Wendell Moore Ends Slump With 25 Against Boston College

Sophomore more than doubles season scoring total

In his first five games for Duke this year, Wendell Moore Jr. had made a total of 7 shots, out of 32 attempts. He was 1-of-9 from three and had made four free throws for a total of 19 points.

Wednesday night, against Boston College, Moore hit 8-of-13 shots and 2-of-3 from three. He hit seven of eight free throws and scored 25 points to more than double his season totals in each category.

“It feels great,” he said after leading Duke to an 83-82 win over Boston College. “Really, the biggest thing for me is my teammates were behind me the whole time, even when I was going through the struggle. They always had my back, kept believing in me, kept giving me opportunities.”

Duke earned a win in its first game in three weeks. Moore used the down time, including time back home for the holidays, to work on his shot. “I got to the gym, put up a lot of shots, just to see the ball go in,” he said.

Then, on his first three-point attempt of the game, he saw it go in again.

“Pretty sure that first field goal was a banked three,” he said. “I was just happy to see it go through. Seeing it go through took everything that was on my shoulders off of me and gave me chance to play free.”

The win gave associate head coach Jon Scheyer a victory in his debut as interim head coach, with Mike Krzyzewski in quarantine.

“He won the game. I think he did great,” Moore said of Scheyer’s coaching job. “He put us all in position to be successful. He called the big plays down the stretch. He wasn’t scared of the moment. He was really big time tonight.”