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The Arkansas Pine Bluff Golden Lions lost their first 11 games of the season, but the the senior laden team turned it around and have won 13 of their last 14 including a 61-44 win over Winthrop in the NCAA play in game on Tuesday night in Dayton. They are 18-15 and winners of SWAC conference.
Coach George Ivory is in his second year in Pine Bluff has an experienced team that boasts 7 seniors in their top 8 players.
Here is the starting line up and the key reserves.
6-5 Sr. Tavarais Washington 9.5 points, 4.9 rebounds
6-7 Sr. Tyree Glass 8.2 points
6-6 Sr. George Davis 5.0 points, 4.3 rebounds
5-10 Sr. Allen Smith 4.8 points
The Golden Lions average 64.3 points and give up 64.1. The shoot 41.% from the field and relinquish 40.3%. they shoot 30.6$ from three on 4.2 made and give up 31.8% on 5.0 made per game. They out rebound their opponents by 6.6 and commit 16.8 turnovers per game, while forcing 13.9.
Notes: The game is scheduled for 7:25pm and will be televised on CBS.
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP)—Kyle Singler scored 20 points and Jon Scheyer hit a critical 3-pointer with 18 seconds left to help No. 4 Duke beat Georgia Tech 65-61 in Sunday’s Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship game.
Scheyer finished with 16 points for the top-seeded Blue Devils (29-5), who let an 11-point lead with 6 minutes left slip all the way to one before Scheyer’s big shot. Nolan Smith also had 16 points to help Duke earn a league-record 18th tournament title, breaking a tie with rival North Carolina.
In a tournament filled with upsets, it took a gritty effort from Duke’s high-scoring “Big Three” to hold off a determined comeback from the seventh-seeded Yellow Jackets (22-12), who were trying to become the first team in tournament history to win four games in four days.
Duke has won nine of the past 12 ACC tournaments and was in prime position to grab a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Freshman Derrick Favors had 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Yellow Jackets, who were trying to become the lowest-seeded team to win the tournament. Georgia Tech fell behind 8-0 and trailed 52-41 after Scheyer’s 3-pointer with 6:19 to play. But the Yellow Jackets ran off nine straight points to get within 60-59 on Favors’ dunk with 47.9 seconds left.
But Scheyer—who was just 1 of 8 from behind the arc to that point—lost Glen Rice Jr. around a screen and swished a 3 from the right side to push the lead back to four points. Then, after a driving basket from Iman Shumpert, Singler knocked down two free throws with 9 seconds left to make it a two-possession game and essentially seal the victory.
It was fitting that Duke punctuated the game at the free throw line. The Blue Devils made 24 of 28 free throws, including 21 of 23 in the second half to offset a 6-of-22 (27 percent) shooting performance after the break and keep the Yellow Jackets in catch-up mode almost all game.
Singler was named MVP despite shooting 3 of 15 from the field, though he did make 14 of 16 free throws—the 14 were a championship-game record—and finished with six rebounds. He had a nasty red scratch about 4 inches long on the back of his right shoulder, the result of diving over a courtside table for a loose ball, almost landing on Dick Vitale and ending up on the floor between press-row tables late in the first half.
When the horn sounded, Singler leapt into the arms of Smith for a hug near the sideline, than ran to hug senior Brian Zoubek as the Blue Devils began their oncourt celebration.
In many ways, it had to be a relief considering everything that had gone on in Greensboro this week.
The Blue Devils were the only one of the top six seeds to make it to the semifinals in a tournament that had seen a bevy of ugly, low-scoring games in a Greensboro Coliseum that had numerous rows of empty green seats in the upper level from tipoff of Thursday’s games.
By Sunday’s final, Duke fans had gobbled up plenty of tickets from fans whose schools had lost, putting plenty of royal blue in the seats and creating a homecourt advantage for a team playing about an hour’s drive west of its Durham campus to make Georgia Tech’s job even tougher.
