This week, The Blue Zone will be counting down the top five Duke basketball individual performances of the year. Without further ado, the most impressive Duke basketball performance of the season: Ryan Kelly's dramatic return to the hardwood against Miami.
The game: Duke 79, Miami 76 on March 2
The player: Ryan Kelly
The statline: 36 points on 10-for-14 shooting, 7-9 from beyond the arc, 9-of-12 FTs and seven rebounds
The headline: QUOTH THE RAVEN
The story: Revenge is a dish best served cold, and Ryan Kelly's legendary 36-point performance against Miami ensured that the Hurricanes got just that.
After a suffering a 27-point thrashing in Coral Gables, the Blue Devils were hungry for payback upon Miami's arrival in Durham. But even the Cameron Crazies—including some who had been camping out for five days—could not have anticipated the impact of Kelly's spectacular return.
The crowd chanted Kelly's name as the senior warmed up, and then roared its approval as Kelly was announced in the starting line-up. 'The White Raven' did not disappoint, knocking down jumper after jumper.
After hitting yet another 3-pointer, Kelly looked to the Duke bench and affirmed what everyone in attendance could already see: "I still got it." The sharpshooting forward notched a total of seven 3-pointers in the game, and Duke ending up needing every one of them as it edged out Miami 79-76.
The quote: “It was a crazy game,” Kelly said. “We could have let go there at the end, but we showed some poise and got the stop that counted.”
No. 5: Rasheed Sulaimon vs. Creighton
No. 4: Mason Plumlee vs. Ohio State
No. 3: Seth Curry vs. Michigan State
No. 2: Quinn Cook vs. Louisville
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