Beyond the arc: Duke men's basketball vs. Virginia Tech

After finishing nonconference play on a 10-game winning streak, the Blue Devils found themselves on the wrong end of a one-sided 89-75 loss to Virginia Tech in their first true road game of the season and the team’s ACC opener.

Revisiting the three keys to the game:

• Replace Grayson Allen’s production: Starting in Allen’s place, freshman Frank Jackson was most responsible for picking up the suspended junior’s production. Jackson could only muster six points on 3-of-9 shooting, though, a far cry from Allen’s 16.0 points per game. Luke Kennard and Jayson Tatum essentially provided all of Duke’s offense in Blacksburg, Va.
• Dominate the paint: Despite winning the rebounding battle, the Blue Devils struggled to defend the paint as Virginia Tech got to the rim with ease. The Hokies matched Duke with 44 points in the paint despite the longer Blue Devil frontcourt collecting 18 offensive boards.
• Win the turnover battle: Duke lost a narrow turnover battle, giving the ball up 11 times to Virginia Tech's nine. Graduate student Amile Jefferson was responsible for four turnovers while Tatum and Kennard gave away three and two, respectively.

Three key stats:

• Duke gives up 89 points: By far a season high—the most points the Blue Devils had given up previously this season was 77 in a loss against Kansas—Duke looked lost on defense as the Hokies attacked the basket with ease.
• Virginia Tech shoots 61.5 percent from beyond the arc: The confusion on defense did not stop in the paint, as the Hokies sunk eight triples. Duke’s perimeter defense was thoroughly gashed by Virginia Tech guards Ahmed Hill and Justin Bibbs. Bibbs ultimately finished with a team-high 18 points on 4-of-5 shooting from behind the 3-point line.
• Marques Bolden and Harry Giles go 2-of-8 from the field combined: The twin towers of Duke’s prized freshman class, Giles and Bolden are still working their way up to full speed in the lineup, but their inexperience is hurting the Blue Devils right now. Giles only registered four points on 2-of-6 shooting despite coming into college as one of the most fearsome offensive players in his class, and Bolden missed both of his shot attempts in three minutes and provided little resistance on defense.

Three key plays:

• 4:35 remaining, first half: As Duke struggled shooting and the Hokie lead was ballooning, Virginia Tech's Justin Robinson collected a defensive rebound at the elbow and muscled his way into the lane for an easy layup on the other end that put the Hokies ahead 36-21.
• 15:30 remaining, second half: After Kennard knocked down a triple to pull the Blue Devils within 11—the closest they got in the second half—Bibbs responded on the other end with a 3-pointer of his own to push Virginia Tech's cushion back to 14.
• 1:10 remaining, second half: Robinson got a steal under his own basket and fired a one-handed pass the length of the court to Seth Allen. The Hokies beat Duke down the floor in transition like they had all game, and Allen tossed a pass off the backboard to Chris Clarke for an emphatic alley-oop to punctuate the victory.

And the Duke game ball goes to.... Luke Kennard