Duke Cements Itself As Top Squad in the ACC

The No. 1-ranked Duke Blue Devils improved to 27-2 overall on the season and 15-1 in ACC action following a convincing 77-51 victory over No. 11 Virginia (25-4, 13-3 ACC) at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday. The Blue Devils have now won six games in a row by an average margin of 22 points.

If anything, this victory proves just how far and away Duke is from every other team in the ACC. The Cavaliers entered Saturday's bout winners of nine in a row with a chance to bring itself to the top of the conference standings heading into the final week of the regular season.

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Instead, Jon Scheyer's club delivered a marginal victory as Duke secured the No. 1 seed in the upcoming ACC Tournament.

Virginia entered the contest emerging as a dark horse contender in the NCAA Tournament, as several different computer metrics favored the Hoos heavily. UVA entered the contest ranked inside the top 15 nationally in the NCAA NET Rankings, in Wins Above Bubble, and at KenPom.

Feb 16, 2026; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacts during the during the first half against the Syracuse Orange at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

The Cavaliers have been in some tight situations before, entering the halftime locker room in deficits to both Boston College (10-18, 3-12 ACC) and Notre Dame (12-16, 3-12 ACC) on the road. Virginia ended up winning those games, but some of the deficits they have been in raised questions about how elite they really were.

Feb 28, 2026; Durham, North Carolina, USA;Duke Blue Devils forward Dame Sarr (7) reacts after hitting a three-pointer during the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images | Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

Duke Puts Together Defensive Masterclass

The Blue Devils continue to look like the best defensive unit in college basketball, limiting a Virginia squad that entered the game averaging 82 points per game to just 51, by far its lowest point total all season long.

Virginia, as a club, shot just 29% from the field and 7-of-35 (20%) from three-point range. Duke outrebounded the Cavaliers 37-29 while winning the paint battle 26-16.

Feb 24, 2026; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Darren Harris (8) tries to steal the ball from Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Ryder Frost (7) during the second half at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

Darren Harris Provides Spark in Limited Minutes

On yesterday's episode of the Duke Blue Devils Insider Podcast, we discussed sophomore Darren Harris as a player to monitor, as the wing was coming off a career-high 16 points in the Blue Devils' 100-56 victory over Notre Dame on Tuesday night.

Harris didn't see a high volume of minutes against the Cavaliers, but was highly productive when on the floor. In 11 minutes of action, Harris went for six points on 2-of-3 (66.7%) shooting from the perimeter. Both of those threes came in the first half.

Feb 24, 2026; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Darren Harris (8) walks to the bench with blood on his arm against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the second half at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

Despite still not seeing a ton of minutes, Harris has been extremely impactful when he has been given an opportunity.