The Yellow Jackets hadn’t won the tournament in 17 years, when they capped a similar run as a No. 6 seed under Bobby Cremins by upending top-seeded and eventual national champion North Carolina in the final. They had reached the finals only twice since, the last time a loss to the Blue Devils five years ago.
Cremins, now the coach at College of Charleston, sat behind the Georgia Tech bench for this one. But the Yellow Jackets couldn’t match their ’93 run, falling behind early and failing to get closer than four points until that frantic final minute.
At least Georgia Tech probably took care of its shaky NCAA tournament prospects. It entered Greensboro on the bubble after losing five of seven to close the regular season.
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP)—The momentum was on the opposing sideline after a 3-pointer just before the halftime horn. Duke’s frustrated Hall of Fame coach had already been whistled for a technical foul. And the fourth-ranked Blue Devils were flirting with joining the long list of upset victims at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
It’s a good thing Kyle Singler is playing his best basketball of the season.
Singler scored 27 points to help the Blue Devils push ahead in the second half to beat Miami 77-74 in Saturday’s semifinals, sending them back to the championship game for the 11th time in 13 years.
Jon Scheyer added 16 points, including eight in the go-ahead 15-0 run early in the second half that restored some sense of order in this upset-filled week in Greensboro. The top-seeded Blue Devils (28-5) trailed by three at halftime against the league’s last-place team before rallying to reach Sunday’s final, where they will defend their title against seventh-seeded Georgia Tech.
“We have been there, but if anything that just helps us knowing how tough it is,” Scheyer said. “We’re fortunate to get through these tough games and we know whoever we play, it’s going to be a battle and we need to be ready.”
Duke, the only one of the top six seeds to reach the semifinals, has won eight of the past 11 tournaments and is chasing a league-record 18th title. But while the Blue Devils have avoided an upset loss, they were tied at halftime with ninth-seeded Virginia in Friday’s quarterfinals, then found themselves trailing 35-32 against the 12th-seeded Hurricanes (20-13).
“We really haven’t had a good first half in this tournament,” Singler said. “It is frustrating. But I think the sign of a good team is to bounce back in the second half and find a way to win.”
On this afternoon, that meant riding Singler’s second big tournament performance. After tallying 18 points and 11 rebounds against the Cavaliers, he had eight rebounds, six assists and made five 3-pointers in 31 minutes against Miami. That included Duke’s first eight points of the second half.
“Kyle was magnificent in the second half,” coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We started driving the zone in the second half. Kyle really did that. I know he got some 3s. But there was that sense of purpose, like attacking the zone. We were playing against the zone in the first half. In the second half, I thought we attacked it, and it was personified by Kyle.”
Freshman Durand Scott had 21 points for the Hurricanes, who put up plenty of fight but couldn’t follow their upsets of Wake Forest and Virginia Tech with a much bigger one. In the ACC semifinals for the first time in its history, Miami used a 17-2 run to erase a 12-point deficit and take the halftime lead on Malcolm Grant’s long 3-pointer with 5 seconds left.
But after Singler’s quick second-half flurry, Scheyer—who had just three points on 1-for-5 shooting to that point—knocked down a 3-pointer from the right corner to start the game-changing 15-0 run that finally gave Duke a 58-42 lead with 11:52 left. That lead held up, though pesky Miami proved difficult to put away.
“I thought in the first half, we played just about as well as we could play after we were able to absorb their pressure,” Miami coach Frank Haith said. “That one stretch there, the game got away from us a little bit, and that was the difference in the game.”
The Hurricanes got within five points five separate times in the last 90 seconds only to see the Blue Devils respond with either a basket or free throws. DeQuan Jones hit a desperation 3-pointer on Miami’s last possession with 2.4 seconds left, but the Hurricanes didn’t try to foul and the clock expired.
“We all came together and fought back, and we tried to bring it as close as possible,” Scott said. “But it just didn’t work out our way.”
