After waiting all day and in many cases overnight, the Cameron Crazies appeared to be more densely packed in their storied gym than any element the science majors among them had ever studied in their labs. ESPN was in the house, ready to beam the contest into homes all over the country. A strong, athletic, nationally-ranked ACC foe was gearing up to make a statement against a Duke program they hadn’t defeated since 1995. It was a perfect setting for hoops: A 6:00 PM start on Saturday allowed for the anticipation to steadily build as the weekend moved ahead, while not losing steam as it might for a 9:00 PM tip. The chilly temperatures and light snowfall outside seemed like an open invitation from the basketball gods to hurry inside a warm gym. And it was about as hot as ever inside Cameron Indoor Stadium for No. 7 Duke vs. No. 24 Clemson…
The Blue Devils and Tigers opened the contest like two prize fighters in a boxing match, feeling each other out and preparing for what the opponent has in store for the night. After Clemson pulled ahead 12-11, Duke came out firing, building an early double-figure lead and hitting 10 of 11 shots, with a Jon Scheyer three-pointer capping a 15-2 burst that made it 26-14 with 11 minutes left in the first half. It was obvious from the opening tip that the speedy Blue Devils wanted to push the tempo on both ends, hoping to assert their will on a bigger, stronger, but slightly slower Clemson team. However, the Tigers were not going to lay down, instead showing their muscle, relentlessly crashing the boards and applying their own full-court press, pulling within 41-38 on a three-pointer with 32 seconds left in the opening half.
At the break, Clemson was out-rebounding Duke by a 20-9 margin, hauling in more boards on the offensive end (12) than the Blue Devils had grabbed all game. “They had just owned the boards,” said Coach K. “At halftime, I just drew a little circle around the bucket. I said, ‘We’re dominating the other parts of the court, but they’re dominating that part. And they’re dominating it so much that if it continues, it doesn’t matter what we do on the other part of the court.’”
Despite Duke’s ambitions to better control the boards, Clemson opened the second half with the same confidence and momentum they had built in closing the first half. By the 13:40 mark, the Tigers claimed their first and what would be their only lead of the second half, 55-54. It was around this time that Duke’s resolve, Cameron’s magic, and the Crazies’ spirit teamed to hit their peak as a unit that would not be denied on this Saturday night.
Despite Duke’s ambitions to better control the boards, Clemson opened the second half with the same confidence and momentum they had built in closing the first half. By the 13:40 mark, the Tigers claimed their first and what would be their only lead of the second half, 55-54. It was around this time that Duke’s resolve, Cameron’s magic, and the Crazies’ spirit teamed to hit their peak as a unit that would not be denied on this Saturday night.
With the temperature in the building progressively rising over 80 degrees and the sweaty Crazies clad in blue body paint cheering their loudest when Duke needed it most, the Blue Devil defense forced five steals in a span of six minutes and began to experience more success on the boards, enabling a 20-5 run to steadily pull away from Clemson.
“Ultimately we want to wear teams down,” said Jon Scheyer. “By the end of the second half, I felt like they got a little tired. We were feeling pretty strong at the end.” It was Duke’s depth, heart and energy that fueled the Blue Devils, whereas Clemson was battling in an uncommon environment notorious for physically and mentally tiring its guests. When Cameron is at its best, as it often was on Saturday, the authentic atmosphere, unadulterated spirit and incessant liveliness combine to offer perhaps the most unique and sincere experience in American sports, ideal for Duke and terrific for college sports fans unless you happen to be hustling up and down Coach K court in a jersey that isn’t white.
Amid the Cameron chaos, Duke scored 37 points off of 21 Clemson turnovers. Many of the turnovers were steals in which Duke quickly turned stingy defense into fast-paced offense, helping the Blue Devils to a 29-16 advantage in fast-break points. Said Nolan Smith, “With our athleticism and our ball pressure and just getting out in the lanes, we feel that we can pressure every team that we play.”
It was a team effort on the offensive end as well, as a handful of Blue Devils keyed important stretches of the game. Smith jump-started the offense in the first half, scoring seven points in a 1:22 span shortly after entering the game for the first time at the 16:18 mark. Jon Scheyer netted 10 of his 12 points over a 1:24 first-half stretch and enjoyed an 8-0 run by himself in that span shortly after Smith’s run. Lance Thomas matched DeMarcus Nelson for a team-high three steals. Greg Paulus had the steal and subsequent layup that ignited Duke’s second-half run and scored all nine of his points in the closing half. Gerald Henderson netted 12 of his 16 points in the second stanza, aggressively driving to the bucket and getting to the line for 10 free throws in the second half. Kyle Singler, who scored 17 points in the contest, connected from three-point range at both the 6:52 and 5:47 marks of the second half, pushing the Duke lead to 16. “A bunch of guys throughout the game had stretches like that,” said Scheyer, “which is fun for our team.”
Constant all game was the toughness and leadership of senior captain DeMarcus Nelson. The senior captain set the tone, scoring 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting, grabbing three rebounds and getting three steals while often guarding Clemson’s top perimeter threats.
“Our captain was an outstanding leader for us,” Coach K said. Gerald Henderson added, “He is the rock. DeMarcus was great, he’s been a great leader all year. Defensively, he was great. Absolutely we were looking for him, even from the beginning of the game and that’s how you need to be. Whenever we needed a bucket, he came through but it’s not surprising to me.”
“Our captain was an outstanding leader for us,” Coach K said. Gerald Henderson added, “He is the rock. DeMarcus was great, he’s been a great leader all year. Defensively, he was great. Absolutely we were looking for him, even from the beginning of the game and that’s how you need to be. Whenever we needed a bucket, he came through but it’s not surprising to me.”
The result of a memorable Saturday night of pure emotion and stimulating basketball was an important ACC win for Duke in the Cameron cauldron. Certainly, there is much work ahead for the Blue Devils and the team immediately shifted its focus to the next game, a road trip to Virginia Tech. Yet, the Clemson game should not be forgotten.
The pride and passion displayed, particularly over those final 13 minutes of the second half, can serve as a valuable reference point for both the players and Cameron Crazies of what it takes to win in the ACC, and more importantly, what it takes to truly be Duke.
Said Singler, “It was a very exciting game. It was one of those games that you dream about. It was a big time win for us, and I was very proud to be a part of it.”
