Career night from Miles Plumlee propels Duke past Deacons
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Turning Point
After Wake Forest tied the game at 55, the Blue Devils went on a 13-0 run and outscored the Demon Deacons 35-15 to finish strong.
Blue Devil Ballers
The Plumlee brothers were strong and steady inside in a very physical game with Miles contributing a career-high 19 points and 14 boards, and Mason adding 11 points and seven boards. Also, Kyle Singler recorded a double-double with 21 points and 15 boards.
Duke Data
300 – Consecutive sellouts in Cameron, the longest streak in the nation
20.3 – Duke’s average margin of victory in three home ACC games this year
12 – Consecutive home wins by Duke over Wake Forest
Coach K’s Comments
“That was a big-time game tonight. That was ACC basketball at its toughest and best. I thought both teams played their hearts out. The rebounding was tenacious by both teams. At halftime I think we had 16 offensive boards and they had 13 or 14 and our three perimeter guys were 5-for-28 and we were up by eight. The second half we were up by 12 and they tied the game. [Ishmael] Smith is so difficult to defend, he’s such a good player. And [Al-Farouq] Aminu is a great player. Kyle [Singler] hit the biggest shot of the game with the three. It wasn’t off of anything. He saw an opportunity and then we were able to make a stop and then Jon did the same thing. In transition he was able to create a three-point play opportunity. Right after that I thought we played sensational basketball for the rest of the game. We executed well and obviously the score is not indicative of the game that it was. We’re concerned about Kyle with his wrist. I did see the play and he didn’t fall where he supported himself with his wrist, he fell straight out. Right now it’s not sore to touch, but it’s stiff. So we’re looking at it tonight and we’ll look at it tomorrow and hopefully there is nothing in there that will stop him from playing. I thought one of the truly great moments was when he airballed that first free throw and wanted to stay in and he swishes the next one. He ends up with 21 and 15. Miles played his best game at Duke with 19 and 14. Just some big-time performances tonight by kids from both teams. I’m proud of my team. We won a really hard-fought game. It’s the hardest game we’ve played this year. That was a hard fought game and the crowd was great. Sometimes with Sunday night games you worry about stuff like that but the crowd was sensational. And they obviously were part of the pretty neat experience here in Cameron.”
Locker Room Reaction
It was a physical game and the Blue Devil interior players made a statement that this team is dangerous at all five positions. Said Miles, “Yeah, I think that makes us a complete team. Our perimeter has been there and they are always going to be there for us. Now we got a real strong inside game. I mean there are not many people that can stop that.” Nolan was pleased for our bigs, stating, “It was just a fight in the paint. I went in there a couple times and I was like ‘Nah, let me get out of here.’ It was too physical down there for me … no, but it was definitely a war for 40 minutes, those guys probably have to get in the ice bath right now, after a game like that. Our guys kept fighting, and I think they were able to wear [Wake Forest’s] guys down.”
Sixth Man
The student section was jammed and the Crazies provided a big lift in this key ACC matchup. Our Sixth Man definitely came prepared, and it was no day of rest in Cameron. Also, after Nolan poured in 20 points, SpongeBob was apparently loving it!
Around the Web
Box Score — Stat recap
AP recap — Plumlee leads Duke past Wake
Plumlees, Singler boost Duke — Duke trio scores 55 points, grabs 36 boards
Postgame Quotes — Coach K and player reactions
Plumlees coming on — Miles and Mason key to Duke success
Notes
*Next up: Duke travels down the road to Raleigh to face NC State in the RBC Center on Wednesday night (9 PM, Raycom).
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