The Blue Devils did bounce back against the SIU-Edwardsville Cougars 90-47. Was it a thing of beauty? No, but incremental steps are more likely to be the path forward rather than an instant fix. There was more movement in the offense, which is something that was severely lacking against Michigan State. A lot less turnovers as well, but the shots didn’t fall as well as anyone would like—but those are things you cannot necessarily control as long as the shots are good. Concerning early in the game were the point-blank misses. That didn’t last too long, and eventually Duke saw those, as well as a few 3-pointers start to go down.
How the Game Was Won
Duke wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, as Dame Sarr laid in the Blue Devils’ first basket inside the opening 30 seconds. SIUE took nearly two minutes to get its first points, and Sarr later ended a stretch of nine consecutive Duke misses with a fast-break layup that gave the Blue Devils a 6-2 advantage at the first media timeout.
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje provided an early highlight with a poster dunk to extend the lead to 9-3, before Caleb Foster knocked down Duke’s first three-pointer of the night. The Blue Devils continued to set the tone defensively, holding the Cougars without a field goal for nearly five minutes. Sebastian Wilkins capped a transition opportunity with a dunk to push Duke’s advantage into double figures at 14-4.
The defensive pressure only intensified from there, as Duke forced five turnovers in less than five minutes and limited SIUE to just one make on its next 11 attempts from the field. Foster caught fire from beyond the arc, adding two more triples, while Cameron Williams finished an alley-oop dunk to help fuel an 11-0 run. With the Blue Devils leading 25-6, SIUE was forced to call timeout with 8:29 remaining in the first half.
Boumtje Boumtje took over offensively later in the half, scoring seven consecutive points with a pair of dunks and a three-pointer to stretch the margin to 22. Williams added another triple, and Cayden Boozer converted two free throws to give Duke its largest lead of the opening period at 43-15. SIUE managed to close the half with five unanswered points, sending the teams into the locker room with the Blue Devils holding a 43-20 advantage.
Patrick Ngongba II opened the second half with four straight points for Duke, while Boumtje Boumtje became the first Blue Devil to reach double figures with a layup through contact at the 16:20 mark. Duke continued to build on its lead, taking a 65-36 advantage into the under-12 media timeout. Wilkins came out of the break with another basket to record the first double-digit scoring performance of his career, becoming the third Blue Devil to reach the mark.
Foster joined the double-digit scoring group on the next possession with a layup, giving the senior 11 points with 10 minutes remaining. Sarr followed with a three-point play at the 6:23 mark to reach 11 points of his own as Duke continued to pull away.
The Blue Devils delivered another decisive stretch late in the game, putting together a 13-point run to build their first 40-point advantage at 83-43. Boozer added to the scoring surge with a corner three-pointer, securing his second double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Maxime Meyer and Jacob Theodosiou provided the final baskets in the closing minutes as Duke cruised to a 90-47 victory.
By the Numbers
Offensively, Duke still didn’t light it up from beyond the arc, hitting 31% from 3, and 45.5% overall from the field; the assist numbers were better, with 30 made baskets and 19 being assisted. Free throw shooting numbers for Duke were 21-29 for 72.4%. 9 turnovers for Duke in this game, 19 for SIU-E, and Duke turned those turnovers into 20 points. Duke also had a 42 to 24 edge in paint points and a 19-6 edge in second chance points.
| # | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | AST | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Patrick Ngongba II | * | 21 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 5-6 | 4-5 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 13 |
| 7 | Dame Sarr | * | 23 | 5-11 | 1-4 | 1-2 | 1-3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 12 |
| 2 | Cayden Boozer | * | 22 | 3-7 | 1-3 | 4-4 | 4-6 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| 30 | Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje | * | 21 | 5-8 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 2-7 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| 13 | John Blackwell | * | 22 | 1-7 | 1-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | Caleb Foster | 18 | 4-6 | 3-5 | 1-2 | 2-1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | |
| 5 | Sebastian Wilkins | 15 | 1-5 | 0-3 | 9-10 | 1-5 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | |
| 14 | Cameron Williams | 14 | 3-7 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | |
| 15 | Maxime Meyer | 6 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 8 | Drew Scharnowski | 11 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 26 | Jacob Theodosiou | 2 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 3 | Deron Rippey Jr. | 18 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 12 | Bryson Howard | 7 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2-1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TEAM TOTALS | 200 | 30-66 | 9-29 | 21-29 | 18-33 | 51 | 17 | 19 | 9 | 8 | 11 | 90 |
Player of the Game:
Dame Sarr, in addition to leading Duke in scoring with 16 points, adds 3 assists and his patented on-ball defense. Sarr was a vocal leader for Jon Scheyer’s team; that might have been the most impressive thing about his performance. He also didn’t miss a shot, not one.
What We Learned About Duke
Takeaways
- Offense is clearly a work in progress
- Duke got good minutes from Cam Williams, who scored 9 points and hit 2 of his 4 shots from beyond the arc—he also had 3 blocks.
- JBB had a much better game and still has some issues when he gets paint touches, scores better on the move, and needs to make better decisions when in the paint.
- Blackwell still hasn’t found his stroke, but Duke has Caleb Foster to pick up the slack.
What Comes Next
Duke jumps back into the deep end against another top 10 team as they face Illinois at home on ESPN on November 17th.
Final Thoughts
I am not surprised at the slow start to this game and offense looking a bit clunky and disjointed, mostly because this staff is teaching offense rather than just simply running plays—that tends to take longer. The goal, as difficult as it is to see in the early going, is to teach your players how to read the defense and react. Much like a quarterback having the wherewithal to call an audible from reading coverages. In the end it makes your team better, fosters communication, and should, in theory, make your team more dangerous. It also takes patience and buy in.
