The return of Duke guard Grayson Allen and the Blue Devils’ searing 3-point shooting were way too much for Georgia Tech Wednesday night.
The No. 8 Blue Devils crushed the Yellow Jackets 110-57, effectively putting the game away less than eight minutes into the game and never let up. Hoping to build on its upset win over then-No. 9 North Carolina in its ACC opener, Tech was too loose defensively, giving up a series of open 3-pointers to a team that didn’t need the courtesy.
Duke finished the game having made 16 of 31 3-pointers, 11 of them by halftime, when the Blue Devils had gained a 61-30 lead. The halftime total tied Duke’s season high for a game and Tech’s for most allowed in a game. Tech allowed an opponent to reach triple digits for the first time since Feb. 2011 (Virginia Tech) in coach Paul Hewitt’s final season. Tech has allowed more than 110 points only eight times in school history. The 53-point margin of defeat
While the win over North Carolina demonstrated Tech’s capacity to score an upset when everything aligns, Wednesday’s result was a picture of what awaits the Jackets when their offensive limitations are fully exposed against a far superior team running wild.
Allen started for the Blue Devils, ending his indefinite suspension for tripping three players in less than a year’s time at one game. The All-American was more than Tech could handle, driving to the basket and kicking out and getting to the free-throw line. He finished with 15 points and seven assists.
The game slipped away from the Jackets quickly. Buried under a succession of 3-pointers, many from nearly the exact same spot on the left wing, Tech fell behind 9-4, at which point coach Josh Pastner called a quick timeout, and then 29-11 with 12:26 left in the half. At that point, Duke was 6-for-8 from 3-point range, more makes than North Carolina made against Tech on Saturday (five) in 18 fewer attempts.
The Jackets were burned repeatedly in transition, failing to retreat quickly enough to prevent Duke from taking open 3-pointers. The Blue Devils shot 55.7 percent from the field.
It was by far the largest margin of defeat for Pastner in his young tenure, surpassing the 81-58 beating administered by Tennessee Dec. 3 in Knoxville, Tenn. The Jackets lost their 10th consecutive game to the Blue Devils and 34th in the past 37 games.
About the Author
