CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — Last year, the low point of Duke’s season was a six-point loss at Boston College, its fourth defeat in six games.
The Blue Devils weren’t going to let that happen again.
Playing less than 48 hours after an 86-67 win over Georgia Tech, No. 10 Duke used a late first-half run to push its halftime lead to 10 points, and then it fought off a second-half Eagle rally to earn its second road win of the season Saturday in Conte Forum.
“We knew coming in that this was going to be a big game for us,” junior forward Kyle Singler said. “Thinking back on last year, we knew that this was a turning point in our season. So it’s kind of ironic, at this point in the year, winning [at Boston College]. Hopefully it turns our season around again.”
But this time, the team’s improvement won’t have to wait until after the Boston College game. After getting blown out at Georgetown Jan. 30, Duke responded this week by disposing of No. 21 Georgia Tech Thursday and then toppling the Eagles (12-11, 3-6 in the ACC) Saturday.
“Coming up here, we had to make a lot of changes after this game [last year],” guard Nolan Smith said. “This year, we made changes before this game. It worked, but now we’re [still] not satisfied.”
Singler, Smith and Jon Scheyer led the way for the Blue Devils, playing 119 of a possible 120 minutes and scoring a combined 54 points. But it was senior center Brian Zoubek who ensured that Duke (19-4, 7-2) wouldn’t have another nightmare in Boston, where its season ended in the NCAA Tournament last year.
Moments after draining a rainbow 3-pointer to pull his team within a point of the Blue Devils, Boston College guard Reggie Jackson brought the ball up the court with the Eagles one long ball away from forcing overtime. Jackson was swarmed by the Duke defense and swung the ball to the top of the key to Joe Trapani. Trapani, Boston College’s second-best 3-point shooter, momentarily had an open look, but the 7-foot-1 Zoubek quickly closed out on him. Trapani was forced to hoist a contested 3-pointer that clanged off the front of the iron, clinching Duke’s 66-63 victory over the Eagles.
“Zoubek made the play of the game,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We have a close-out drill, where it doesn’t make any difference who you are—perimeter or big guy. If you see a shooter, you have to have a sense of urgency, and he had the sense of urgency of a senior.”
That play capped a whirlwind trip for the Blue Devils, who had just one day off between games and got as much as they could handle from Boston College. The Blue Devils also made their own lives more difficult by not capitalizing on offensive opportunities.
Before Smith and Scheyer made four clutch free throws in the final 30 seconds, Duke shot just 11-for-22 from the charity stripe. The Blue Devils also misfired on a number of easy looks inside all afternoon, highlighted by Mason Plumlee’s missed dunk with just more than four minutes remaining.
But Duke converted when it mattered most. The Blue Devils made 6-of-8 free throws in the final minute, including splits by freshmen Ryan Kelly and Andre Dawkins. Dawkins had not seen any game action before that—he also didn’t register action against Georgia Tech—and he made his first free throw to give Duke a two-possession lead.
“For people who don’t play basketball, that’s a really tough thing to do, [to] come in the end and hit a free throw cold like that,” Scheyer said. “I can’t say enough about him.”
That free throw proved important with Jackson’s proficiency from beyond the arc. And when the Eagles’ sophomore guard was forced to give up the ball on the final possession and Trapani’s desperation heave missed, Duke avoided any 2009 flashbacks and simultaneously built on the momentum of the Georgia Tech victory.
“We needed to win this game,” Krzyzewski said. “Missing layups, free throws against a really good [team]—we needed to win this game. It’s a big, big win for our basketball team based on how things have gone for us.”
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