There were some unsuspected heroes in the men's basketball showdown Friday against Villanova. With all the factors going into the game, the second-ranked Blue Devils certainly had enough reason to win.
And win they did.
Duke (2-0) defeated the Wildcats (1-1) 98-85, which represented coach Mike Krzyzewski's 500th career win. And now the famous court bears his name: "Coach K Court" at Cameron Indoor Stadium was presented in a celebration after the game.
Pressure was the theme of the game as the Blue Devils spent most of the night defending full court. Duke hit 59 percent from the field, and six players scored in double-figures. The Wildcat team wore out, and Duke steadily pulled further and further away. The start was a little slow for the Blue Devils, but Carlos Boozer, with some help from Mike Dunleavy, quickly eliminated the only lead the Wildcats had, in the first 10 minutes of the game.
"He gave us a big boost," Krzyzewski said. "We couldn't get him the ball too much against Princeton, so we consciously tried to get him the ball tonight."
Boozer's performance declined in the second half, but he finished the game in double-figures as he hit 9-of-15 shots. A beautiful dunk off a pass from Jason Williams gave Duke a 67-53 lead with 12:25 left. Boozer also secured six rebounds and five steals.
The Blue Devils capitalized on Villanova's weakening defense, especially in the first half, when Duke forced the Wildcats to give up the ball 18 times. In the end, Villanova's mistakes gave Duke 42 points off turnovers.
"The problem is that they scored 25 points in the first half off of our turnovers," Villanova coach Steve Lappus said. "I was pleased with our effort, but disappointed in some areas, definitely."
With two minutes to go in the first half, Villanova forward Gary Buchanan hit a two-pointer to tighten the lead to 44-40 right after a timeout. Duke answered with Williams tearing down the court and making a gorgeous shot.
The half ended with Chris Duhon falling away and hitting a three-point shot from the 25-foot mark as the buzzer sounded, giving the Blue Devils a 51-40 lead going into the second half. Duhon also finished the night in double-figures with 17 points, including four three-pointers and a 6-for-8 night from the floor. He also had four assists in the game. This was a change from the Princeton game, where Duhon was a presence on the court, but did not contribute any points in the scoring column.
"I have always felt confident," Duhon said. "I got a lot of criticism because I didn't score in the first game, but I still think I played a great game [against Princeton], and I had a good game the second game."
The Blue Devils started to put the game away in the second half. Williams, who injured his ankle early, had to leave the game for several minutes but returned later to finish the night with 13 points and 10 assists.
The leading man on the night for the Wildcats was undoubtedly Kentucky transfer Michael Bradley, whose versatility playing inside was the force behind most of the scoring on the Villanova side.
"We beat an outstanding basketball team tonight," Krzyzewski said. "They're tough to defend. They made some beautiful plays, especially the big guys."
Bradley dominated in both the first and second halves for Villanova, as he played 35 minutes and went 12-for-16 with 28 points.
Other leaders for the Wildcats were forwards Aaron Matthews and Brook Sales. Matthews went 5-for-7 on the night and scored 10 points. Sales never missed a shot, going 4-for-4 and scoring 10 points.
"We wanted to try to take Buchanan and Medley out of the game because they're such good shooters," Krzyzewski said. "Overall I think we did a good job on that, but as a result of being with them so close, we didn't have our normal help in defending the drive. I felt that they really drove on us."
With 12:10 left to go in the game, Nate James recovered a missed shot by Shane Battier and put back a powerful dunk that left the rim shaking and added another two points to the lead. James' jam prompted a timeout call from the Villanova bench.
As the minutes ticked off the clock at the end of the game, the fans chanted "500 more!"
As the NIT tournament continues over Thanksgiving break, the Blue Devils play Texas in the semifinals Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
"We get a chance now to go up to New York and play two more games, so that's great," Krzyzewski said. "We're looking forward to playing Texas."
Note: Tickets for the NIT semifinals and finals, played in New York Wednesday and Friday, go on sale at the ticket office from 9 a.m. to noon today. Tickets cost $20 for students who present their DukeCard and either cash, check, Visa or MasterCard. Students must display their DukeCards again in New York, where the tickets will be waiting for them.
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