NC State stuns No. 6 Duke, cruises to 22-point upset win
NC State didn’t mess around on Wednesday night.
The Wolfpack dominated No. 6 Duke from the jump, opening the game on a 10-1 run, and never looked back. NC State cruised to the 88-66 win at PNC Arena in Raleigh, snapping the Blue Devils’ seven-game win streak.
The court storm. pic.twitter.com/UpwZODzV3C
— Brendan Marks (@BrendanRMarks) February 20, 2020
“NC State was terrific,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “It was a game they needed and they played like they needed it. It was our worst game, but they made us look that way. They were the hungrier team and it showed up right from the beginning.”
NC State never trailed throughout the contest, and quickly pushed its early lead to 15 points by halftime, thanks to a huge half-court buzzer-beater from Markell Johnson.
NOTHING NEW FOR NC STATE 😮
Markell Johnson hits the half-court shot to end the first half for @PackMensBball!pic.twitter.com/Q89dBdgBk5— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) February 20, 2020
The Wolfpack extended their lead to 23 points in the opening minutes of the second half, too. From there, Duke seemed completely deflated. Though it cut the lead back to just 11 midway through the half, it was far too late. NC State held on and cruised to the 22-point win, its third win in four games.
Vernon Carey led Duke with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Tre Jones added 17 points and nine rebounds. As a team, the Blue Devils had just six assists on the night — four of which came from Jones. The loss also marked Duke’s first to an unranked opponent as a top-10 team by 20 points or more points since 1979.
Johnson led the Wolfpack with a career-high 28 points and nine rebounds, shooting 5-of-6 from behind the arc. Devon Daniels added a career-high 25 points and nine rebounds, and DJ Funderbunk finished with 21 points and nine rebounds.
Tre Jones and Javin DeLaurier reflect on Duke’s loss at NC State. @ABC11_WTVD pic.twitter.com/B7lYRqXaCJ
— Bridget Condon (@BridgetABC11) February 20, 2020
“You never think that a team as talented as we are who has played as well as we have is going to come out and perform like that tonight,” Duke forward Javin DeLaurier said, via ABC11’s Bridget Condon. “I think we’re all a little bit embarrassed with the product that we put on the court tonight. Tomorrow we’ll come into practice, we’ll watch the film and we’ll try to move on from it and use it as a learning experience.”
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