Nolan Smith, the other member of Duke’s high-scoring “Big Three,” finished with 12 points, including a jumper with the shot clock winding down to give Duke a 70-63 lead with about a minute left.
As for Krzyzewski’s technical foul late in the first half, he had been arguing with the officials for a few minutes before the whistle. Moments later, he ripped off his gray suit coat, tossed it on the bench and spent the rest of the game coaching without it.
“I don’t call the technical on me, so I don’t know why the technical was called on me,” Krzyzewski quipped. “To ask me why the technical was called on me means I can read someone’s mind, and I can’t do that.”
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP)—Jon Scheyer’s jumpers were coming up just short, and those trademark 3-pointers from the corner were a smidge off.
No matter. With the game on the line, he couldn’t seem to miss—and No. 4 Duke was well on its way back to the Atlantic Coast Conference semifinals.
Scheyer scored seven of his 15 points during the decisive run that helped the top-seeded Blue Devils pull away to beat pesky Virginia 57-46 on Friday in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament.
Kyle Singler had 18 points and 11 rebounds and Nolan Smith also had 15 points while Scheyer, the third member of Duke’s “Big Three,” keyed the 11-0 run that sent them into Saturday’s semifinal against the Miami-Virginia Tech winner.
What makes Scheyer most valuable, coach Mike Krzyzewski said, is “when he does score.”
“He’s that guy that you want on your baseball team who goes 0 for 4, bottom of the eighth, he gets a double, knocks in the winning run,” Krzyzewski said. “He goes onto the next play really well.”
Jeff Jones had 15 points and Mike Scott added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the ninth-seeded Cavaliers (15-16). They got as close as 46-44 in the final 7 minutes, but went scoreless for nearly 6 minutes and were denied their first semifinal berth since 1995.
“We looked like we ran out of a little gas maybe the last 5 minutes,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “I think we had Duke nervous for a little while, but they showed why they’re a heck of a team. They’re so well-coached and so poised. When it got time to make the plays, they certainly made some.”
Especially Scheyer, who finally found his touch. The senior missed 12 of his first 14 shots before getting hot just in time for the Blue Devils.
Smith started the decisive run by sticking back Singler’s miss to make it 48-44 with about 6 minutes left. Scheyer banked in a jumper, Singler added a putback and Scheyer took things over from there, knocking down a pretty hanging jumper and converting a three-point play that gave Duke its largest lead, 57-44, with 2:32 left.
“I wasn’t in a very good rhythm in the beginning of the game,” Scheyer said. “And I just started playing head games a little bit. Finally, I just started attacking and not (worrying) about if I was missing.”
Duke, the defending tournament champion and its No. 1 seed for the 17th time, became the winningest team in the tournament’s history with its 85th victory. The regular season co-champion Blue Devils entered tied with rival North Carolina, which will have to wait until next year to catch them after going one-and-done Thursday night.
For the fifth time in six games, the Blue Devils held a team to 55 or fewer points. They shot 46 percent in the second half to claim their 12th semifinal berth in 13 years and their second double-figure win against Virginia in 12 days.
But the Cavaliers didn’t allow this one to be anywhere near as one-sided as the 67-49 beating they received in Charlottesville.
Virginia rallied from an 11-point deficit midway through the half by reeling off nine straight points, a burst capped by Mustapha Farrakhan’s 3-pointer with 6:22 left that turned out to be the Cavaliers’ last field goal of the game. By the time they scored again, on Jones’ free throws with 24.3 seconds left, the outcome had been decided.
“We had some breakdowns where we ran into a screen and lost vision, and he was just a little cold and a little off,” Bennett said of Scheyer. “But he certainly made some plays down the stretch. And as I said before, every time we were out of position or had a breakdown, they made us pay. He did, certainly. That’s really the mark of a team. You’ve got to minimize your breakdowns against teams like that, or they just cut your heart out, and that’s what they did to us down the stretch.”
