Duke Blue Devils Defeat the Wofford Terriers 86-57

Duke

1. Held Wofford’s Shooters In Check: Wofford on the year made an average of twelve threes per game. On Thursday night they only hit ten, even though they shot 42% from three. The key was not letting them attempt as many as they are used to and Duke succeeded in that.
2. Bench Scoring: Duke did a great job of getting production from their bench. Without Tre Jones, other guys needed to step up and they did in a big way. Their bench outscored Wofford’s 43-32 led by Joey Baker’s game-high twenty-two points.
3. Owned The Glass: Duke dominated the glass in a big way. They outrebounded Wofford forty-three to twenty-seven and sixteen to thirteen on the offensive glass. Duke used their size to their advantage and made Wofford pay.
4. Made Them Pay At The Free Throw Line: Wofford took thirteen less free throws and when Duke got to the line they made their shots. They were seventy-eight percent on the night, which is well above their season average.

Wofford

1. Tray Hollowell Played Well: Tray Hollowell was the lone bright point for Wofford Thursday night. Hollowell came off the bench and provided Wofford some much-needed scoring. Hollowell matched four of Wofford’s starters combined. While Hollowell shot 6/15 from the field, he at least took those shots.
2. Too Many Fouls: The Blue Devils owned Wofford on the glass early and often. Wofford had to foul the Blue Devils far too much because of this. Chevez Goodwin, Wofford’s lone starting forward, was in foul trouble much of the night, especially in the second half. This led to more open shooters and dunks for Duke, thus their second-half offensive output.
3. Starters Played Poorly: Not one of the Wofford starters hit double-digits in scoring today. The five starters only had 25 points combined on 11/33 shooting. Tough to beat the Blue Devils, especially on the road, when your “best players” are not at their best.
4. Could Not Get It Going Offensively: For a team that typically can flat out shoot they did not on Thursday. Wofford shot just 36% overall, as Duke hassled their ball handlers all night. None of the Wofford guards could get it going, and therefore neither could the team.

Final Score: Duke 86 Wofford 57

Next Up For Both Teams

Duke is now on a four-game winning streak and will get over a week off once again. In nine days they will welcome the 5-5 Brown Bears to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Tre Jones should be available for this one, as he was held out strictly for precautionary reasons. Expect Duke to roll over the Bears before the new year.

Wofford will need to bounce back quickly. They already have five losses on the year, despite their North Carolina victory. Next up is a visit to 1-10 Kennesaw State on Sunday. A loss here would make bouncing back nearly impossible for this group.

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