Final Score: No. 1 Duke 83, Bradley 48
Garbage time is.....well garbage time. It's getting a little sloppy out here. But, Andre Dawkins is still on the court, and a nice finish in the lane puts him up to 25 points for the night. Little used Bradley reserve Milos Knezevic knocks down a three...has to be a nice thrill to do that in Cameron. Anyways, Dawkins right hand is still smoldering. He sinks yet another three. On the other end, Josh Hairston displays some nice verticality with a swat on a drive.
This one is in the books; thanks for following tonight. Look for the game story and analysis in tomorrow's Chronicle. Check www.dukechronicle.com.
--Alex Krinsky and Jason Palmatary....until next time
3:54 2nd Half: No. 1 Duke 73, Bradley 43
Nolan Smith's struggles from the field continue, as he is now 0-for-8 from the field. After a pair of missed Bradley free throws. Miles Plumlee took advantage off good post position and a solid entry pass. WIth a nice left-hand finish he is still a perfect 7-for-7 from the field. For Bradley, Warren just knocked down a straight-on three, and Lemon had a breakaway dunk. But, it is going to be too little too late for the Braves as we prepare for garbage time.
7:13 2nd Half: No. 1 Duke 71, Bradley 34
Bradley freshman guard Walt Lemon Jr. has been particulary impressive tonight, especially for a youngster making his first appearance in a big-time atmosphere. A nice finish off a drive gives him 10 for the night. Duke is starting to take advantage off its size inside, as Mason Plumlee got his first bucket off the night on an assertive post move.
Dawkins just sunk another three-ball; he now has six on the night and 19 points. Braves' guard Andrew Warren just had a nice backdoor cut to get a basket. But credit to the Blue Devils as they have held Bradley's leading scorer to just four points.
Dawkins again from free (seven on the game), and Singler hits a three after a Bradley miss to force a timeout. The Cameron Crazies are whipped up to a frenzy pitch. The Blue Devils are on fire from downtown right now.
11:45 2nd Half: No. 1 Duke 56, Bradley 29
The Blue Devils are certainly finding their strokes this half as Curry just drained what was a wide open layup. On the next trip, Miles Plumlee with a nifty left-handed finish off of a good pass from his brother. This is as well as Miles Plumlee has played this year. And, then off a Mason Plumlee kickout, Singler drills another three. Bradley has picked up their play behind the efforts of Dunson.
15:09 2nd Half: No. 1 Duke 48, Bradley 22
The halftime break wasn't enough to cool off Dawkins. On the first possession of the half, the sophomore buried a three from the right corner, bringing his point total to 15 for the night. Next possession, Duke fumbled away a rebound and Bradley guard Dodie Dunson scooped up the loose ball and got a two.
Wow, my partner Jason Palmatary and I just now noticed what a non-factor Mason Plumlee has been tonight. After a scoreless first half, he starts this one off by missing a point blank layup and then getting stripped on a subsequent post move.
Nolan Smith just got himself on the scoreboard at the 17:10 mark in the second half on a pair of free throws after a great crossover to get into the lane.
The Blue Devils are starting to heat up a bit as Singler and Kelly have drained threes on back to back possessions to stretch the Duke lead to 22. And, then Seth Curry gets into the act. Back-to-back-to-back threes for the Blue Devils.
Halftime Reflections:
Duke struggled shooting the ball in the first half, only shooting 38% from the floor. Fortunately, they demonstrated tremendous tenacity on the defensive end and were able to hold the Braves to just 18 first half points on 30% shooting from the field. Most of Bradley's scoring has come from forward Will Egolf, who has nine points.
For the Blue Devils, the story was Andre Dawkins who stepped into the starting lineup in Irving's absence and nailed four three-pointers. Singler had a bit of a slow start but picked up his play late to finish with eight points and two rebounds. Miles Plumlee, also in the starting lineup for the first time in a while, had eight points and four rebounds, showing a greater ability to finish around the basket than he had earlier in the season.
