Duke basketball uses pair of monster runs to push past Robert Morris in Round of 64

CHARLOTTE, N.C.—For the second straight game, the Blue Devils got off to a sluggish start in each half.

Then the dam finally broke.

No. 1 seed Duke opened the 2015 NCAA tournament by holding on for a 85-56 win against Robert Morris Friday night at Time Warner Cable Arena to advance to Sunday's Round of 32. The Blue Devils built a 21-point first-half lead thanks to hot shooting from Quinn Cook and a 21-2 run, then used another big spurt after the Colonials cut the lead to 10 with 11:56 left to avoid a third Round of 64 defeat in the past four years. Cook finished with 22 points and six 3-pointers to kick off his final Big Dance on a high note.

“We couldn’t stop thinking about our turn [to play] and wanted to take full advantage of it,” Cook said. “You never want to be that team that’s on the other end [of an upset]. It can change quickly. You’ve got to play with a sense of urgency for all 40 minutes.”

Cook and ACC Player of the Year Jahlil Okafor—who had 21 points—led the way, but it was Justise Winslow who sparked the Blue Devils' second-half spurt. After Colonial guard Rodney Pryor—who had 23 points—canned back-to-back triples to fuel a Robert Morris 10-0 run and cut the deficit to 10, Winslow swished a huge 3-pointer, went coast-to-coast for a layup, then found point guard Tyus Jones for a corner triple to get the momentum back for his team.

“He made the biggest play of the game when it was down to 10. Justise had six points, but the three points were worth a lot,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “His verve during that time and Jah during the time—all of a sudden it went from 10 to 18 real quick. That was the key part of the game.”

Thanks to the efficiency of Cook—who had 16 first-half points and four triples in the opening period—and its size advantage, Duke shot 63 percent for the game and racked up 28 assists on 34 made field goals to eventually cruise to victory. But the Blue Devils still looked sloppy in many areas for the second straight game, committing 11 turnovers and allowing the undersized Colonials—who had no starters taller than 6-foot-8—to grab 12 offensive rebounds.

Although Okafor had another strong game with 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting, the Chicago native kick-started Robert Morris' second-half spurt when he missed a reverse dunk attempt with his team ahead by 17. Krzyzewski immediately pulled out his National Player of the Year candidate and had a very clear message in the following timeout.

“You can’t do that. That’s the easy message—don’t do that,” Krzyzewski said. “Especially don’t do it when you’ve played four consecutive minutes and are tired.”

The Colonials followed the miscue with a big 10-0 run thanks to Pryor and guard Marcquise Reed—who added 22 points to go with Pryor’s 23—before Winslow and company got Duke going again to fly through the finish line.

“We really came together and responded,” redshirt junior center Marshall Plumlee said. “There was a timeout where it got a little emotional. [The finish] came from a little bit of emotion and drive.”

The Colonials ultimately could not get enough support for their leading duo, shooting just 36.4 percent against Duke's 2-2-1 zone press and man-to-man defenses to allow the Blue Devils to own a 46-24 advantage in points in the paint.

Plumlee and fellow reserve big man Amile Jefferson were a big reason why, as the duo combined for 20 points and 16 rebounds to overwhelm Robert Morris late in the game.

But although Plumlee—who recorded his first career double-double—and Jefferson did most of their scoring late in the game, Krzyzewski said their energy and communication were just as huge early on after his team fell behind 7-5.

“They were real veterans this game,” Krzyzewski said. “I thought at the beginning of the game a couple of our freshmen—they didn’t talk. They weren’t themselves. That’s why Marshall and Amile coming in the game gave us a huge boost.”

After what turned into a dominant victory, Duke will look to avoid more sluggish stretches in its Round of 32 contest against either St. John's or San Diego State Sunday. The Blue Devils knocked off the Red Storm in January to notch Krzyzewski's 1,000th career win.