Duke 82, Santa Clara 70 (2:47, 2nd half): Kevin Foster has arisen from his scoring slumber and is fighting single handedly to keep Santa Clara in the game, draining back-to-back threes. The recent stretch of play has been an even battle, with teams trading baskets as well as fouls. Seth Curry and Mason Plumlee have both cracked 2o points while Ryan Kelly and Quinn Cook each are over 10. The Broncos now have four scorers in double figures and another player with nine. Tyler Thornton has fouled out for Duke and Kelly and Cook each have four personals.
Duke 67, Santa Clara 52 (7:35, 2nd half): Seth Curry continues to play at a different level when he's had enough time to rest his injured legs. Tonight has been no exception. Curry has a season high 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting -- 4-of-6 from three. Santa Clara can't seem to take care of the ball anymore, as even though Duke's defense has been stingy, the Broncos have had their share of unforced errors as well. Kevin Foster, who had 18 in the first half, has scored just two in the second half, contributing to the Santa Clara scoring struggles.
Duke 54, Santa Clara 48 (11:18, 2nd half): Duke came out hungry after the timeout, refocusing on defense and making Mason Plumlee the focal point of the offense. Yannick Atanga committed a flagrant foul on Plumlee, his fourth personal, delivering what looked like an unintentional elbow to Plumlee's head. Bucking the recent trend, Plumlee hit both flagrant free throws. Seth Curry continues to connect from deep and now has 19 points on the day, leading the Blue Devils. Tyler Thornton's defensive effort has been key, but he'll spend most of the remainder of the game on the bench thanks to four fouls. Thornton is Duke's only foul trouble, but four Broncos have at least three fouls.
Duke 41, Santa Clara 45 (15:56, 2nd half): It took Kevin Foster all of nine seconds to commit his third foul of the game, leaving him a liability on defense despite his potent offensive potential. Rasheed Sulaimon came out in the second half with a new-found aggression on offense, getting inside and getting easy looks at the rim, though he missed more attempts than he's made. Raymond Cowels III also started looking for his shot in the second half, scoring five quick points to start the period, but picked up a third foul of his own. Santa Clara is plainly outplaying Duke thus far this half, and the score shows it.
Duke 38, Santa Clara 36 (Halftime): Duke took better care of the ball in final few minutes of the first half, going on a 7-2 run heading into the locker room. Seth Curry has taken on the scoring onus, leading the Blue Devils with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field. Mason Plumlee's recent free throw shooting woes persisted in the first half, making just two of his six free throw attempts. The team hasn't been any better as a whole, collectively shooting 7-of-14 from the charity stripe. Despite the struggles from the line, Plumlee is well on his way to another double-double today, and Quinn Cook has added seven points, three rebounds, and two assists in the first half. Santa Clara has leaned heavily on leading scorer Kevin Foster, who has 18 of the team's 36, but is one of four Broncos with two personal fouls.
Duke 29, Santa Clara 30 (3:58, 1st half): Kevin Foster is asserting his offensive dominance at Cameron Indoor, with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, keeping the Broncos neck and neck with the Blue Devils. Duke is having trouble offensively, turning the ball over with regularity and failing to convert opportunities at the free throw line. Duke's six turnovers are two more than Santa Clara has committed, and the Broncos have four steals.
Duke 25, Santa Clara 18 (7:37, 1st half): Ryan Kelly was relegated to the bench before the 10:00 minute mark with two personal fouls. Offensively Duke is stretching its lead thanks to the long ball, with Quinn Cook and Seth Curry both draining threes. After a long stretch of ineptitude, Santa Clara finally got a couple of hoops right before the media timeout to cut into the Blue Devil lead. Marshall Plumlee logged just a few minutes before going back to the bench, grabbing an offensive rebound before running off the court to give way to Mason.
Duke 16, Santa Clara 12 (11:49, 1st half): Duke's defense was much more active in this recent stretch, forcing turnovers and making the Broncos take poor shots while shutting out Santa Clara over the three minute span. Offensively, Tyler Thornton hit the big shot for the Blue Devils, knocking down a wide-open corner three to give Duke a four point lead. Finally, Marshall Plumlee has entered the game for just the second time this season, replacing his elder brother Mason.
Duke 11, Santa Clara 12 (14:58, 1st half): Duke is off to another sluggish start, not unlike we've seen the past few games against Cornell and Elon. Duke's offense has stayed even with Santa Clara thanks to their second chance opportunities, with Mason Plumlee, Quinn Cook, and Ryan Kelly all grabbing offensive rebounds. Kevin Foster leads the way for Santa Clara early with four points.
Starters
Duke: Quinn Cook, Seth Curry, Rasheed Sulaimon, Ryan Kelly, Mason Plumlee
Santa Clara: Evan Roquemore, Kevin Foster, Raymond Cowels III, Marc Trasolini, Robert Garrett
Here are some pregame notes:
- Redshirt freshman Marshall Plumlee is cleared to play today. He has logged just two minutes this season due to injury.
- Duke is playing for the first time in nine days due to the holidays. They last playing Elon on December 20.
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