Okafor plays strong late, powers Duke to 80-72 win at Syracuse

SYRACUSE, N.Y.—Beating an athletic zone requires rapid ball movement, smart passes and efficient 3-point shooting. The Blue Devils did all that Saturday.

Having the Preseason AP Player of the Year doesn't hurt, either.

After falling in a double-digit hole, No. 4 Duke responded with a 26-7 run spanning halftime to defeat Syracuse 80-72 at the Carrier Dome, avenging its overtime loss to the Orange here last season. Freshman Jahlil Okafor scored eight of Duke's first 13 points after halftime, finishing with a double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds.

"A couple fell in the first half, but in the second half they started falling," Okafor said. "[Playing against a zone means] being aware that I'm going to be able to dribble and make moves like that, try to catch the ball and make one, two dribbles at the most and go right up."

The Blue Devils (22-3, 9-3 in the ACC) pushed the tempo all night and reaped the rewards, getting 12 points in transition before the Orange (16-9, 7-5 could set up its always-puzzling 2-3 zone. Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook fired long outlet passes that turned into lay-ups, and a second-half lineup shuffle—Matt Jones earned a second-half start in place of Amile Jefferson, sliding Justise Winslow to the free-throw line as the power forward—made the lineup smaller and quicker.

Initially, it looked like that early offense might not be enough. A first-half scoring onslaught by former Blue Devil Michael Gbinije staked Syracuse to an early lead. Duke trailed 34-23 coming out of the under-four media timeout.

"Syracuse came out and played an unbelievable first half and basically could have knocked us out," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Our guys, though, kicked it in and started pushing the ball up the court.... Our attack of the zone was much better with those four perimeter guys."

Cook found himself all alone in the corner on an inbounds play out of the timeout and kickstarted the run by knocking down a triple. After a Rakeem Christmas basket on the other end, the Blue Devils pushed the ball upcourt swiftly, converting a tough lay-up by Matt Jones. On the next trip, Justise Winslow hit a corner 3-pointer from the same spot as Cook to bring Duke within two.

"It was big to get the momentum swinging our way," Tyus Jones said. "They were hitting a lot of shots in the first half, that's how they got the lead. We weren't playing as tough as we would have liked, so we changed that around."

The 13-5 run to close the first half continued after intermission, as the Blue Devils went inside to Okafor for two easy baskets. The Chicago native scored eight of Duke's first 13 points in the second half and forced several of Christmas jump hooks to come up short on the defensive end.

In a battle of the top two centers in the ACC, Okafor won the matchup decisively. Christmas—Syracuse's leading scorer and rebounder—struggled from the floor all night, finishing with 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting and adding five blocks.

"I'm not sure [Christmas] had the same angles that he normally had. Jah had to move his feet to make sure he didn't get those angles," Krzyzewski said. "That's the most he's been challenged defensively and I thought he responded really well."

With Christmas bothered by Okafor's length and Trevor Cooney cold after a hot start, the scoring load fell to Gbinije, the third member of Syracuse's trio that accounts for more than 60 percent of the Orange offense.

The redshirt junior couldn't miss early, drilling five triples in the opening 20 minutes and making seven of his nine shots as Syracuse built up its early lead.

"We recruited Mike because we thought he was good, so that doesn't surprise me," Krzyzewski said. "Hardly anybody has played as well as he played in the first half."

After halftime, Cook switched onto Gbinije. The captain gives up several inches to his former teammate, but hung with him well—just as he did against 6-foot-5 Jerian Grant of Notre Dame Feb. 7—holding the Orange swingman to eight points in the second half.

"[At first] we were letting him get open threes, we were going under screens. Once a guy hits one, hits two, you've got to adjust," Cook said. "When a good shooter sees the ball goes in, it can be a long night."

With 6:44 remaining, Tyus Jones got beat by Tyler Roberson on a backdoor cut, and the forward drew contact on Okafor, the freshman's fourth foul. Initially, Krzyzewski elected to leave the Chicago native in the game—he'd poured in 15 second-half points—but subbed Okafor out for a quick breather after an acrobatic Winslow tip-in.

Okafor showed maturity by playing effectively without picking up his fifth foul, but the Orange did not go quietly. Gbinije continued to be a thorn in Duke's side, driving the lane to slice the Blue Devil advantage. Ultimately, free-throws from Winslow, Cook and Tyus Jones sealed the road win.

There was no late-game drama this time, but the Blue Devils and Orange played another compelling edition of their fledgling rivalry. Now, Duke must prepare for rivalry in its richest form, returning to Cameron Indoor Stadium Wednesday to take on No. 12 North Carolina at 9 p.m.