For a half Duke fans were a little shaky. Just like UVA fans in their 1 vs 16 matchup. Duke struggled to score against the North Dakota State Bison only managing a 4 point lead at the break. The teams combined for 4 of 24 from beyond the arc and both hit 12 shots in total. duke managed their advantage from the foul line going 5-6 while the Bison were only 1 of 1. The Bison also out rebounded the Blue Devils to the tune of 19 to 14 in the first half.
The Blue Devils came out in the second half with a renewed energy on offense. A quick 13 to 3 run put the Blue Devils up 42-30 and they never looked back. The Blue Devils never let off of their defensive intensity and held the Bison to 31% shooting in the second half while ratcheting up their own offensive efficiency shooting 60% from beyond the arc and 57% from the field overall in the half.
The Blue Devils were paced by R.J. Barrett who shot 9-18 for 26 points. Barrett also pulled down 14 rebounds and dished 3 assists. Zion Williamson added 25 points shooting an efficient 12 of 16. Cam Reddish rounded out the double figure scorers for the Blue Devils with 12 on 3-9 shooting – Reddish also dished out 3 assists.
