The Breslin Center is supposed to be one of the toughest places in the country to play, but Wednesday night in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge the Blue Devils silenced the crowd. Led by Shelden Williams' dominating seven-of-eight shooting performance in the post and point guard Chris Duhon's floor leadership, sixth-ranked Duke (4-1) cruised over No. 5 Michigan State (3-2) 72-50 in front of almost 15,000 stunned fans.
After struggling offensively in the opening minutes, the Blue Devils employed a swarming defense to jumpstart a formerly sluggish offensive unit and pulled away from the Spartans before the half.
"We know this is a perimeter-oriented team, and in order for us to be successful tonight on the perimeter, we had to do a good job on their perimeter," Duhon said. "We just fought them for 40 minutes."
Duke's 20-2 run during the first half was propelled by 17 forced turnovers. The Blue Devils intercepted Spartan passes on numerous occasions and at other points simply took the ball out of Michigan State's hands. Duke recorded 13 first-half steals, leading to 13 points off turnovers.
With four minutes remaining before the half, the Blue Devils held a 33-15 lead and went into the break with a commanding 14-point advantage.
"In the first half, I think we were as efficient, or had as good as offensive possessions as we'd had all season," said sophomore Shavlik Randolph, who muscled in 11 points. "Our defense is always solid, but to be a great team you've got to have both [offense and defense] and put them together for 40 minutes."
Duke all but sealed the victory with an early second half spurt. The Blue Devils scored the first six points of the second stanza to earn a 20-point cushion. From there, the road team slowed the pace of attack and the lead oscillated around the 20-point mark for the remainder of the contest.
The Blue Devil offense was generated by excellent passing, which gave Duke's low-post duo of Williams and Randolph a plethora of open layups. Both big men shot and rebounded superbly well, pulling down a combined 15 boards, seven of which came on the offensive end. Williams added to Duke's stifling defensive effort with five blocks.
"We had a lot of energy and for the first time, our big guys played like big guys," Krzyzewski said.
Duhon, who played all but one minute of last night's game, displayed his experience, leading Duke with six assists. The senior from Slidell, La., who has played in many big games for the Blue Devils, added 10 points--most resulting from drives to the basket. Also, at the point guard position, playing along side Duhon at times and getting a rare start, Sean Dockery contributed defensive pressure and four points.
"For us, Duhon was spectacular in his leadership," Krzyzewski said. "We got a really good contribution from Sean Dockery."
With the insertion of Dockery, the Blue Devils mixed up their starting lineup as Krzyzewski elected to sit both J.J. Redick and Daniel Ewing--who is still recovering from injury--for the opening tip.
"It was coach's decision," Ewing said. "I respect it. The way we [Ewing and Redick] played, we kind of deserved it. We had to support those who started and we did."
Redick came into the game and contributed 13 points. Like usual, the sophomore shot primarily from behind the arch, launching nine and netting three.
While the Duke offense marshaled a 60 percent field goal percentage, able to dissect an inexperienced Spartan defense, the Blue Devils held the home team to a meager 40 percent from the field.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo was visibly disappointed with his team's lackluster showing, even referring to the performance as an embarrassment to his school.
"It got to a point where it didn't seem like we wanted to play and this is my responsibility, so I owe an apology to 15,000 people," Izzo said, shouldering the responsibility for his team's play. "Today was a big day for me, a big day for our program, and we got kicked."
On the contrary, after handing the Spartans their worst home loss in 106 games, Krzyzewski was excited about the Blue Devils play considering the difficult environment of the Breslin Center.
"The crowd here was great. It was an honor to play here..." Krzyzewski said. "We understand that they are a very good basketball team. We feel fortunate to have won tonight."
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