HALFTIME: Duke 34, Georgia Tech 33

Duke led for most of the half but not by much as Georgia Tech hung around the entire way and goes into the half down 34-33 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Jabari Parker, coming off his worst game of the season against Notre Dame, struggled once again. Observations from the first half:

• Parker finished the half with six points, going 2-for-9 from the field. He looks generally sluggish on the offensive end, missing both of his 3-pointers and putting up an ugly forced attempt from beneath the hoop. Both of his buckets were and-1s. He was also posterized by Georgia Tech guard Jason Morris, who put home an emphatic slam.
• After the poor defensive effort in the loss to Notre Dame, Amile Jefferson and Rasheed Sulaimon joined the starting lineup, replacing senior captains Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton. It was only a matter of time, right?
• Rodney Hood was the savior for Duke's offense, scoring a game-high 12 points. He went 3-of-6 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line.
• The Yellow Jackets (15-of-28, 54%) shot way better from the field than Duke (9-of-25, 36%), but the Blue Devils got to the line way more often. They went 14-for-16 from the line, Georgia Tech went 0-for-2.
• Duke had only three turnovers. Georgia Tech had seven.
• Rasheed Sulaimon went 2-for-2 from the field with six points. One was a 3-pointer, an acrobatic shot that came with the shot clock expiring. He was covered heavily and lifted off on one leg and the ball took a generous bounce to land in.