By Phillip Murray
RALEIGH N.C
An 88-78 win against N.C State Saturday at PNC Arena ended an unusual 3 game losing streak for Duke. N.C State looked as if it had the 20th ranked Blue Devils on the ropes, but midway through the second half, the wolf pack lost its lead and never came back.
N.C State started off the first half better with a sense of urgency with a rival in town. That sense of urgency for the Wolfpack to not only get its second conference win but also to knock out a ranked opponent was definitely in the air. Coming off a win at Pittsburgh, N.C State shot very well in the first half especially beyond the arc. The Wolfpack sank 6 of its 9 three pointers in the first half. N.C State also moved the ball well, getting in the middle and making the right plays. Cat Barber help spread the ball around in the first half. It was clear Duke’s strategy was to play a zone defense to limit Barber’s production, but the sophomore still managed to produce 14 first half points(19 total). The Pack’s 66.7 percent three point shooting along with the Devil’s poor 42.9 FG percentage made it seem as if Duke was heading for a 4th straight ACC loss. N.C State went into the half with a 7 point lead.
The Wolfpack came out for the second half flat. Duke made the necessary adjustments going after N.C State’s shooters and getting better ball penetration. The Blue Devils also improved its FG percentage by a drastic 28 percent (70.9) in the second half. The key to Duke’s second half improvement was more aggressive rebounding on both ends of the court. Grayson Allen and Brandon Ingram each grabbed 6 defensive rebounds, while Marshall Plumblee also grabbed 6 rebounds on offense allowing for more second chance opportunities. Duke dominated inside as well, all of Duke’s 2 pt shots except three mid range shots, were dunks and layups.
N.C State allowed Duke to penetrate easily in the 2nd half as well. Defense wasn’t the only issue the Wolf pack dealt with in the second half, poor shooting was a factor as well. It seemed everything started to go downhill when star Cat Barber hurt his knee. Even though he took a fall, it was apparent that Barber was injured as he limped up and down the court. It seemed after the star guard faltered so did the Wolf pack. With 7 minutes to go in the half Duke got out to a 6 point lead and never looked back as they went on to beat N.C State 88-78. With the loss N.C State falls to 13th in the conference(1-6) and 11-9 overall. N.C State will look to get it’s second win at home against Georgia Tech on 1/27. Duke improved to 4-3 in conference play and 15-5 overall.
