Beyond the arc: Duke men's basketball vs. Rhode Island

Despite playing their third game in the last six days and relying on their starters to play much of the contest, the top-ranked Blue Devils made easy work of No. 21 Rhode Island with a 75-65 victory in the championship game of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off. Duke managed to hold its own in the paint despite playing a four-guard lineup and used a strong shooting performance from sophomore Luke Kennard to move to 4-1 on the season. 

Revisiting the three keys to the game:

• Get the ball into Grayson Allen’s hands: Although the preseason All-American continues to battle injuries, Allen remains a playmaker for Duke. Despite finishing with just 10 points and missing all five of his shots from beyond the arc, the junior attacked the basket and used his penetration to set up looks for Kennard and senior Matt Jones. Allen and graduate student Amile Jefferson also showed a nice two-man game at times in the second half that led to decent looks near the basket. 
• Let Luke Kennard shine: The sophomore guard continued to be the most consistent offensive player for Duke and finished with a team-high 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting. After the Blue Devils struggled to score in the first 20 minutes, Kennard came out of halftime looking for his shot and led the way with 12 second-half points. The Franklin, Ohio, native's hot-hand eventually forced the Rams to look to trap the guard, leading to open shots for Kennard's teammates.  
• Continue to play lockdown defense on the perimeter: Duke held Rhode Island's best player E.C. Matthews to a season-low nine points and clamped down on the Rams' collection of guards. Although some of Rhode Island's struggles on offense can be attributed to a rough shooting afternoon, the Rams were also stymied by the Blue Devil man-to-man defense and looked befuddled on a couple of possessions against the Duke zone. 

Three key stats:

• Duke finishes just 6-of-21 from deep: The Blue Devils missed their first eight looks from beyond the arc, but proved that they are capable of getting points in different ways. Jones finished 2-of-7 from downtown and Allen and freshman guard Frank Jackson combined to miss all nine of their attempts. 
• The Blue Devils end up with a 36-35 rebound advantage: Undermanned and undersized, Duke was at its scrappy best Sunday afternoon and battled hard to end up with a slight advantage on the glass. Along with Jefferson's team-leading 15 rebounds, Kennard had seven boards and Allen finished with five to make up for the limitations of an injured Chase Jeter. 
• The Blue Devils never trail: With Duke's short rotation and the Rams playing very close to home, many thought Rhode Island could upend the Blue Devils Sunday. But the Blue Devils played one of their best games of the season and never let the Rams tie the game after the opening tip. Duke countered every Rhode Island run with a run of its own before using a 17-4 run that spanned both halves to pull away.    

Three key plays:

• 5:07 remaining, first half: After nailing a corner triple off a nice pass by Allen, Kennard appears to get tangled up with a fan sitting courtside. Although the sophomore spoke with the officials about the incident, it was not immediately clear what he was complaining about. Kennard appeared a bit frazzled during the next couple possessions as the Rams cut the deficit to 25-24 before Duke went on a run to end the half.
• 2:08 remaining, first half: Allen hits a runner in the lane to put him above the 1,000 point mark during his Duke career. Allen has not started the season as well as many expected, but became the 65th player in program history to reach this accomplishment. 
• 16:06 remaining, second half: Jefferson finishes through contact after a crafty feed by Allen for a three-point play. The play pushed the Blue Devil lead to 42-28 and drew a crucial third foul on Rhode Island big man Hassan Martin.

And the Duke game ball goes to.... Amile Jefferson