No. 7 Duke survives rough shooting night to beat Boston College
No 7 Duke spent most of Tuesday night at the Conte Forum missing shots at a rate it rarely has this season.
Tre Jones helped the Blue Devils find a good spurt of offense late to pull out a win anyway.
Jones hit two baskets during a key 13-2 run that erased a four-point Eagles lead and propelled the Blue Devils to a 63-55 ACC win.
A sophomore guard, Jones led Duke (19-3, 9-2 ACC) with 18 points while Vernon Carey added 17 points and 10 rebounds despite foul trouble.
Senior guard Derryck Thornton, who began his college career at Duke before transferring in 2016, led Boston College (11-12, 5-7 ACC) with 21 points
Boston College led 47-43 with 8:01 to play and had Duke in a difficult position because Carey already had four fouls.
But the Blue Devils found some offense at a crucial time. Duke made five of its seven shots over the game’s next five minutes, putting together a 13-2 run to take control.
Sophomore guard Joey Baker started the run with a 3-pointer, Duke’s first of the game. Jarius Hamilton countered with a basket for Boston College.
But Duke took off when Carey scored inside and, after a Boston College miss, hit two free throws for a 50-49 Duke lead with 6:12 left.
Jones’ jumper with 5:27 to play gave Duke a 52-49 lead and Goldwire steal led to a Wendell Moore layup to give Duke a 54-49 lead.
Jones’ jump shot with 3:27 to play extended Duke’s lead to 56-49 as Boston College went seven consecutive possessions without scoring.
Trailing 24-21 at halftime, the Blue Devils faced a 33-29 deficit with 14:44 to play when things got even more difficult. Carey picked up his fourth foul battling for a loose ball after his own miss and headed to the bench.
Rather than wilt, though, Duke found an edge. Cassius Stanley drove the lane to score and drew a foul. His free throw left the Eagles up 33-32.
Javin DeLaurier, in for Carey, stole a Boston College pass under the basket to start a fast break. Jones’ layup put Duke in front 34-33.
The teams were tied at 43 when Boston College surged ahead again. Jay Heath beat his defender off the dribble to score and Steffon Mitchell’s rebound basket with 8:01 left put the Eagles up 47-43.
And-1
With Carey in foul trouble and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski choosing to not play an ineffective Matthew Hurt in the second half, Duke was in desperate need for someone to make a difference on offense. Jones was that player, as he scored 14 of his 18 points after halftime.
Lane violation
The Blue Devils turned in their worst first-half scoring performance of the season with just 21 points. It’s the first time Duke failed to score at least 32 points over the game’s first 20 minutes this season. Duke hit only 8 of 30 shots in the first half while missing all 12 of its 3-point attempts.
ICYMI
Duke played missing an assistant coach for the second consecutive game. Associate head coach Jon Scheyer remained home in Durham recovering from the emergency appendectomy surgery he had on Saturday in Syracuse. Scheyer wasn’t on the bench for Duke’s 79-67 win at Syracuse and skipped this trip to Boston as he recuperates. Duke director of basketball operations Nolan Smith, who didn’t make the trip to Syracuse due to a family health matter, was on Duke’s bench at Boston College.
Making sense of the numbers
0: Three-point shots made in the first half by either team. Duke missed all 12 of its attempts, while Boston College was 0-for-9.
1: Three-point shots made by Duke on 15 attempts
500: ACC victories recorded by Mike Krzyzewski during his Duke tenure, which began in 1980.
