No. 1 Duke (17-2, 4-2 in the ACC) rebounded from a crushing defeat at Miami by blowing out Maryland (15-5, 3-4 in the ACC) 84-64 in front of a packed house in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Here's your postgame recap:
Revisiting the three keys to the game:
- Plumlee vs. Len and the battle on the boards: Mason Plumlee clearly outplayed Alex Len in the paint scoring 11 more points than Len and recording merely three less rebounds. Plumlee's presence on the offensive end opened the game up for players like Amile Jefferson to take advantage of open shot opportunities. Duke proved to be much more efficient on offense and in causing turnovers than Maryland, despite being outrebounded by 11.
- Will Duke's guards bounce back?: The answer to the pregame question is a resounding yes. The Blue Devil backcourt scored 52 of Duke's 84 points led by Rasheed Sulaimon's career-high performance. Seth Curry and Quinn Cook both had solid performances with Curry hitting big shots early in the second half and Cook dishing nine assists.
- It's 'Sheed's time to shine: It was his time, and Rasheed Sulaimon decided to step up in a big way. Sulaimon scored a career-high 25 points on 6-8 shooting from beyond the arc. Despite foul trouble late in the game, Sulaimon was a major player in Duke's win today.
Three key plays of the game:
- 6:26, first half. Rasheed Sulaimon hits a corner three pointer to put the Blue Devils up 10. Sulaimon hit three previous three-pointers, including a four-point play, providing a spark for Duke's offense.
- 4.0, first half. Amile Jefferson hits a layup off a pick-and-roll with Rasheed Sulaimon and earns an and-one opportunity. Despite failing to hit the free throw, Jefferson's layup put Duke up 43-35 going into the half.
- 3:20, second half. Mason Plumlee slams a monster behind the head dunk off a missed layup. Despite getting called for a technical foul for taunting, Plumlee's dunk gave him 17 points on the day and served as an exclamation point for a definitive win for the Blue Devils.
Three key stats:
- 0 turnovers for Duke in the second half: Duke was able to maintain its lead and quell every small run for Maryland by controlling possession of the ball and converting on offense. The Blue Devils only had four turnovers in the game, all of which came in the first half.
- 52.4% field goal percentage for Duke: The Blue Devils shot over 50% from the floor including going 11-22 from beyond the arc. The increased shooting percentage in comparison to the loss at Miami played a big difference in Duke scoring over 80 points in a major ACC game.
- 18 assists, seven steals for Duke: The Blue Devils as a team dished eight more assists and grabbed six more steals than Maryland. The overall level of hustle and intensity on the court was much higher than in the recent losses to Miami and N.C. State as Duke controlled the game from tip-off. In order to earn wins without Ryan Kelly, the Blue Devils will need to out-hustle their opponents on both ends of the court.
And the Duke game ball goes to ... Rasheed Sulaimon. Sulaimon was the obvious star in the game for Duke going 6-6 from beyond the arc to start the game and providing the spark that propelled the Blue Devils past Maryland. His intensity on both ends of the court proved invaluable today.
And the Maryland game ball goes to ... Charles Mitchell. Mitchell tied with Dez Wells to lead Maryland in points with 13. The big number for Mitchell is his six offensive rebounds that gave Maryland multiple shot opportunities on the offensive side of the ball. Defended by Amile Jefferson, Mitchell took full advantage of the skinnier defender in the paint.
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