GREENSBORO - It wasn't pretty, but Duke knocked off Southern University to move into the second round of the NCAA Tournament Thursday night.
The top-ranked and top-seeded Blue Devils led by nine at halftime but failed to record a field goal until the 16:08 mark as the 16th-seeded Jaguars clawed their way back into the game and cut the Duke lead down three.
The Blue Devils (31-3), however, responded with a 13-1 run and cruised to a 70-54 victory at the Greensboro Coliseum as they advanced past the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the 10th-consecutive season.
"I think part of it was that we thought it was going to be easy, and this tournament is not easy," head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Hopefully, we learned that lesson."
With its victory over Southern (19-13), Duke will meet No. 14 George Washington in the second round Saturday afternoon in Greensboro. The eighth-seeded Colonials (27-2) rallied from 18 back Thursday to beat UNC-Wilmington, 88-85, in an overtime thriller.
Just like they have all season, the duo of J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams led Duke to victory. The seniors scored 29 points apiece and accounted for all but 12 of the Blue Devils points.
Williams' 29 points were one shy of a career high set Nov. 25 against Memphis and his 18 rebounds were also one off his career mark.
"They played great," freshman point guard Greg Paulus said. "Shelden and J.J., they've been doing a great job for us all year long, they were terrific again tonight."
In Duke's 13-1 run, Redick hit two three pointers, including one of one his trademark pump-fake and step-back long balls. Williams routinely caused problems for Southern in the paint as he shot 12-for-17 from the field and 5-for-8 from the charity stripe.
Freshman Josh McRoberts notched eight points and was the only other Blue Devil to record a field goal on the night. Fellow starters Paulus and Sean Dockery combined for just two points, which came when Paulus hit a pair of free throws with the outcome decided and less than two minutes remaining.
Paulus also struggled with seven turnovers, including three in the first 90 seconds of the second half when the Jaguars made their run, but tallied eight assists and four steals on the night to help in the Blue Devils' victory.
"We're not who we are without him," Krzyzewski said. "He didn't have the game that he would like, but we wouldn't be a No. 1 seed if he didn't play well."
Krzyzewski added that his team would not be able to turn the ball over 20 times, as it did Thursday, and expect to beat George Washington.
"I watched them a couple times during the season," he said. "I know they have great depth and they like to play a fast-paced game, which lends itself to more people scoring."
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