ACC Hoops: Duke Takes Care Of Miami, 97-60

Coral Gables, Florida: As expected, the Duke Blue Devils (25-3, 16-1 ACC) easily took care of the Miami Hurricanes (6-22, 2-15 ACC), 97-60, with barely any resistance. The Blue Devils tied their most wins in ACC regular season history as they have 3 more opportunities to break their record (*The ACC now plays a 20 game season). The Blue Devils averaged 99 points a game in the last 3 games.

Two story lines specifically stick out for the Blue Devils: Tyrese Proctor and Isiah Evans. Proctor scored 7 points in 14 minutes of play. Late in the first quarter, on a Miami fast break, Proctor left the game with a knee injury and did not return. Coach Jon Scheyer said after the game that Proctor took an impact to the knee and would return to Durham for imaging and a timeline for his return. Proctor is the second major injury for the Blue Devils in the past two weeks as Duke continues to play without senior transfer Maliq Brown.

Isaiah Evans has become the spark off the bench for the Blue Devils. Once an afterthought in the Duke rotation, Evans has worked his way up to Scheyers first option off the bench. Evans scored 16 points, second to Kon Knueppels output, while making 5 three pointers. Evans also started the second half in lieu of the injured Proctor in a glimpse of what the Devils starting lineup could look like if Proctor misses time with the knee injury. Evans played a career high of 26 minutes, only one minute less than Cooper Flagg who led the Devils in minutes.

The Blue Devils again led an ACC for wire to wire. They took a 47-32 lead into the break and did not let up in the second half. The Blue Devils had their biggest lead in ACC play at 39 points in the second half as they took the will away from the Hurricanes who were auditioning in front of their assumed next head coach Jai Lucas. Kon Knueppel led the Blue Devils with 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. Cooper Flagg easily scored 16 points along with 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Caleb Foster continued his resurgence as he got first half minutes and again scored in double figures, an important progression for the Blue Devils with the uncertainty around Tyrese Proctor.

Lynn Kidd again had an impressive performance against the Blue Devils. He had 17 points, Jalil Bethea made 3 three pointers and scored 13.

The Blue Devils return home this weekend to play the Florida State Seminoles (16-12, 7-10 ACC). The Blue Devils then have a quick turnaround as they begin a week against bubble teams and they host the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. Wake, coming off a loss to NC State, needs a resume building win but currently are listed as the last team in the NCAA Tournament. The Blue Devils then travel to Chapel Hill in the season finale. The Tar Heels have a 50/50 chance to make the tournament at the moment and a win against Duke can cement them in the Madness.