NEW YORK — The actual events of Duke’s 74-69 win over Michigan State last night may be overshadowed by head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s record-breaking moment.
However, that would overshadow one of the best performances by junior Andre Dawkins in a Duke uniform. The guard went 8-for-15 from the field, including a spellbinding 6-for-10 performance from downtown, en route to 26 points, three rebounds and four steals. Perhaps more importantly, Dawkins was hot when the rest of his team was not in the first half.
With the Blue Devils down two with 6:06 left in the first half, Dawkins hit a 3-pointer give Duke a one-point lead. With 4:16 left in the first period, he hit another trey to tie it up at 28. When Duke went into the locker room at the half, only up one, Dawkins stood out as the MVP for his team, with 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting.
“Andre had the best game of his career at Duke,” Krzyzewski said. “Not just the points, but he had four steals and no turnovers.”
Dawkins has had difficulties getting it going so far this year. The junior went 2-for-7 for six points against Belmont. He then went 1-for-3 for only four points in the blowout against Presbyterian.
It looked a bit like the guard was entering a similar lull that characterized his play during the second half of last season, in which he struggled to get his shot going and he sat for long stretches of time on the bench.
But last night, Dawkins turned it on, leading his team with 38 minutes of strong play.
Is it any wonder that Nolan Smith, after the junior hit his 20th point, Tweeted about Dawkins, “It’s a coming out party!”?
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