Duke Basketball Fights for First Top-10 Win of Jon Scheyer Era

The 2023-24 Duke basketball team picked up a big-time victory in its home away from home.

Author:
Matt Giles
Dec 20, 2023 9:53 PM EST

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Entering the battle against 10th-ranked Baylor in Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night, Duke basketball was 0-2 under Jon Scheyer against top-10 opponents. And for a while, especially in the opening minutes of the second half, it looked like the No. 21 Blue Devils were well on their way to making that an 0-3 mark.

But Scheyer, now in his second year at the helm, became more animated on the bench. He stood, paced, and yelled far more often than just sitting and watching the action unfold. His ramped-up intensity seemed to be contagious, as his Blue Devils persevered and notched a 78-70 win.

With six minutes remaining on the clock in the second half, the score was tied at 61-61. Then, the Blue Devils went on a 14-1 run to all but ensure the victory with less than 90 ticks to go.

All five Duke starters finished with double-digit points, led by freshman guard Jared McCain's hot hand to the tune of his 21 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the field, 3-for-6 from downtown, and 4-for-4 at the charity stripe.

Senior guard Jeremy Roach came up clutch down the stretch. So did graduate center Ryan Young, who made several high-IQ and high-energy plays when he subbed into the contest after Duke's reigning ACC Player of the Week, junior forward Kyle Filipowski, picked up his fourth foul with seven minutes and change to play.

Simply put, Duke ended up being the tougher, more composed squad when it mattered most.

It's a sure sign of growth from Scheyer's bunch.

The Blue Devils (8-3, 0-1 ACC), who extended the program's winning streak in MSG (aka "Cameron North") to seven games, now take a three-game winning streak into their nine-day break before hosting Queens on Dec. 30. That's the last game on Duke basketball's non-conference slate.