Duke Beats Louisville in Cameron and Clinches Double Bye in ACC Tournament

It was a "Roach Party" in Cameron last night as Jeremy Roach scored a game high 19 points to help lead the Blue Devils over the Cardinals 84 - 59.  With the win Duke (22 - 6 overall and 13 - 4 in the ACC) clinched a double bye in the upcoming ACC Tournament.  There are a lot of highlight plays to look back on from last nights win.  From the Mark Mitchell reverse dunk to Spencer Hubbard's three-pointer in the last minute of the game that had the crowd exploding in cheers in Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke got the win over a struggling Louisville. 

Now the schedule gets tougher...  Duke next plays at home this Saturday against a Virginia team that is looking for another quality win to move up in NCAA projections.  They then make the short trip down the road to NC State on Monday.  Duke will then finish at home the following Saturday against rival UNC looking to get revenge from the previous loss in Chapel Hill.  I believe every game from hear on out will be a battle or better yet a war.  

I write this realizing today is February 29th... but tomorrow is March and the madness we all love to watch will start soon.  


Keep reading below for notables and quotes from the win over Louisville from Duke Sports Information

NOTES

• With the win, Duke clinched a double-bye in the ACC Tournament. The Blue Devils will begin postseason play in the quarterfinals, on Thursday, March 14.
• The Blue Devils limited Louisville to 23 points through the first 20 minutes, matching the lowest first-half total from an ACC opponent this season (at Pittsburgh, at Miami).
• Duke's defense held Louisville to 59 points, 13.6 points below its season average of 72.6. The Blue Devils have held 24 of their 28 opponents to below their respective scoring average.
• Duke won the rebounding battle, 43-24. The Blue Devils are now 17-1 when out-rebounding their opponent.
• The plus-19 rebounding margin matched the team's season high (vs. Bucknell) and was the best margin in conference play.
• The Blue Devils dished 23 assists, a conference-play best and one shy of the team's overall season high.
• Duke's 23 assists on 32 made field goals matches the team's best assist rate this season (71.9%), established against Bucknell on Nov. 17, 2023.
• Duke has won eight of the last 11 meetings with Louisville, including five straight, and leads the all-time series 15-9.
• Jeremy Roach made his 100th career start and scored a game-high 19 points, including 3-of-4 from deep.
• The senior has made at least three 3-pointers in six games this season and 16 in his career. The Blue Devils are 14-2 when he reaches that threshold.
• Mark Mitchell scored 17 points, his sixth game in double-figures across his last eight games played, along with a career-high three steals.
• Duke is now 31-3 when Mitchell scores at least 10 points and is 13-0 when he scores at least 15.
• Jared McCain connected on four 3-pointers, finishing the game 4-of-7 from beyond the arc, en route to 14 total points.
• McCain has made at least three 3-pointers in 12 games this season and Duke is now 10-2 in such games.
• Kyle Filipowski grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and dished six assists. The sophomore finished one point shy of a double-double with nine points.
• Tyrese Proctor tallied seven assists, a season-high in conference play, with just one turnover. The sophomore also scored eight points and grabbed three caroms.
• Proctor has 19 assists to just five turnovers, a 3.8 assist-turnover ratio, in his last five games played.
• Sean Stewart contributed nine points, nine boards and two assists in 11 minutes of action.
• Spencer Hubbard electrified the crowd in the closing minute of the game when nailing his first career 3-pointer, representing his career-high in scoring (3 points) and his first career points against an ACC opponent.

QUOTES

• “Great to get that win. I thought our sharing was terrific overall. I thought we were a little sloppy in the first half, but once we settled into the game, overall our defense was really good. Besides they got a few transition baskets in the first half, I thought we did a really good job." - head coach Jon Scheyer
• “Guys are sharing the ball. Guys are hitting shots. When we’re playing like that, it’s fun. You don’t know who’s scoring. It’s going from inside to out, good to great passes, so that’s something we’ve got to keep up.” - senior guard Jeremy Roach