The hot streak that carried Scheyer never came for his counterpart. Sammy Zeglinski, who was coming off a season-best 21-point performance in a first-round win against Boston College, struggled mightily against the Blue Devils, missing all nine of his shots—including two layups in a late 3-second span that epitomized his day. He also turned it over five times.
“I got a couple of looks at the rim, but I just wasn’t able to knock them down,” Zeglinski said. “I just tried to let the game come to me a little bit but I just wasn’t able to make the big shot when we needed them.”
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez, Duke’s Jon Scheyer and Virginia Tech’s Malcolm Delaney - the top three scorers in the Atlantic Coast Conference - are unanimous All-ACC picks.
Vasquez, Scheyer and Delaney were first-team selections on all 53 votes in ballots cast by members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Clemson’s Trevor Booker and Duke’s Kyle Singler rounded out the first team in results released Monday.
The Blue Devils, who earned the top seed in this week’s tournament, also had a second-team pick in high-scoring guard Nolan Smith, making them the only program with three players selected to the 15-player squad.
Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Florida State each had two players selected to the three teams, while North Carolina failed to have a player earn all-conference honors for the first time in league history.
Vasquez was a two-time second-team pick before averaging 19.6 points and a league-best 6.3 assists to help the Terrapins share the regular-season title with the Blue Devils. Scheyer averaged nearly 19 points, while Delaney led the league at about 21 points per game.
Wake Forest’s Al-Farouq Aminu led the second team after tallying 18 double-doubles, while senior teammate Ishmael Smith also earned second-team honors. Rounding out the second team were Smith and Virginia’s Sylven Landesberg - last year’s rookie of the year who recently was suspended for the rest of the season because of academics issues - and North Carolina State big man Tracy Smith.
The third team included Georgia Tech’s Gani Lawal, Virginia Tech’s Dorenzo Hudson, Florida State’s Chris Singleton and Solomon Alabi and Boston College’s Joe Trapani.
Singleton and Alabi were the leading vote-getters on the league’s all-defensive team, with Singleton leading the ACC in steals and Alabi leading the league in blocks to help the Seminoles clinch the No. 3 seed at this week’s tournament. Booker, Duke’s Lance Thomas and Wake Forest’s L.D. Williams also made the defensive team.
Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors led the all-rookie team after ranking third in the league in rebounding (8.4). Maryland’s Jordan Williams, Miami’s Durand Scott, Wake Forest’s C.J. Harris and Florida State’s Michael Snaer rounded out the rookie team.
DURHAM, N.C. (AP)—Kyle Singler scored 19 of his 25 points in the decisive first half and No. 4 Duke routed North Carolina 82-50 on Saturday night.
Jon Scheyer had 20 points in his final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the Blue Devils (26-5, 13-3), who earned their most lopsided home win over their fiercest rival.
They shot nearly 46 percent—51 percent in a dominant first half—and made eight 3-pointers in beating North Carolina at home for the first time since 2005. Duke clinched a share of its 12th Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title and wrapped up the No. 1 seed in next week’s league tournament.
Freshman John Henson matched a season high with 14 points for the Tar Heels (16-15, 5-11). They endured their worst loss in seven years and had their lowest point total under coach Roy Williams.
Nolan Smith scored 20 points and Brian Zoubek added 13 rebounds for the Blue Devils. They took command with an early 31-8 run, led by 30 in the first half and showed no mercy in polishing off their first sweep of North Carolina since 2004.
In some ways, this result was like so many others here this season. In setting a school record by finishing 17-0 at Cameron, Duke won all but one home game by double figures, and it entered with an average margin of victory here of 26 points. Just as they’ve done all year, the Blue Devils pounced early and never let up on their overmatched visitor, no matter who that opponent was.
But of course, for the Blue Devils, this one meant so much more—especially after the Tar Heels won their last four visits. North Carolina is the only visiting team in three full years to beat Mike Krzyzewski on the court that bears his nickname, and following last year’s victory, some players flashed four fingers as they walked off the floor to mark their fourth win in a row at Cameron.
