Following their first conference loss of the season Wednesday at Clemson, the Blue Devils shook off the cobwebs from the Tigers’ haymaker in the opening half against the Fighting Irish Saturday.
No. 9 Duke enters the locker room with a 50-45 lead against Notre Dame at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The last time the Fighting Irish entered the Blue Devils’ gym, the home squad recorded a 30-point blowout, but the visitors avoided the early knockout punch prior to intermission in a battle of high-powered offenses.
Duke opened the game with tenacity after winning the opening tip. The Blue Devils quickly converted two 3-pointers—one by sophomore Grayson Allen and the other by freshman Luke Kennard—that propelled the team to an early 8-0 lead.
Making just his second start of the season, Kennard came out strong, scoring five of Duke’s first eight points. The freshman recorded a team-high 16 points by the end of the first half to accompany three rebounds. A breakaway layup following a steal with 3:32 remaining punctuated the Franklin, Ohio, native’s opening half performance.
Fellow freshman Brandon Ingram led the way for the Blue Devils for much of the half, exposing the Notre Dame defense on several and-one opportunities, including a 3-pointer from the corner that put Duke ahead 25-20 following the four-point play. The freshman finished the half with 14 points, three rebounds and two blocks.
The Fighting Irish—often lauded for their explosive offense and derided for occasionally suspect defense—were not able to keep the Blue Devils from getting on the board, but kept up with their own offensive efficiency.
Notre Dame spread the scoring across its lineup in an effort to spread Duke thin in the opening frame. Three players for the Fighting Irish scored double-digits, including a team-high 14 by junior Demetrius Jackson, who made a pair of difficult jumpers on Notre Dame's final two possessions. Sophomore Bonzie Colson added 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting off the bench.
Blue Devil graduate student Marshall Plumlee slammed home a dunk with less than five minutes remaining to give Duke a 36-35 lead that propelled the squad to the halftime lead, right after Notre Dame briefly took its only lead of the game.
Here are some observations from the first half:
- The Blue Devils wasted little time against the Fighting Irish, winning the opening tip and breaking off a quick 8-0 run to open the game.
- Duke shot well from the outside for much of the first half. The team entered the locker room making 7-of-13 from beyond the arc.
- Both offenses lived up to their billing for efficiency. The Blue Devils shot 58.6 percent from the floor and Notre Dame converted 52.8 percent on the other end.
- On his birthday, Sean Obi received minutes for Duke as the Blue Devils' first big man substitute. The redshirt sophomore missed two free throws and recorded one rebound. Freshman Chase Jeter has yet to check in so far.
- Allen tied his career-high assist total with six in the first 20 minutes of play.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.