No. 7 Duke is Too Much for Clemson

Trevor Keels leads Blue Devils with 23 points and 11 rebounds

CLEMSON, S.C. — Duke--the favorite to win the ACC according to Fanduel at -250-- made sure there was no last-second-shot for anyone to make on Thursday night at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson.

After losing a heartbreaker to Virginia on a last-second 3-pointer Monday night, the seventh-ranked Blue Devils put Clemson away early in the second half, as they cruised to an easy 82-64 victory.

Duke (20-4, 10-3 ACC) was led by Trevor Keels 23 points and 11 rebounds, while the Tigers got 16 points from P.J. Hall. The Blue Devils also got 15 points and 10 rebounds from Paolo Banchero and A.J. Griffin added 12 points.

"For us, it was a great response after a very difficult loss against Virginia," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Brad's (Brownell) teams are tough minded and have lost some really tough games, close games. We knew that they would be ready and the crowd. I like the way my team responded to it."

Chase Hunter added 13 points, four rebounds and two assists to help the Tigers’ cause.

After Clemson closed within five points, 45-40, on an Al-Amir Dawes 3-pointer with 16:38 to play, the Blue Devils responded with a 20-6 run over the next seven minutes and 52 seconds.

The Tigers shot just 38 percent overall and were 5 of 18 from behind the arc. Duke was 9 of 22 from 3-point range and made 49 percent of its shots.

With the loss, Clemson fell to 12-12 overall and 4-9 in the ACC. It was its third straight loss, and seventh in the last nine games.

Thursday's game marked the last time Krzyzewski coached a team at Littlejohn Coliseum. Krzyzewski announced at the beginning of the season this would be his last year coaching after coaching 43 years at Duke.  

Key Play: With Clemson down seven, 27-20, and trying to claw back in the game late in the first half, Duke’s Wendell Moore strips David Collins from the basketball and proceeds to race down the court for a dunk. However, on his way up, Collins undercuts him, causing a hard collision between the two. Collins is called for a flagrant 2 foul and is ejected from the game. 

Collins absence from the game proves to be a big loss in the second half, especially with Hunter Tyson already out due to an injury.

Before existing the court, Brownell brought Collins over to the Duke bench and had him apologize to Moore and Krzyzewski.

“Brad (Brownell) is unusual. He is so damn good," Krzyzewski said. "Brad is an old-school damn good coach and good guy. He is good people and his kids are good people.”

Brownell said it was a teachable moment for Collins.

"Obviously, we take a lot of pride in how we do things in our program, from how we play to who we are on and off the court," he said.

"He is fighting like crazy to get back in the play and then he makes the wrong play," Brownell continued. "But we have a lot of respect for Coach K and his program. The last thing we are trying to do is hurt anybody. It was just the right thing to do. To take him over there and make sure, since he is leaving the court, that he has to stand up and apologize himself." 

Player of the Game: Duke’s Mark Williams scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds, while shooting an impressive 8-for-8 from the floor.

Coach’s decision: After he scored 12 points and was 4-for-6 from the floor on Tuesday night against North Carolina, Clemson head coach Brad Brownell decided to give Ian Schieffelin his first career start. Schieffelin started in front of Naz Bohannon, but he struggled against a large Duke front line on the offensive side of the court. The freshman was just 1-for-3 from the field and scored five points. However, he did add a career-high 10 rebounds on the defensive end. Bohannon dropped in 13 points and had four rebounds off the bench. He was 5 of 7 from the floor.

Stat of the game: After shooting just one free throw in their 2-point loss at Duke on Jan. 25, the Tigers outshot the Blue Devils from the foul line on Thursday. Clemson was 15-for-21 from the free throw line, while Duke was 11-for-15.

Injuries: Hunter Tyson (Broken Clavicle). Dave Collins was ejected from the game with 3:01 remaining in the first half due to a flagrant 2 foul.

Up Next: Clemson will host Notre Dame Saturday night at Littlejohn Coliseum. Tip is set for 7 p.m., and will be televised on the ACCN.