CHARLOTTE — With three ticks left on the clock, senior Daniel Ewing awaited the inbound pass with a huge grin on his face. He knew he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
After battling the Bulldogs for 40 draining minutes Sunday, Duke (27-5) escaped the Charlotte Coliseum with a 63-55 victory over Mississippi State on its way to its eighth straight appearance in the Sweet 16. The top-seeded Blue Devils will meet fifth-seeded Michigan State Friday in Austin, Texas.
“[At that point] they had no chance of winning,” Ewing said of his smirk. “It was just a relief being able to realize that I’m going back close to home, that we had won a good game, and we got Coach K a real big milestone.”
The win put head coach Mike Krzyzewski ahead of former North Carolina head coach Dean Smith for most all-time NCAA Tournament wins with 66.
Ewing was the hero for the Blue Devils Sunday, scoring 22 points, more than a third of the team’s total output.
“Our senior was the best player on the court tonight—Daniel Ewing,” Krzyzewski said. “He was sensational.”
Leading 55-53 with less than two minutes to play, J.J. Redick stole the ball from the Bulldogs’ Gary Ervin near midcourt and took off toward the other end. Winsome Frazier blocked Redick’s layup attempt, but Ewing trailed the play and put in the deflection to give Duke a four-point cushion.
After Mississippi State’s Lawrence Roberts dunked home two of his 17 points to pull the game back within two, Ewing scored another big basket. He drove the ball down to the left block and banked in the game’s final field goal.
“It was tough to score today,” Krzyzewski said. “They played really good defense, and obviously we did too. We feel fortunate to win.”
Just as it had in the second half of Friday’s game against Delaware State and throughout the year, the Blue Devils clamped down on the defensive end. They were successfully able to funnel Mississippi State players toward the baseline, where help side defense awaited.
Although Duke was only credited for six blocks, the tandem of Shelden Williams and Shavlik Randolph altered many other shots and held the Bulldogs to 32.3 percent shooting.
“We played really good defense today, and we rebounded well against a rebounding team,” Krzyzewski said. “Besides Daniel and Shelden’s performances, the story of the game was we were able to rebound with them and we continued to play good defense.”
After leading by eight at halftime, Duke built the lead to 11 before Mississippi State came storming back. Protecting a 40-36 lead, Ewing and Redick missed layups on consecutive trips down the court, and the Bulldogs’ Ontario Harper hit a three.
Coming out of a 30-second Duke timeout, Williams’ dunk attempt was stuffed by the front rim, and Ervin made a layup at the other end to give the Bulldogs a one-point lead heading into the media timeout. It was in that huddle that Krzyzewski said his team regrouped and showed its tough character.
“We said, ‘Look, you’re getting great shots, you’re really good players—just don’t let it affect your defense, your offense will come,’” Krzyzewski said. “That’s the kind of team I’ve had all year. Those were three big misses.”
The Blue Devils regained the lead on two Redick free throws, and he hit a three-pointer less than a minute later. Although Redick finished the game with 16 points, he struggled from the field for the second consecutive game. The junior shot just 5-for-17, which includes 2-for-9 from three-point range, as Frazier held him in check.
“When they had Campbell and Roberts in at the same time, every time we drove they had two shot blockers in there,” Redick said. “Another time I drove, the kid Harper took a charge on me so they played real good interior defense.”
Mississippi State, which is one of the biggest teams Duke has faced all season, made a concerted effort to attack the inside and get Williams and Randolph in foul trouble. Although Williams picked up his third foul with 18:03 remaining, he played the rest of the game without ever picking up his fourth. Randolph was whistled for his fourth with 14:29 to go, and sat for a short period, but also avoided the disqualification. Their presence was key to the win as each recorded a block in the final minute.
“I’ve been in this situation all year and so have our guys so they don’t look at it as tenuous,” Krzyzewski said of having to play through foul trouble. “I don’t like it but we’re accustomed to it, so we just play.”
The Blue Devils will now prep for a rematch with Michigan State, a team they beat 81-74 Nov. 30.
NOTES:
When the Blue Devils travel to Austin, Texas for next weekend’s regional finals it will be Daniel Ewing’s first trip back to his home state since high school.... Duke has kept its opponents under 70 points in its last eight games and allowed them to shoot just .281 from three-point range.... The Blue Devils are now 35-6 as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.... With N.C. State advancing over Connecticut and North Carolina winning over Iowa State, all three of the triangle area schools will be in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1989 and the third time overall.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.