RALEIGH, N.C.—For the first time in the post-Kyrie era, it was all about the post players.
Poor shooting nights by Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler left most of the scoring load on the Plumlees and Ryan Kelly, who proved ready for the challenge. Smith led all scorers with 22 points on 9-for-19 shooting, while Singler overcame an ice-cold start to add 18. The interior trio, however, turned it on for the No. 4 Blue Devils (17-1, 4-1 in the ACC), neutralizing N.C. State’s talented post players and leading Duke to a 92-78 victory on the road Wednesday. Miles Plumlee recorded 11 points and eight rebounds, and his brother Mason added 10 rebounds and six blocks.
“Offensive rebounds are big plays and they take a lot out of the other team,” Mason Plumlee said. “They’re undersized down low, so I just tried to stay big and get my hands on a few balls.”
But the first half was all about defense for the Blue Devils, who held the Wolfpack (11-7, 1-3) to just 21.6 percent shooting in the period. Tracy Smith, N.C. State’s leading scorer entering Wednesday night, was the only player to provide an offensive spark in the opening half, picking up eight points on 3-for-7 shooting. In contrast, the team’s next four top scorers for the season shot an abysmal 1-for-20 from the field, posting a total of nine points.
The Wolfpack’s offensive woes were not the result of missed open opportunities, but rather the result of Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly on the inside. The pair combined to block seven shots in the first half and altered the trajectory of every heave made within 15 feet of the hoop.
“Tonight Duke was the best shot-blocking team in the country,” N.C. State head coach Sidney Lowe said. “That’s all I’m going to say about it.”
Duke shot 50 percent from the floor in the opening period, and Andre Dawkins put the Wolfpack in a deep hole early in the game by making his first four shots, finishing with 8 points on 4-for-8 shooting. While the Blue Devils held just a 14-point lead at halftime, 42-28, the game did not appear to be even that close.
“I thought we were playing better than the score in the first half,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We thought we had some really good open looks, even in the last minute, to put us up 16, 18—even 20.”
But the start of the second half could not have been any more different. After Kelly began the scoring with a jumper, N.C. State’s halftime adjustments—running out a large lineup similar to the one Florida State used last week—led to a 9-0 run.
“We actually ran that group in practice; we thought today we’d probably need it,” Lowe said. “I was pleased with that lineup. Obviously they gave us good energy and got us back in it.”
Nine players saw significant court time for the Blue Devils in an effort to combat the various lineups shown by N.C. State. Kelly had his most efficient offensive performance of the season, scoring 11 points on 4-for-4 shooting, while Tyler Thornton made the most of his 11 minutes by playing tenacious defense and making a big 3-pointer in the first half.
The Wolfpack never let Duke extend its lead past 16 in the second half, using the athleticism of freshman C.J. Leslie to battle for putbacks around the rim. Leslie, after an 0-for-6 first half, had the game’s most electrifying highlight, splitting two Blue Devil defenders before throwing down a thunderous dunk.
“You’ve got to be impressed with Leslie’s athleticism,” Krzyzewski said. “He’s got pro athletic ability and is a monster on the boards.”
But N.C. State would not get any closer than eight points down the stretch as Singler heated up from 3-point range. Smith added four points in the final 3:25 to seal the victory for the Blue Devils.
At the end of the day, though, the Plumlee brothers and Kelly kept the two stars’ cold shooting night from halting Duke’s momentum.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.