Lastly, the big concern for Duke has to be the play of Nolan Smith. He has looked a little shaky in patches this year (Michigan State comes to mind), and he is scoreless so far tonight and has turned the ball over twice.
End of 1st Half, No. 1 Duke 32, Bradley 18
After hitting three straight free throws, Singler seems to have found his rhythm as he followed with a trey from the top of the key. Alarming for Duke is Smith's struggles so far tonight. He is 0-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the line and has two turnovers. On a positive note, Smith does have five assists. To finish the half, Miles Plumlee threw down another dunk, and the Blue Devils head into the locker room with a 14 point lead.
3:04 1st Half, No. 1 Duke 24, Bradley 17
Duke has looked very sloppy offensively. Some unexpected contributors pitching in for Duke. Ryan Kelly was able to contribute a bucket in the paint, tipping in another Singler miss, and Josh Hairston hit a mid-range jumper. Coach K took a timeout following a Jordan Prosser slam dunk that shortened the Duke lead to 9. While we have to expect he's unhappy with his team's play so far, Bradley has been doing a good job scoring points down low.
7:25 1st Half, No. 1 Duke 20, Bradley 9
The Blue Devils are starting to build a substantial lead as Dawkins hits another trey. Duke's length is causing problems for the Braves, as they are shooting a miserable 23.5% from the field on 4-17. Singler and Smith continue to struggle for Duke, as they are a combined 1-6 from the field, and 0-2 from the charity stripe. If Irving's absence is extended, these veterans will have to pick up their game.
9:59 1st Half: No.1 Duke 17, Bradley 5
Dre all day. Dawkins is heating up. He's hit threes on consecutive possessions, forcing Bradley head coach Jim Les to take a quick timeout.
11:46 1st Half: No. 1 Duke 9, Bradley 5
After an ugly shot earlier in the game, Singler found his stroke with a smooth jumper on the in-bound play. Braves freshman Walt Lemon Jr. took advantage of an open look from beyond the arc and hit a trey. Meanwhile, Seth Curry continues to struggle as he is 0-2 from the field. He took a long three that bounced in and out, and then followed with an air ball. Duke is 1-9 shooting threes so far, and only scored two points over a four minute stretch.
15:47 1st Half: No. 1 Duke 7, Bradley 2
Duke got things rolling immediately, with an alley-oop from Nolan Smith to Miles Plumlee just after tip-off, and a three from Andre Dawkins in the corner on the next possession. Plumlee does not plan to take this start for granted, and followed with another alley-oop, this time from Kyle Singler. Not much has gone right for the Braves offensively, with several missed shots and turnovers.
Pregame:
Welcome to The Chronicle's live blog of tonight's matchup between the No. 1 Duke Blue Devils and the Bradley Braves. After a brutal stretch in the non-conference schedule that resulted in wins over Marquette, Oregon, then No.4 Kansas State, then No. 6 Michigan State and Butler, tonight's contest is somewhat of a relief for the Blue Devils as they take on an overmatched Bradley squad. The Bears have lost their last four games. Even though freshman sensation Kyrie Irving is out with a toe injury, Duke is still favored by 28 points here in Cameron Indoor. With Irving out of the lineup indefinitely, it will be interesting to see how guards Nolan Smith, Andre Dawkins and Seth Curry pick up the slack in the backcourt.
While many Duke students are overwhelmed with preparation for final exams and papers, the student section is just about as empty as I've ever seen it. Even Greek Night and an email plea from the line monitors could not persuade the usual crowd to come out for the game.
Lineups:
Duke
#2 Nolan Smith Guard
#20 Andre Dawkins Guard
#12 Kyle Singler Forward
#21 Miles Plumlee Forward
#5 Mason Plumlee Forward
Bradley
#1 Dodie Dunson Guard
#24 Andrew Warren Guard
#25 Walt Lemon Jr. Guard
#44 Jordan Prosser Center
#54 Will Egolf Forward
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