No. 11 Duke jumps out to huge lead, never looks back vs. Pitt
Jan 9, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Jeremy Roach (3) goes to the basket past Pittsburgh Panthers forward Guillermo Diaz Graham (25) during the first half at the Petersen Events Center. credits: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports Kyle Filipowski poured in a game-high 26 points as No. 11 Duke cruised to a 75-53 victory over host Pitt on Tuesday night.
Filipowski canned 11 of 12 shots from the floor and also brought down 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils (12-3, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who built a 25-point lead by halftime and never looked back.
Jared McCain supplied 12 points and five boards for Duke, which also got nine points and four assists from Jeremy Roach.
Zack Austin paced the Panthers (10-6, 1-4) with 11 points. Carlton Carrington chipped in 10 points, while Blake Hinson and Jaland Lowe finished with nine apiece.
The Blue Devils shot an efficient 51.8 percent from the field, with Pitt hitting at just a 32.8 percent clip.
Roach, Tyrese Proctor and McCain each connected from long range and Filipowski had six points as Duke opened the game on a 22-9 run.
That outburst included a dry spell from the Panthers, who at one point went 4:40 without scoring. Ishmael Leggett ended the drought with a jumper with 8:43 left in the first half to pull Pitt within 22-11.
However, Filipowski responded with a trey and Roach added a layup to make it a 16-point game. The Blue Devils later scored nine of the final 11 points of the half to go into the break up 48-23.
Filipowski led all first-half scorers with 17 points as Duke connected on 60 percent of its shots through the first 20 minutes of action. Hinson scored all nine of his points before intermission for Pitt, which went just 8-for-28 (28.6 percent) from the floor and was outrebounded 21-12.
The Blue Devils enjoyed a comfortable cushion the rest of the way, as Pitt wouldn't come closer than 21 in the second half, even with the help of a 14-2 run that included a 3-pointer and pair of free throws from Guillermo Graham Diaz.
Duke has won seven straight, while the Panthers have dropped three of their past four.
—Field Level Media
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