No. 1 Duke 75, No. 24 Temple 56, 1:03 remaining in the second half:
As the "Kyle Singler" chant rains down from the rafters of Cameron, this one is all over. Thanks for your patience tonight, and check the print edition for more complete coverage of the game.
No. 1 Duke 70, No. 24 Temple 54, 3:12 remaining in the second half:
Can't apologize enough for the state of the live blog tonight, folks, we'll get this back up and running smoothly for next time. In the meantime, Duke has run away from Temple in the second half. The Owls continue to shoot the ball exceptionally poorly, while Singler has shown why he was the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player one year ago, with 26 points and six rebounds already.
No. 1 Duke 43, No. 24 Temple 31, 15:58 remaining in the second half:
Nolan Smith celebrates a little after hitting a three just after the Temple timeout. Using his thumb and forefinger to form a circle around his eye, he used his other three fingers to make a "three" while staring right at the Temple bench. But Temple's Lavoy Allen hit from downtown on Temple's next possession to even it out. But the play of the sequence was Mason Plumlee's block, which he smacked off the backboard and out of bounds, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
No. 1 Duke 38, No. 24 Temple 26, 17:35 remaining in the second half:
Huge start for the Blue Devils coming out of the half. Fran Dunphy is forced to take a timeout after a Mason Plumlee-steal at midcourt opened up Smith for a reverse layup, completing the 7-2 Blue Devil run.
No. 1 Duke 31, No. 24 Temple 24, Halftime:
Interesting halftime notes:
Duke is 8-0f-9 from the charity stripe while the Owls have struggled, going 1-of-5.
The Blue Devils are shooting just 37% from the floor compared to Temple's 44%.
Duke has 14 points off turnovers while the Owls have just two.
No. 1 Duke 21, No. 24 Temple 18, 3:55 remaining in the first half:
My apologies for few posts throughout the first half, but the internet has been elusive. Fernandez went to the bench with three fouls and no points, a testament to the job being done on him defensively, mostly by Singler, who has been able to use his length to keep the native Argentinian out of the paint. Mason has had a tough game on offense with no points, but leads the team with five boards.
No. 1 Duke 19, No. 24 Temple 12, 8:44 remaining in the first half:
There have now been an incredible 15 fouls called in the first eleven minutes of the game. As those watching on TV know, it hasn’t been all that physical, but the referees are calling it tight. And, Josh Hairston just checked into the game for the first time while Andre Dawkins is still wearing his warmups on the bench. But, that’s probably explained by the height advantage the Blue Devils have with three forwards on the floor.
No. 1 Duke 9, No. 24 Temple 9, 12:35 remaining in the first half: Miles Plumlee's two quick fouls—on consecutive possessions, no less—just forced Duke to give up its height advantage, as Tyler Thornton checks in for Kelly. Maybe it's to the Blue Devils' benefit though, as Thornton completes a pretty drive to tie the game at nine.
No. 1 Duke 4, No. 24 Temple 7, 15:29 remaining in the first half: Temple's three-guard lineup is leaving either Singler or Kelly mismatched on offense, as both are more than four inches taller than the nearest Owl guard. So far though, the Blue Devils haven't been able to truly capitalize, though Singler accounts for Duke's four points thus far.
Pregame: Welcome to the first live blog in the Blue Zone, the Chronicle's new-and-improved sports blog. It's a great game to christen the new digs, as the No. 23 Owls come to Cameron Indoor Stadium to provide the toughest nonconference competition the Blue Devils will see before the NCAA Tournament next month.
Without further ado, here are the likely starting lineups.
Temple Owls:
#24 Lavoy Allen, F
#32 Rahlir Jefferson, F
#22 Aaron Brown, G
#23 Ramone Moore, G
#4 Juan Fernandez, G
Duke Blue Devils:
#2 Nolan Smith, G
#30 Seth Curry, G
#5 Mason Plumlee, F
#12 Kyle Singler, F
#34 Ryan Kelly, F
Storylines abound in tonight's matchup. Will Singler finally break out of his slump? Will Curry be able to stay in front of the Owls' Fernandez and Moore? Can Smith continue to make his case for the Naismith Trophy? Will Andre Dawkins' playing time continue to decrease?
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