WASHINGTON—Duke’s offense carried it to a win against N.C. State Wednesday, and after a brief absence to start the game, looks like it is firing on all cylinders once again.
Fifth-seeded Duke grabbed the advantage with a 13-0 run late in the half and leads fourth-seeded Notre Dame 45-37 at the Verizon Center after 20 minutes of play Thursday. Both offenses heated up after a slow start in what is shaping up to be another tight contest between the Blue Devils and the Fighting Irish.
Duke trailed 35-34 at the five-minute mark, but reeled off a 13-2 run to close the half and pull ahead. Freshman center Chase Jeter contributed five points in that span with a short jumper and an offensive rebound leading to an and-one three-point play.
Sophomore Grayson Allen also chipped in four points during the run and has paced the Blue Devil offense thus far with a game-high 18 points on 4-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.
Midway through the half, Allen was mauled by Notre Dame’s Steve Vasturia and Matt Ryan as he drove to the hoop on a fast break, hitting the ground hard as head coach Mike Krzyzewski protested for further punishment to be assessed. Allen calmly got up and drained both free throws, then splashed home a triple on Duke’s next possession that gave the Blue Devils a 15-14 lead.
A Blue Devil team already short on depth in the frontcourt got itself in serious foul trouble in the first half, with both Marshall Plumlee and Chase Jeter accruing multiple fouls. Plumlee was whisted for his second seven minutes into the contest, and Jeter promptly relieved him—but picked up two of his own in just a few minutes of play.
When Plumlee was called for a blocking foul with Fighting Irish forward Zach Auguste bearing down in the paint with 8:30 left in the half, Krzyzewski was forced to go with seldom-used Sean Obi on the inside.
Here are some observations from the first half:
- Despite breaking his nose in Wednesday’s win against N.C. State, Duke center Marshall Plumlee was in the starting lineup Thursday sporting a large mask strapped around his head that covered his nose.
- The Blue Devils opened in a 2-3 zone to combat Notre Dame’s floor spacing, and the Fighting Irish mimicked the scheme on their end of the floor.
- Both teams got off to slow starts offensively, combining to make just two of their first 11 attempts from the field before heating up as the period progressed.
- Redshirt sophomore Sean Obi entered the game with 8:30 remaining with both Plumlee and Jeter in foul trouble. Obi played just 21 total minutes during the regular season—and zero after Jan. 23 at N.C. State—but contributed two points and two rebounds in four minutes.
- The team’s were whistled for a combined 21 fouls in the first half, and Duke went 11-of-12 from the charity stripe.
- Notre Dame’s inside duo of Zach Auguste and Bonzie Colson has continued to have success against Duke, combining for 19 points and 12 rebounds in the first half as the Fighting Irish shot 56 percent from the field.
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