WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer had 20 points apiece as No. 4 Duke easily handled ninth-ranked Purdue, 76-60, in its first road game of the season Tuesday night at Mackey Arena.
With the win, the Blue Devils improved to 10-0 all-time in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
"For us, getting a test like this early on the season on the road-this was a good thing for us," Scheyer said. "We knew we were going to get Purdue's best shot coming off a loss, and they're a very good team.... We knew coming on the road like this, a good start was really important."
Duke (8-0) got that good start, jumping out to a 7-0 lead from which Purdue never really recovered. The Boilermakers (5-2) looked skittish early on the offensive end, turning the ball over four times and missing two layups before the first media timeout.
The Blue Devils took advantage by building a double-digit lead midway through the half that Purdue never cut below eight the rest of the contest.
"We did not match their intensity," Purdue head coach Matt Painter said. "We did not take care of the basketball early in the game, and we allowed them to set tempo and dictate the game."
It was Singler and Scheyer who dictated the game for Duke on both ends of the court. The Blue Devils' two stars shined offensively even while spending much of the night guarding Purdue's leaders, Robbie Hummel and E'Twaun Moore.
Moore, who entered the game averaging 16.7 points per game, didn't get on the board until the 11-minute mark of the second half while Hummel, the Big Ten's preseason player of the year, appeared out of rhythm all night.
"You've got to give credit where credit is due. Duke took those two guys out of it," Painter said. "Defensively, they're going to make you play a certain way. You've got to have playmakers. You can have a couple guys, but they have to play well. If they don't play well, you're stuffed."
The Blue Devils' pressure on the perimeter kept the Boilermakers potential playmakers out of sync all night. Starting guards Keaton Grant and Chris Kramer combined to shoot just 3-for-16 from the field.
Purdue made brief runs when it looked inside to center JaJuan Johnson and reserve forward Namanja Calasan. Calasan led the Boilermakers with nine first-half points, including scoring seven points in a span of two minutes late in the half.
Johnson, meanwhile, was the only player to score for Purdue in the first eight minutes of the second half.
Those miniature runs never grew into big ones, however, because of Singler and Scheyer's efficiency on the other end of the court. Scheyer spearheaded Duke's somewhat choppy offense in the first half-leading the team with 10 points at intermission-before Singler stepped up after halftime.
With Nolan Smith on the bench with four fouls and Gerald Henderson slogging through a 1-for-8 night, Singler carried the Blue Devils and answered any and all of Purdue's attempted comebacks. The forward scored 12 of Duke's 15 points during a nine-minute stretch that saw the Blue Devils push their lead from 11 to 20 at one point. He finished with 14 of his 20 points after the intermission.
"Kyle's one of the better players in the country," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "He's a really good payer. Kyle will never be nervous or afraid, ever. Ever."
Singler also pulled down a career-high-tying 12 rebounds on a night when Duke outrebounded the Boilermakers by 20. That advantage was particularly prevalent in the second half, when the Blue Devils held a 28-13 edge on the glass.
Henderson complemented Singler by tying his own career-high with nine rebounds while Brian Zoubek pulled down eight boards, including two offensive putbacks.
"It was team defense and team rebounding. We knew we had to hold their second chances because that's what throws you on the road-that and turnovers," Singler said. "We felt comfortable the whole game."
That comfort translated into a surprisingly easy road win against a top-10 opponent-Duke's first non-conference road win against a ranked team since its last trip to the Hoosier State, which resulted in a 75-67 victory against Indiana in November 2005.
"It made us feel good. We thought we could play well on the road, but until we do, we don't know," Krzyzewski said. "So it gives you a certain confidence level being in experiences like this."
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