 overcame 41 percent shooting and a 16-for-26 showing from the free-throw line to win their 10th straight in the in-state series.Williamson's absence, coupled with a rough game from No. 3 option Cameron Reddish, left Barrett as essentially a one-man show for Duke. The Blue Devils - 26-point favorites - trailed by 10 with 16 minutes remaining and never led by more than three until the final three minutes.Brown had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and he pulled Wake Forest within 69-68 with two free throws with 43.9 seconds left. Duke bled the shot clock before the left-handed Barrett hit a right-handed jumper in the lane to put the Blue Devils up by three with 17.3 seconds remaining.Brandon Childress hit a layup with 7.4 seconds left, and Wake Forest had one last chance after Duke turned it over while trying to inbound the ball. Childress missed a 3-pointer with about two seconds left and the rebound went to Brown, whose short jumper spun around the back of the iron before falling out at the horn.BIG PICTUREWake Forest: This one will sting for the Demon Deacons, who have struggled throughout Danny Manning's fifth season while losing nine games by 20 or more points. This one on paper looking like it would be No. 10. Wake Forest responded with arguably its best game of the season - but fell inches short of its first victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium since Tim Duncan's senior year in 1997.Duke: There weren't many encouraging things in this one from the Blue Devils, who once again stumbled early against a lower-division ACC team. But unlike the Georgia Tech and Boston College games - in which they pulled away after falling behind in the first half - they could never shake the pesky Demon Deacons.UP NEXTWake Forest: Plays host to No. 14 Florida State on Saturday.Duke: Visits No. 3 North Carolina on Saturday night.---More college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/-Top25)
Mar 04, 2019Duke's final home game of the season could very well be referred to as Freshman Night.That's the way it seems in many recent seasons with the fourth-ranked Blue Devils perhaps seeing first-year players in their last game at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N. C.But Duke (25-4, 13-3) has lots to accomplish, particularly as it still has a chance to move up from third place and into first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia's win over Syracuse on Monday means the Blue Devils must win out while the Cavaliers lose their finale to Louisville.Wake Forest will be Duke's opponent Tuesday night, before a rematch with North Carolina -- one game ahead of Duke in the standings -- in Chapel Hill on Saturday.Duke freshmen RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish have taken lead roles with the absence of freshman Zion Williamson, who has missed three full games since sustaining a sprained knee in the opening minute of the Feb. 20 game against visiting North Carolina.Coach Mike Krzyzewski said Monday that Williamson is in the final phase of his recovery and hasn't yet decided if he'll face the Demon Deacons. If he doesn't play against Wake Forest, Williamson's final home outing will have come when he blew out his basketball shoe and exited with the knee injury.The Blue Devils lost twice in three games before finding cures in an 87-57 thrashing of Miami on Saturday. Alex O'Connell has been in the starting lineup with Williamson sitting out."I want (my teammates) to be able to trust me and just be able to know that I'll knock down a shot or I'll drive and kick," O'Connell said.Duke won 87-65 against Wake Forest in a Jan. 8 meeting in Winston-Salem. Williamson scored 30 points (on 13-of-16 shooting) to go with 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals in that game, which included 16 Wake Forest turnovers."We have to make sure we take better care of the basketball," Wake Forest coach Danny Manning said.Even with the possibility that Williamson will miss another game, Duke has enough offensive options that the Demon Deacons have to be alert in several directions."Defensively we have to understand who they are," Manning said. "We have to make them earn more points as far as making a contested shot. Matching up in transition is going to be really important." Some of Duke's scoring threats might have expanded again after reserve forward Jack White went 3-for-3 from 3-point range in the Miami game. That ended his 0-for-28 string from 3-point range."He doesn't want to be identified as somebody who hasn't hit (shots), and now he has hit," Krzyzewski said. "He wants to be identified as a really good player, which he is." White said those baskets should allow him to relax."I was just kind of more relieved," White said. "Now I shouldn't have to smile after hitting a 3." Wake Forest (11-17, 4-12) committed a season-high 23 turnovers Saturday against Syracuse. The Demon Deacons had offensive lulls in the Syracuse game, going more than 13 1/2 minutes during a second-half stretch without a field goal."We just have to be able to move the basketball around and find open areas," Manning said. "Part of (the drought was) turnovers. That all factors in." --Field Level Media
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