Already stewing from those defeats—and this week’s loss at Maryland that kept them from clinching an outright ACC regular-season title—Duke’s “Big Three” made certain from the jump that there wouldn’t be a fifth.
In the process, they made the opening half feel like a 20-minute-long burst by the Blue Devils.
Scheyer, Singler and Smith knocked down 3s on three straight trips downcourt to start the overwhelming run that put the Blue Devils in command. That spurt was so one-sided that by the time it ended, Duke had two players—Singler (12) and Smith (10)—who had outscored the Tar Heels (9).
The Blue Devils went up by double figures to stay 6 1/2 minutes into the game, stretched the margin to 20 on Smith’s three-point play midway through the half and made it a 30-point game on Smith’s free throw in the final minute of the half.
The only question in the second half was whether Duke would administer its most lopsided beating in the history of college basketball’s fiercest rivalry: Ultimately, the Blue Devils fell shy of the 35-point drubbing they handed North Carolina in 1964.
Still, it was the Tar Heels’ worst loss since a 96-56 loss at Maryland in 2003, and their fewest points since a 60-48 loss to Duke in the 2002 ACC tournament.
The famous faces—Christian Laettner, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart—turned out for this one, and so did someone else who’d still be anonymous except for one incident a few months ago: Brian King, the Presbyterian College fan who was tossed from North Carolina’s arena for heckling Deon Thompson during a free-throw attempt.
King, who told The Associated Press that he grew up a Duke fan, said he was invited by a group of Cameron Crazies and showed up—wearing a Presbyterian T-shirt, no less—because he thought things had cooled off enough after the much-publicized flap 8 miles down the road at the Smith Center.
Thompson finished with 11 points for the Tar Heels, who were serenaded by chants of “NIT” throughout and played without freshman guard Leslie McDonald after team officials said he strained his right hamstring during Friday’s practice.
Vasquez scored 20 points, including a clutch basket with 37 seconds left, and Maryland (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 22 AP) beat fourth-ranked Duke 79-72 Wednesday night to move into a tie with the Blue Devils atop the Atlantic Coast Conference standings.
It was the final home game for Vasquez, who was honored with seniors Landon Milbourne and Eric Hayes before the game.
Afterward, all three were mobbed with their teammates as fans rushed the court to celebrate Maryland's first win over Duke in seven tries.
Jordan Williams had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Terrapins (22-7, 12-3), who have won six straight since losing by 21 at Duke on Feb. 13.
Nolan Smith scored 20 for Duke (25-5, 12-3) and Jon Scheyer had 19. The defeat ended the Blue Devils' eight-game winning streak.
Both teams have one game left in the regular season. Maryland travels to Virginia on Saturday, and Duke hosts North Carolina.
Duke center Brian Zoubek, who had 16 points and 17 rebounds in Duke's earlier win over Maryland, finished with four points and 13 boards.
The final minutes featured several outstanding shots, each one more important than the last.
Scheyer hit a 3-pointer to put Duke up 63-60 with 5:25 to go, and Vasquez tied it with a jumper from beyond the arc. Scheyer then scored on a drive, but Maryland answered with a hook shot in the lane from Adrian Bowie and a fadeaway jumper by Vasquez.
It was 69-all before Williams scored on a follow. Then, after Duke missed twice, Vasquez tucked the ball to his chest and bulled his way to the basket before launching a shot that dropped through the net, making it 73-69.
Sean Mosley added two free throws with 26.2 seconds left.
Maryland finished unbeaten at home in the ACC and 15-1 overall.
After an emotional ceremony for the seniors, the Terrapins thrilled the sellout crowd by getting off to a sizzling start.
Maryland led 7-0, 19-7 and 33-19 before Duke settled down. The Blue Devils took their first lead when Scheyer opened the second half with a 3 to make it 41-40.
