An 11-0 Virginia run erased an 11-point Duke lead, but the Blue Devils took the lead for good on a three-pointer from the left corner by Rasheed Sulaimon with 18.6 seconds left, and held on for a 69-65 win Monday night in Durham.
Duke (13-4, 2-2 ACC) led comfortably most of the way, putting up a double-digit margin in the first half before going into the halftime break up 36-28. UVa. (12-5, 3-1 ACC) cut the margin to three at 42-39 at the 15:29 mark of the second half on a dunk by Mike Tobey, but s 12-2 Duke run capped by a pair of free throws by Andre Dawkins made it 54-41 Blue Devils with 9:23 to go and seemed to signal an early end for the Cavs.
It was still double digits at 64-52 after a pair of free throws with 3:44 to go by Quinn Cook when Virginia suddenly got back into it. A Justin Anderson three from the top of the key cut the margin to eight, and then an athletic tip-in by Anderson and a free throw made it 63-58 at the 2:40 mark.
After a Duke miss, Joe Harris knifed through the lane for a layup that cut the lead to 63-60 with 2:18 left. Another Duke miss put the ball in the hands of Brogdon, who hit a layup and converted an old-fashioned three-point play to tie the game at 63 with 1:25 left.
Sulaimon made the second of two free throws to give Duke a one-point, 64-63, lead with 55 seconds left. Brogdon was fouled driving the lane and made the two ensuing free throws to put Virginia up one at 65.64 with 36.5 seconds left.
On Duke’s next possession, Rodney Hood badly missed a runner in the lane, but Amile Jefferson snared the rebound and found a wide-open Sulaimon in the corner. The shot hit the back rim, but the backspin popped the ball straight into the air for an uncomfortable tick or two for Duke fans before it fell through to a thunder from the partisan crowd.
Virginia called a timeout to set up a potential game-tying or game-winning shot in the frontcourt, but in a wild sequence, an Akil Mitchell pass was intercepted, then recovered by Harris, who missed a runner in the lane while absorbing what looked to be foul-level contact. Jefferson ended up with the loose ball, was fouled, and sank both free throws with seven seconds left to seal it.
Brogdon scored 17 points to lead Virginia. Harris had 15, and Anderson had 12 for the Cavs, who shot just 38.2 percent (21-for-55) on the night.
Sulaimon had a game-high 21 points off the bench for Duke, which shot 44.9 percent (22-for-49) from the field and 45.5 percent (10-for-22) from three-point range.
Team Notes
• Virginia is 49-116 all-time vs. Duke and 10-56 in Durham
• The Cavaliers have lost 16 consecutive games at Duke
• Virginia is 0-3 vs. ranked opponents (VCU, Wisconsin & Duke)
• After not trailing in each of its first three ACC games, Virginia led for only 17 seconds tonight
Player Notes
• Malcolm Brogdon (17 pts) tied a career high and reached double figures for the fourth straight game and 10th time (15th career) • Joe Harris (15 pts) reached double figures for the 11th time (80th career)
• Harris (1,441 points) moved past Jim Connelly (1965-67, 1426 points) and Barry Parkhill (1971-73, 1,437 points) for 19th on UVa’s all-time scoring list
• Justin Anderson (12 pts) reached double figures for the 10th time (22ndcareer)
Share
AFP
