Duke Defends, Delivers

The Duke Blue Devils and Marquette Eagles clashed in the CBE Classic semifinal Monday night. The high-profile hoops programs squared off at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, with the top-ranked Devils squeezing out a 82-77 victory. Duke faces Kansas State in the championship game tonight. The reigning national champs have now won 14 consecutive games and are 4-0 this season. The Devils steamrolled their previous opponents by an average of 41 points.
Mason Plumlee poured in 25 points to lead the Blue Devils. The sophomore center contributed six rebounds and six blocks as he helped wear down the Golden Eagles. Duke took an early lead before Marquette rebounded to tie the game. The Devils bounced back with a 9-0 run to tear ahead by 14 points with 11:15 remaining in the half. Marquette lacked a perimeter player to keep up with Plumlee and countered with questionable shots against Mike Krzyzewski’s Devils. Jimmy Butler led the Eagles, who struggled from the arc, with 22 points. Darius Johnson-Odom missed all eight of his shots in the first half. The Big East powerhouse Eagles labored for points against the NCAA’s elite Devils. Marquette was able to tie the game three times but it was Duke who took a 41-30 advantage into the locker room.
The Devils were harassed for 19 turnovers during the contest as the Eagles outscored Duke 46-42 in the second half. The Eagles’ defense also stripped the ball 11 times and effectively disrupted the pass. The Marquette guards did a tremendous job in applying pressure and got a boost from bench player, Jae Crowder, in the second half. Crowder scored 15 points, including a baseline jumper to tie the game at 57-57. The Devils answered with nine straight points following Crowder’s chip-in. Plumlee was credited for four of the baskets in the late Duke run. Guard Nolan Smith put up an efficient 18 points in victory and grabbed nine rebounds, and Kyle Singler added 14. Quick-learning freshman, Kyle Irving, carried the Devils with seven assists, while Junior Cadougan matched Irving with seven assists for the 4-1 Eagles.

Parting Points: Philip Rivers sure looks sharp; Brad Childress not so much.

Song of the day-“It Don’t Mean a Thing” by Duke Ellington