Duke led 47-44 before Williams made a three-point play, Bowie scored on a drive and Milbourne added a dunk. After a layup by Scheyer, Bowie connected from long range to put the Terps up 54-49.
But Smith hit a tough baseline jumper and then converted a three-point play to tie it with 9:11 left, and after a series of misses by both teams, Smith's driving layup put Duke back in front.
The lead went back and forth until Maryland's closing 10-3 burst.
The Blue Devils ended the first half with a 19-7 run to get within 40-38.
Duke missed its first six shots and fell behind 7-0 before a tip-in by Zoubek ended the drought. Milbourne followed with a 3-pointer, but he picked up his second foul on Maryland's next possession and was forced to take a seat on the bench.
The Blue Devils were 1 for 8 and trailed 10-2 when officials noticed a snag in the net and replaced it. Kyle Singler promptly drilled a 3 before a reverse layup by Hayes and a three-point play by Williams -- off a no-look pass from Vasquez -- sparked an 11-3 run that made it 21-8.
At that point, Scheyer, Singler and Smith were a collective 1 for 9.
The trio accounted for Duke's next four baskets, and a layup by Zoubek got the Blue Devils to 25-19. Mosley then hit a jumper for Maryland, and successive 3-pointers by Hayes and Mosley boosted the margin to 14.
It was 40-29 before Duke ended the half with a three-point play by Singler and 3-pointers by Smith and Scheyer.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Kyle Singler scored 21 points as No. 5 Duke beat shorthanded Virginia 67-49 on Sunday night.
The Blue Devils (25-4, 12-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) remained a game ahead of Maryland heading into a first-place showdown with the Terps in College Park, Md., on Wednesday night.
Fast Facts
• Kyle Singler scored 15 of his 21 points in the first half, and Jon Scheyer added 20 as the Blue Devils started th game on a 20-4 run and coasted to their eighth straight win.
• Duke now holds a one-game lead in the ACC over Maryland heading into their clash in College Park, Md., on Wednesday.
• Virginia played without its leading scorer, Sylven Landesberg, who was sidelined with a thigh injury.
• Jerome Meyinsse (21 points) was the only Cavaliers player in double figures as Duke held them to just 31.4 percent shooting from the floor.
Jon Scheyer added 20 points for Duke in its eight straight win and fourth consecutive victory in the series.
The Blue Devils took command right away, opening the game on a 20-4 run. Singler had 11 points before Virginia had two field goals, and from there the Cavaliers never got closer than 10. They trailed 35-21 at halftime and went 5 minutes without a field goal after the break.
The Cavaliers (14-13, 5-9) lost their seventh straight playing without scoring leader Sylven Landesberg, who sustained a bruised right thigh in Virginia's loss at Miami last week.
Jerome Meyinsse scored 21 points for Virginia, seven more than his previous career best, but was the only Cavaliers player to make up for Landesberg's missing points. Mike Scott, the Cavaliers' No. 2 scorer with a 12.8 average, went scoreless for a second straight game, with 0-for-6 shooting in 12 minutes.
Singler and Scheyer had an easy time offensively. Singler finished 6 for 10 from the field and Scheyer was 8 for 14, and both watched for the last several minutes as Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and Virginia coach Tony Bennett emptied their benches.
Duke will travel to Charlottesville tomorrow in preparation for Sunday's game with Virginia. The Cavaliers started fast, but have fell on hard times of late as they are on a current 6 game losing streak.They are 14-12 overall and 5-8 in the conference. Coach Tony Bennett is in his first season after three very successfule years at Washington State. Bennett will start an experienced line up, but his best player Sylven Landesberg is a sophomore who leads the team in scoring, asssits and is second in rebounding.
The Cavaliers average 67.0 points a game and give 63.2. They shoot 42.9% from the field and allow 43.8%. They shoot 35.8% from three on 5.9 made and give up 35.3% on 5.9 made per game. they out rebound their opponents by 1.5 per game commit 10.7 turnovers while forcing 12.5.
