night, the Blue Devils did not look like the best team that Princeton had faced since the Truman administration, but they definitely dropped their first bomb on their march to the Metrodome.