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No. 16 Cavaliers Edged 61-58 at No. 8 Duke
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DURHAM, N.C.-Junior forward Mason Plumlee scored 12 points to lead four Duke players in double figures in scoring as the Blue Devils rallied in the second half for a 61-58 victory over Virginia at Cameron Indoor Stadium Thursday night (Jan. 12).
Senior forward Mike Scott had game-high totals of 23 points and nine rebounds to lead the Cavaliers. Scott’s 23 points tied his high in an Atlantic Coast Conference game, matching the 23 points he scored against Miami in UVa’s ACC opener on Jan. 7.
The victory improved Duke’s overall record to 14-2 and the Blue Devils are now 2-0 in the ACC. It was Duke’s 44th consecutive home victory.
The loss stopped a 12-game UVa winning streak and dropped the Cavaliers’ overall record to 14-2. Virginia is 1-1 in the ACC. The loss also broke a five-game UVa road-winning streak.
It was Duke’s eighth consecutive victory over Virginia and the Cavaliers’ 15th consecutive loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
In this week’s national polls, Duke is ranked eighth in The Associated Press poll and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll. Virginia is ranked 16th in The Associated Press poll and 17th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll.
Mason Plumlee had seven rebounds to go with his 12 points for Duke. Freshman guard Austin Rivers scored 11 points for the Blue Devils, junior guard Seth Curry had 11 points and junior guard Andre Dawkins scored 10 points.
Sophomore guard Joe Harris added 14 points and five rebounds for the Cavaliers.
Scott scored 16 points in the first half and Virginia shot 51.9 percent (14-27) from the field as the Cavaliers took a 32-28 halftime lead.
Duke shot 60.9 percent (14-23) from the field in the second half to rally for the win. With the score tied at 38-38 early in the second half, the Blue Devils scored seven consecutive points to take the lead for good at 45-38 with 13:26 to play.
The Blue Devils led by as many as nine points twice, the last time at 57-48 with 4:52 left to play after a layup by Curry. Duke still led by eight points (59-51) with 4:04 to play when Virginia went on a 7-2 run to get within 61-58 with 45 seconds remaining to play.
Senior center Assane Sene hit a jumper and sophomore forward Akil Mitchell scored on a layup to get the Cavaliers within four (59-55) with 2:53 to play. After two free throws by Duke’s junior forward Ryan Kelly, a free throw by Harris and a dunk by Mitchell cut the Blue Devils’ lead to 61-58 with 45 seconds left.
The Cavaliers got a stop on Duke’s last possession, but three-point attempts by Scott and junior guard Jontel Evans missed in the closing seconds.
Virginia shot 39.3 percent (24-61) from the field for the game, including 18.8 percent (3-16)) from three-point range, and 77.8 percent (7-9) from the three-throw line. The Cavaliers out-rebounded the Blue Devils 35-30 and turned the ball over only nine times.
Duke shot 52.2 percent (24-46) from the field, including 25.0 percent (5-20) from three-point range, and 42.1 percent (8-19) from the free-throw line.
The Blue Devils are just the second team to score more than 60 points against the Cavaliers and Duke’s 52.2 percent field goal percentage is the highest against UVa this season.
Virginia returns to action on Jan. 19 when the Cavaliers play at Georgia Tech. That game is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. and will be televised by the ACC Network.