Duke Holds On To Beat Kansas, 68-66
Duke held on to beat No. 3 Kansas, 68-66, in a top-four showdown in Madison Square Garden.
The Blue Devils won their 20th straight season opener and third straight Champions Classic game. Duke is 6-3 in the Classic, the best record of any of the four teams involved.
Duke overcame poor shooting, hitting just 36.5 percent of its shots on the night and 14-of-23 (60.9 percent) of free throws.
The Blue Devils overcame a sluggish offense by tightening up on defense. Duke forced 28 Kansas turnovers and had 10 steals, including three each by Tre Jones and Alex O’Connell.
A large percentage of those turnovers came from Kansas’ post players as Duke swarmed All America candidate Udoka Azubuike in the paint. The seven-foot senior had four turnovers and four fouls to go with just eight points. Power forward David McCormick added three turnovers and four fouls with just six points. Forward Silvio De Sousa had two turnovers and three points in limited minutes.
Duke was led by freshman small forward Cassius Stanley, who scored 13 points, including fast break dunks on back-to-back possessions in the second half.
Freshman center Vernon Carey had 11 points, including a pair of three-pointers. He also had six minutes in his first official game as a post player. Carey played the wing in high school and has been learning to play in the paint since arriving at Duke.
Power forward Matthew Hurt added 11 points with three treys. Tre Jones overcame poor shooting to score 15 points with six assists and six rebounds.
Alex O’Connell came off the bench to score nine points with high-energy play. Jack White had several key defensive plays down the stretch, including two steals, a block and an offensive rebound with a minute and a half remaining and Duke clinging to the lead.
Freshman forward Wendell Moore struggled off the bench, shooting 1-of-6 and turning it over four times.
Duke faces Colorado State in its home opener on Friday.
