Despite trailing by double digits in the second half, the No. 4 Blue Devils rallied and handed No. 2 Virginia its first loss of the season Saturday night with a 69-63 triumph at John Paul Jones Arena. Duke finished the game on an 11-0 run to earn the victory and end the week on a high note after a turbulent beginning to it—which included a heartbreaking loss to No. 8 Notre Dame and the dismissal of guard Rasheed Sulaimon from the team. The win helped the Blue Devils avoid falling to .500 in ACC play and marked their third road victory against a top-10 opponent this season.
Revisiting the three keys to the game:
- Find a way to stay fresh: Starting guards Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook didn’t get many chances to take a breather, but that didn’t stop them from making huge plays down the stretch. The duo combined to play all but six minutes and led Duke on an 11-0 spurt at the end of the game that sealed the victory. The Blue Devils received a solid 24 minutes from reserves Matt Jones—his third straight contest logging at least 20 minutes—and Grayson Allen, who totaled 11 minutes in his most extensive action since November.
- Take advantage of the attention given to Okafor: Despite this being one of Duke’s biggest victories of the year, this was one of Okafor’s least effective games in an otherwise outstanding freshman campaign. The Cavalier defense hounded Okafor with double teams all night long, never allowing him to get comfortable or set up stock in the post. Okafor finished with 10 points and nine rebounds, but scored a mere two points in the first half—when he was held scoreless for the first 17 minutes of the game—and didn’t make a single trip to the free throw line. Because of this, the Blue Devils weren’t able to run their offense through the post as they usually do, relying much more on fast breaks and transition offense to get buckets early on.
- Speed the game up by pushing the ball, forcing turnovers: This one looked to be a near-impossible task against a disciplined Virginia squad that likes to play at a snail’s pace and entered the contest allowing only 5.2 transition points per game. But Duke was able to play at a pace that suited its game, getting out in transition for 10 fast break points in the first half en route to a 14-0 overall edge in that department. Much of this was aided by a Cavalier team that voluntarily picked up the pace on offense in the early going, and the Blue Devils helped out the cause by going coast-to-coast following defensive rebounds on several occasions.
Three key plays:
- 3:00, second half: Guard Justin Anderson throws down a dunk off an assist from teammate London Perrantes, extending the Virginia lead to 63-58. It looked as though the Cavaliers were ready to pull away from Duke, but that dunk turned out to be the last points Virginia would score for the evening.
- 1:20, second half: With the score knotted up at 63, Blue Devil senior Cook cashes in on a big-time shot, knocking down a 3-pointer off a feed from Okafor. The captain’s triple gave Duke a 66-63 advantage, its first since lead since the 18:56 mark earlier in the half.
- 0:11, second half: Virginia’s vaunted defense desperately needed a stop on this possession to give itself any hope of sending the game into overtime. But Blue Devil freshman Tyus Jones had other ideas, coming up big in crunch time as he has on so many occasions this season. Jones dribbles the ball outside the 3-point line with the shot clock winding down, then pulls up and splashed home a triple to put Duke up 69-63 and hand the Cavaliers their first loss of the season.
Three key stats:
- Duke outscores Virginia 14-0 in fast break points: Against a Cavalier defense that came in allowing less than 50 points per game, it was critical for the Blue Devils to be able to dictate the pace of the game. With Okafor struggling to get going in the first half, Duke relied on its athleticism to get out in transition and avoid Virginia’s grueling half-court defense. Led by swingman Justise Winslow, the Blue Devils were aggressive in turning defensive rebounds into easy buckets by sprinting down the length of the floor before the Cavaliers could get back and set up.
- Blue Devils miss first nine 3-point attempts, finish by hitting 6-of-8: It was an unusual night for Duke from the 3-point line, but fortunately it made several key triples down the stretch when it mattered most. The Blue Devils’ long-range attack was completely neutralized in the first half, when they missed all four of their attempts from distance and failed to record a trey for the first time in any half this season. The first made 3-pointer didn’t come until Tyus Jones knocked one down with 9:39 remaining in the came, but that opened the floodgates for a barrage of treys—led by Jones and Cook, who combined for five of the team’s six makes—that allowed Duke to erase a deficit that stretched as large as 11.
- Duke shoots 50.9 percent from the field: Virginia had held its first 19 opponents to a combined 34.1 shooting percentage from the field, a mark that trailed only Kentucky’s 32.1. But the Blue Devils were able to execute and hit shots, becoming the first Cavalier opponent to eclipse the 50 percent mark from the field this season and in the team's last 45 ACC games. In a game where points were expected to be at a premium, Duke was able to avoid being suffocated by Virginia’s pack-line defense, putting together a shooting performance right in line with its full-season numbers.
And the Duke game ball goes to…Tyus Jones
Jones continued to cement his reputation as a clutch performer, coming up with a huge performance as he did in other marquee games against Wisconsin, St. John’s and Michigan State. The freshman point guard led the Blue Devils with 17 points, none bigger than the three he nailed on Duke’s last possession to secure the upset. He knocked down 2-of-5 from long range and 5-of-6 from the free throw line, demonstrating his ability to score efficiently without taking shots away from his teammates.
Jones played 38 minutes—the most of any player on the floor—but showed no indications of fatigue or weariness, a good sign considering his minutes will likely increase on a nightly basis now that Sulaimon is no longer with the team. The Apple Valley, Minn., native accumulated four rebounds and four assists—including a beautiful dish that gave Winslow an open look down low to tie the game at 63 late in the second half—and committed just one turnover. Facing one of the top defenses in the country, Jones didn’t flinch and continued to smoothly operate the Blue Devil offense as he has all season.
And the Virginia game ball goes to…Malcom Brogdon
After scoring just four points in the first 20 minutes, the junior guard came alive in the second half, hitting 5-of-9 from the field and racking up 13 points. His scoring bursts were a big reason why the Cavaliers jumped out to a commanding lead early in the second half, and he hit a key triple down the stretch to bring the Virginia lead back to six as Duke was starting to close the gap. Brogdon also pulled down a team-high six rebounds—a notable feat for someone who stands only 6-foot-5—and was called "exceptional" after the game by Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski for the way he led the team's charge the first 17 minutes of the second half.
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