The Wolfpack got close, but the Blue Devils closed the visitors out.
Duke sent N.C. State packing 74-64 en route to its 14th straight win of the season. Despite solid first-half shooting from the Wolfpack, Durham’s squad pulled through with clutch free-throw baskets and a second-half offensive spark.
“They have special character,” said head coach Jon Scheyer. “Clearly we didn’t have our best stuff throughout, but just the way we battled, I thought was big-time.”
Kon Knueppel grabbed a steal and a layup right out of the locker room, though second-half production stalled for both teams in the next two minutes. The Wolfpack lost its previous behind-the-arc magic, giving the Cameron Crazies plenty of “airball” material with increasingly erroneous deep shots. By the time Cooper Flagg made a layup and slammed a dunk to cap the run, the Blue Devils were up 41-37.
They hadn’t held a lead since the opening points.
“[Flagg] had some all-time plays in Cameron just to will us back,” said head coach Jon Scheyer. “That’s a credit to his spirit and what he did in the second half.”
N.C. State remained scoreless for six minutes while Duke extended its lead to eight. A 3-pointer from Dontrez Styles ended the drought for the Wolfpack, who crept to a closer 47-44 deficit as the next three minutes ticked by.
The teams traded baskets — and fouls — until Trey Parker swished a three to chip N.C. State’s deficit down to one. Flagg responded with one of his own, then converted a foul into the extra point. With a steal from Khaman Maluach and another jumper from Flagg, the Blue Devils forced N.C. State into a timeout on the back of a 30-second 6-0 run, up 57-50.
Duke narrowly fended off N.C. State’s advances as the final minutes ticked away. The Wolfpack narrowed the lead to two before Sion James hit a dunk, then traded free throws with the Blue Devils. When Marcus Hill made a layup and the and-one, Durham’s squad only led 63-62.
“I thought out team’s defense in critical moments has been the story throughout this year, and tonight was no exception,” Scheyer said. “Even down the stretch, it’s a one-possession game, and we came up with key stops.”
After Maluach exited the game after throwing up on the court, Flagg made it a three-point game with two shots from the charity stripe. Proctor added another free throw before Flagg netted a layup for some 68-62 breathing room. From there, Duke sealed the win with a layup from Patrick Ngongba II and a string of defensive stops.
“So proud of Pat, what he did at the end of the game,” Scheyer said. “That catch and finish was huge.”
Both teams played entertaining basketball early on. When N.C. State’s Paul McNeil Jr. blocked a Knueppel layup from behind, Mason Gillis grabbed the rebound and allowed Flagg to knock down a jumper. Moments later, Knueppel swished a three off a cross-court assist from Proctor. Brandon Huntley-Hatfield sparked the Wolfpack offense in that period with a jumper and dunk, keeping N.C. State up 12-9 despite the Blue Devils’ best efforts.
It didn’t help that N.C. State shot rainbows early while the Blue Devils had a case of the basket blinders. Just over nine minutes into the first half, the Wolfpack had swished 66.7% from three compared to Duke’s measly 14.3%. By halftime, the Blue Devils’ 3-for-16 paled behind the Wolfpack’s 7-of-12.
Duke still found first-half momentum in spurts. With just under 10 minutes left, Flagg made a jumper and took a steal down the court to Proctor, who faked a layup and instead assisted Knueppel on a trey. As the Crazies thundered their approval, James took the next steal and slammed a dunk. Flagg made one of two free throws to make the score 23-19. The Blue Devils had put themselves back in the game.
“I thought in the first half, Sion’s defense and energy kind of picked up and brought the whole team with him,” Flagg said.
Knueppel continued to capitalize on opportunities from deep — he finished the first half with 11 points and three baskets from behind the arc — but the Wolfpack’s consistency kept it solidly ahead as the first-half clock wore down. By the time James broke a near-three-minute scoring drought for the Blue Devils, N.C. State led 35-24. Styles and O’Connell led the Wolfpack charge with 13 and nine first-half points, respectively.
However, with less than 10 seconds left in the half, James battled through traffic for a layup and made it worth three with an and-one. The Blue Devils rode a 7-0 run into the locker room, though they still trailed 37-33.
“That’s happened to us a few times, where you’re down and you need a spark,” Scheyer said. “And what Sion James did there… to me, told the story.”
Duke will look to sweep the Research Triangle teams when it faces North Carolina in Cameron Indoor Feb. 1.
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Abby DiSalvo
Abby DiSalvo is a Trinity sophomore and assistant Blue Zone editor of The Chronicle’s 120th volume.
