Postgame Wrap: Duke Beats Bellarmine
Duke bounced back from its loss to Michigan State with a lopsided win over Bellarmine, 76-54.
The Knights were making their debut as a Division I team and, after some early stage fright, put some game pressure on the Blue Devils, putting together twin 6-0 runs to cut a Duke lead that got as large as 15 in the first half to three just before halftime.
The Blue Devils responded with a 7-0 run to go to the half with a double-digit margin, then cruised to victory in the second half.
Hurt so good
Matthew Hurt continues to lead the Blue Devils in scoring. He had 24 points on a career high six three-pointers, adding six rebounds, second highest on the team.
Shooting stars
The Blue Devils struggled with their shot in the loss to Michigan State, but the shooting woes disappeared against the Knights. Duke hit 13-of-26 from three, led by Hurt’s 6-of-8 performance. Duke shot 54.8 percent in the second half and 51.8 percent for the game.
LeBron Jaemyn?
Jaemyn Brakefield wasn’t the headliner in Duke’s six-man freshman class, but he’s made an early splash. He followed up an 11-point outing against Michigan State with a 4-for-4 shooting night from three. He added six rebounds as well.
There are the bigs
After they combined for nine minutes in the first two games, freshmen Mark Williams and Henry Coleman and grad transfer Patrick Tape got extended playing time. Williams got the start and blocked three shots in the first four minutes. He finished with five points, seven rebounds and four blocks in 15 minutes. Coleman added four points in eight minutes, and Tape made his Duke debut with a putback basket and two blocks in five minutes.
