Blue Devils blitz Pack. Three takeaways from No. 9 Duke’s ACC basketball win over NC State

Duke coach Jon Scheyer said all the right things about N.C. State and Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts before Monday’s game at PNC Arena.

“The respect is there for Kevin, his team, N.C.State,” Scheyer said Saturday. “This group was at N.C. State last year. We know how tough of a place it is. We know how dangerous they are.”

A tough place? It was the Blue Devils a year ago as the Pack led by 22 points at the half and won by 24.

When the Pack opened Monday’s game by scoring the first nine points, with Pack fans on their feet and howling, Scheyer might have been having a flashback or two. He also called a quick timeout.

But this Duke “group” is a more experienced, hardened team. It came into the game ranked No. 9, did what it had to, and left PNC Arena with a 79-64 victory.

The Blue Devils moved to 24-6 overall and 15-4 in the ACC, setting up their rematch Saturday with No. 7 at Cameron Indoor Stadium and all that comes with that.

It was another missed opportunity for the Pack (17-13, 9-10 ACC), which is running out of them this season. State lost for the fifth time at home, all in ACC games, making for a sour “Senior Day” for D.J. Burns, Casey Morsell, DJ. Horne and former walk-on Alex Nunnally.

Burns, in his last game at PNC Arena, had 27 points but the Blue Devils were able to shut down Horne, the ACC’s second-leading scorer, who finished with eight points. Jeremy Roach had 21 points and freshman Jared McCain 16 for the Devils.

Neither team had much time to prepare. The Pack lost Saturday at UNC while the Blue Devils were blowing out Virginia at Cameron. Nor had they played this season.

After the early timeout by Scheyer, the Blue Devils scored the next 11 points. They led 33-30 at the half, unable to handle Burns inside but getting a combined 19 points from guards Tyrese Proctor and Roach, who kept things under control.

The Devils had the lead despite shooting 33.% from the field in the first half and missing 12 of their 16 shots from 3-point range They did it with Kyle Filipowski on the bench all but four minutes, pulled after two fouls and not scoring in the opening half.

The Pack led 46-45 with 12:10 left in regulation when the Blue Devils spurted ahead.

Three-pointers by McCain and Filopowski, then a layup by McCain pushed the Devils ahead 55-47 midway through the half.

The Devils continued to add to that lead, McCain getting a four-point play to make it a 73-59 spread. There would be no comeback.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

Duke pounds the boards

While the Blue Devils struggled to make shots through most of the first half, they were able to forge ahead by rebounding the majority of their missed shots.

Duke finished the first half with 14 offensive rebounds, nearly matching its season-high total of 16 for a game. After NC State scored the game’s first nine points, Duke used its 13-4 advantage in second-chance points, fueled by that rebounding, to lead 33-30 at halftime.

That’s despite the Blue Devils making just eight of their first 24 shots in the game. The Blue Devils picked up their shooting from there to build a double-digit lead in the second half.

Duke finished with a season-high 19 offensive rebounds.

Big day for Burns

It has been mainly a flat season for the Pack’s Burns, who has enjoyed NIL life and himself but has not been nearly as productive on the court.

But on Senior Day, with family in the house, he battled hard and was engaged from the start and had a 27-point game.

Duke chose not to double team the big man and he made them pay, especially matched up against Sean Stewart, a 6-9, 227-pound freshman outweighed by, oh, about 100 pounds.

Burns had 15 points at halftime on 7-for-11 worksheet, muscling his way to the basket but also showing off some nice spin moves for some soft left-handed shots.

In the second half, Stewart gave up a three-point play to Burns, slamming his arms against the basket backstop. But Stewart also blocked a Burns shot – surprising Burns – and beat him backdoor for a basket.

It would be Burns’ first 20-point game this season. He twice has scored 19 in a game but also was scoreless in minutes in the recent loss at Florida State, spending most of the game on the bench watching.

Burns was not a watcher Monday. But the Pack did not have enough offensive firepower to beat a ranked Duke team.

Power, Stewart make their marks

Duke only had Filipowski, its leading scorer and rebounder, for four first-half minutes and x minutes overall. That’s because he picked up two early fouls while guarding Burns.

The Blue Devils survived to lead at halftime due to significant contributions from freshmen TJ Power and Sean Stewart.

On the way to playing more minutes than he’s played in any ACC game this season, the 6-9 Stewart played 11 first-half minutes, more than he’d played in 15 entire ACC games. Stewart’s turnover-free first-half play, which also saw him score six points, led Scheyer to use him in the second half as well.

Power, another 6-9 freshman, has seen his place in Duke’s playing rotation improve over the last three games. Power played 10 minutes in the first half, hitting a 3-pointer to score three points while grabbing one rebound, blocking one shot and collecting an assist.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

Duke pounds the boards

While the Blue Devils struggled to make shots through most of the first half, they were able to forge ahead by rebounding the majority of their missed shots.

Duke finished the first half with 14 offensive rebounds, nearly matching its season-high total of 16 for a game. After NC State scored the game’s first nine points, Duke used its 13-4 advantage in second-chance points, fueled by that rebounding, to lead 33-30 at halftime.

That’s despite the Blue Devils making just eight of their first 24 shots in the game. The Blue Devils picked up their shooting from there to build a double-digit lead in the second half.

Power, Stewart make their marks

Duke only had Filipowski, its leading scorer and rebounder, for four first-half minutes and x minutes overall. That’s because he picked up two early fouls while guarding Burns.

The Blue Devils survived to lead at halftime due to significant contributions from freshmen TJ Power and Sean Stewart.

On the way to playing more minutes than he’s played in any ACC game this season, the 6-9 Stewart played 11 first-half minutes, more than he’d played in 15 entire ACC games. Stewart’s turnover-free first-half play, which also saw him score six points, led Scheyer to use him in the second half as well.

Power, another 6-9 freshman, has seen his place in Duke’s playing rotation improve over the last three games. Power played 10 minutes in the first half, hitting a 3-pointer to score three points while grabbing one rebound, blocking one shot and collecting an assist.