In the final installment of the Duke-Syracuse rivalry this season, the No. 4 Blue Devils lead 34-25 at the half behind 15 points from freshman forward Justise Winslow at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Duke shot 44 percent from the floor in the opening half, but Orange head coach Jim Boeheim's 2-3 zone still managed to keep the game close with nine forced turnovers. However, Winslow's ability to slash through the zone and find open shooters on the outside exposed a significant flaw in the Orange defense that will send Boeheim back to the drawing board during the break.
After a scoreless first minute, the Blue Devils blew the game open, taking a 4-0 lead in the opening minutes of the half before watching Syracuse go on a 9-2 run, thanks to seven early points from forward Tyler Roberson, who finished the half with nine points and six rebounds in 18 minutes.
Duke took a brief lead when Amile Jefferson provided a spark off the bench with a slam to give 10-9 lead, igniting the crowd, which was engaged for much of the tight first half of play.
A jumper from Roberson brought the Orange within one point with 9:08 to play, the Blue Devils responded with a 9-2 run to break the game open late in the first half by establishing a 26-18 lead. This gave Duke some much needed breathing room against a feisty Syracuse team that remains within striking distance despite shooting only 29 percent from the field and committing 10 turnovers.
The Blue Devils seized the obvious momentum in the first half, holding the Orange to just nine points in the last eight minutes of the half, while continuing to feed the ball to Winslow and Jahlil Okafor, who finished the half with eight points.
Noticeably quiet on offense were Quinn Cook and Tyus Jones, who combined for just six points out of the backcourt for Duke, but spearheaded the Blue Devils' staunch defensive effort.
Observations from the first half:
- Reserve center Marshall Plumlee saw time early off the bench but picked up two quick fouls in under two minutes of play.
- Duke's length clearly bothered the Orange inside, with the Blue Devils' registering four blocks and altering a handful shots in the paint.
- Neither team made a three-point basket until the 9:43 mark, when Matt Jones drained a trey from the corner off a beautiful pass from Quinn Cook.
- Duke dominated inside the paint, scoring 24 of its 34 first half points in the key and out rebounding the Orange 24-22
- The Blue Devils shot only 2-of-8 from the charity stripe, compared to 6-of-9 for the Orange.
- Duke fashioned new uniforms and warm-ups for tonight's game against Syracuse, even complete with a new gray warm-up vest.
- 2015 commit Chase Jeter and top 2016 small forward target Jayson Tatum were in attendance behind the Blue Devil bench as expected.
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