Notes: The game is scheduled for 7:45 pm and will be televised on FSN.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Mike Krzyzewski wanted a pre-tournament test for his Duke players. For perhaps longer than expected, they got one.
But ultimately, the fifth-ranked Blue Devils -- and their "Big Three," plus one -- was too much for Tulsa, pulling away for a 70-52 victory Thursday night.
They used a big run early in the second half to break open a surprisingly tight game and extend their decade-long nonconference winning streak at Cameron Indoor Stadium to 77 by winning an out-of-the-ACC matchup designed to prepare the Blue Devils for the unfamiliar but high-quality foes that figure to lurk in the NCAA tournament bracket.
"We've got to keep getting better, and you don't get better by taking time off," Krzyzewski said. "Right now, you've got to keep working, and we knew that this game would put us in that position."
Jerome Jordan had 12 points to lead the Golden Hurricane (19-9). In losing their fourth straight, they finished with a season-low point total and were denied their first victory against a top-five team since 1996. Leading scorer Ben Uzoh, who entered on a streak of three straight 20-point games, finished with eight on 3-of-15 shooting while being hounded primarily by Smith.
"You knew they would be prepared for Ben, for the most part," Tulsa coach Doug Wojcik said. "He competed, missed a couple shots on the break. In our league, he probably gets a few more trips to the free-throw line, but it's good for him."
Brian Zoubek, a 7-foot-1 senior, has stepped out of the shadow of the Scheyer-Smith-Singler trio lately to become one of the most valuable players for the Atlantic Coast Conference leaders. He finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds, and started the game-breaking 18-3 run with a layup through the 7-foot Jordan's foul with 19:05 remaining.
"He isn't the athlete Jordan is, but [Zoubek] is strong," Krzyzewski said of the dueling 7-footers. "I was just happy that he held his own against Jordan. ... No one won that matchup, but we didn't lose it, so that was kind of a win for us."
Smith then reeled off six straight points and Scheyer scored eight in a row before Miles Plumlee hit a hook shot to make it 52-37 with 13 1/2 minutes left.
That had the Blue Devils well on their way to their 18th straight win at Cameron. They have won 41 straight at home against unranked opponents, they are 16-0 there this season with all but one of those victories by double figures, and Friday makes it 10 years since St. John's became the last non-ACC team to beat them on their home court.
Justin Hurtt added 11 points for the Golden Hurricane and tied it at 34 with a free throw with 19:20 to play, but they missed 6 of 7 shots after that while turning it over three times during Duke's decisive spurt.
Steven Idlet had 10 points for Tulsa, which finished 1 of 10 from 3-point range and shot 26 percent from the field during the second half.
"I thought we had some shots inside that we just didn't convert," Wojcik said. "But I'm just really proud of my team. I'm glad to have played the game and have the experience. We're going to get better from this."
Lance Thomas had 10 rebounds while his post partner Zoubek reached double figures for the third time in four games.
"I think that everybody has a lot more confidence in me right now -- offensively, defensively and all over the court," Zoubek said.
The Golden Hurricane kept themselves within striking distance through the first half, never allowing Duke to lead by more than 10 points and clawing back to tie it at 28 on Bryson Pope's layup 3 minutes before the break. That, despite a miserable start to the half by their top player: Uzoh missed eight of his first 10 shots.
"He's a very good player, and I was ready for the task tonight," Smith said. "Going forward, (in the) NCAA tournament, we're going to run into a lot of good guards and that's why I know this game ... really simulated the NCAA tournament games. Playing a guard like him, you've got to be ready."
Wojcik was no stranger to Duke's hostile arena: He was on Matt Doherty's staff at rival North Carolina from 2000-03, and those teams went 1-2 at Cameron. But ultimately, that familiarity couldn't help the Golden Hurricane claim the program's third victory against a top-five team and first since knocking off then-No. 5 UCLA in 1996.
