After a heart-pounding 62-61 victory against a struggling Boston College squad on the road two weeks ago, order was restored when the Blue Devils and Eagles squared off at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke used a huge first-half run and superb play by freshman Rasheed Sulaimon to take control of the contest early and held on for an easy 89-68 victory.
Here's your postgame recap:
Revisiting the three keys to the game:
- Can the Blue Devils stop Ryan Anderson and Olivier Hanlan? Duke couldn't keep Boston College's top two scorers completely out of the contest, but the majority of Anderon and Hanlan's production came after this game was over. The pair combined for 35 points, but it was not nearly enough to make this one a contest after an early Duke run took the Eagles out of the game.
- Will Josh Hairston continue his hot streak? Hairston could not replicate his back-to-back 11-point performances in Duke's previous two games, managing just three points on the afternoon on just 1-of-3 shooting from the floor. The junior did not see nearly as many minutes thanks to freshman Amile Jefferson's energy off the bench. The duo have been platooning at the power forward position in the absence of Ryan Kelly, so it will be interesting to see which of these two earn the start the next time the Blue Devils take the floor against Virginia.
- Can Duke repeat its strong performance on the glass? The Blue Devils held a slight edge on the glass, outrebounding Boston College 30-26 in the contest, but against an undersized Eagle front line Duke arguably could have held a more convincing advantage. Mason Plumlee was a one-man wrecking crew for the Blue Devils on the boards, pulling down 15 rebounds. No other Duke player recorded more than three rebounds on the afternoon.
Three key plays:
- 13:49, first half. Quinn Cook comes up with a steal and pushes the ball ahead to Plumlee, who finishes with a right-handed lay-in at the rim and draws a foul in the process. This play energized the crowd and forced Boston College to take a timeout. Plumlee nailed the free throw after the timeout to give Duke a 13-5 lead.
- 1:49, first half. For the second straight trip up the floor, Amile Jefferson exhibits excellent body control and finishes off the glass for the hoop plus the harm. Jefferson knocked down the free throw on both possessions to extend Duke's advantage to 45-19 and finished the game with 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
- 14:42, second half. Boston College came out with more energy in the second half, but a flagrant foul by Hanlan stopped the Eagles' 6-0 run. Cook stepped to the line and knocked down both free throws. Duke retained possession and Sulaimon added a nifty reverse layup to put the momentum back squarely in the Blue Devils' corner.
Three key stats:
- Career-high 27 points for Rasheed Sulaimon: The freshman shooting guard was a man on a mission, shooting 10-of-15 from the field en route to the highest-scoring performance of his Duke career. Sulaimon made just three attempts from 3-point range but knocked down a bevy of mid-range jumpers and made some shifty moves at the rim against taller defenders.
- Mason Plumlee shot 11-of-15 from the line: Plumlee took just seven attempts from the field, but he made it to the line 15 times on the afternoon and converted on most of his opportunities. Plumlee finished with 19 points on the afternoon and appears to have recovered from his mid-season slump from the charity stripe.
- Four assists for Mason Plumlee: Duke's big man dished out five assists in the team's last game against Virginia Tech, and added another four dimes to his stat sheet this afternoon against the Eagles. Plumlee's ability to distribute from the post is an indicator that the Blue Devils are continuing to be efficient in their inside-outside game. During Duke's first-half runs, Plumlee found a number of open Blue Devils on the perimeter and made pinpoint dishes to Cook and Jefferson for open layups. The potential for even more assists looms as Ryan Kelly and his marksman shooting inch closer and closer to a return.
And the Duke game ball goes to... Rasheed Sulaimon. This game belonged to Rasheed Sulaimon. It seemed as though every time the Blue Devils went on a run and put the game further out of reach, it was Duke's freshman shooting guard serving as the team's catalyst. Sulaimon was all over the floor and was able to make a play almost every time he touched the ball.
And the Boston College game ball goes to... Ryan Anderson. His team never had much of a chance after a 23-4 Duke run in the first half, but the Eagles' sophomore forward still went for 23 points and had to work hard for every one of them. Despite Boston College's struggle the last two seasons, its star player continues to improve, and two solid performances against the Blue Devils this season are likely a positive sign of things to come for the Eagles.
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