No. 2 seed Duke is moving on to the Elite Eight after a hard-fought defensive battle against Michigan State at Cowboys Stadium. The Blue Devils relied on defense and clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch to secure the victory, 71-61, and a matchup with top-seeded Lousiville for the opportunity to play in the Final Four.
Revisiting the three keys to the game:
- Stay competitive on the boards: Duke was out-rebounded by the Spartans 33-26 in the game, but Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly were a force inside influencing shots in the paint. The pair grabbed seven boards a piece to lead the Blue Devils in that category. Rebounding proved to not be the most important factor in the game as Duke was able to compensate for its poor efforts on the glass with exceptional three-point shooting.
- Get Ryan Kelly going: Kelly was not as quiet as in past games in which he barely made an impact on the offensive end. He finished the game with nine points hitting a couple jumpers at key points in both halves for Duke. Kelly was not the story for the Blue Devils but even a limited contribution from him was all Duke needed to pull out a win.
- Stop Gary Harris: Harris was held in check all game by a combination of a strong defensive effort from Mason Plumlee and foul trouble. Duke seemed to wear him down with physicality allowing him to score merely six points and four rebounds on 2-11 shooting from the floor.
Three key plays:
- 6:25, first half: Ryan Kelly hit a mid-range jumper with ease. On the subsequent possession Tyler Thornton stole the ball and passed it to Kelly who dished it to Seth Curry for a 3-pointer that put Duke up seven.
- 0:26, first half: Adreian Payne sunk a baseline 3-pointer to bring Michigan State within one going into the half. His shot capped a short run to even out the score by the Spartans.
- 8:41, second half: Ryan Kelly blocked a Derrick Nix jumper and quickly dished the ball to Rasheed Sulaimon who took the ball coast-to-coast for an easy layup. The play put Duke up 10 for the first time in the game and fully shifted the momentum in favor of the Blue Devils for the remainder of the game.
Three key stats:
- Duke shot 93.2 percent from the line: Although the Spartans were forced to foul late, the Blue Devils had ice in their veins and didn't crack under the pressure. Led by Rasheed Sulaimon's 12-of-14 effort from the charity stripe, Duke was able to seal the deal.
- Michigan State had 24 fouls: Not only did the Spartans foul early and often, they often did in inopportune situations. Michigan State chose not to foul after Keith Appling made a layup with 1:40 left, bringing the game within seven, choosing to roll the dice and hope Duke would miss its shot. Instead, the Blue Devils wore down the shot clock and Appling committed a foul with four seconds left on the shot clock, a mistake a veteran like him shouldn't make.
- Duke outrebounded by seven: Duke did not control the boards but was able to compensate with exceptional shooting from beyond the arc. The Blue Devils have found a way to win without controlling the boards consistently and were able to do so against the Spartans handily. The truth, though, was that the Spartans didn't control the boards either, grabbing just four more offensive boards than Duke. They had to dominate the glass in order to win and didn't do that.
And the Duke game ball goes to... Seth Curry. Curry had 29 points on the day and was the difference for Duke early when the supporting cast did not perform on the offensive end. He hit three 3-pointers at the beginning of the second half and Duke was in control from there.
And the Michigan State game ball goes to... Derrick Nix. Appling led the Spartans in scoring with 16 but he made some critical mistakes. Nix only scored nine but grabbed 10 boards and fought physically all night against Duke's impressive interior of Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.