Cameron Indoor stadium is known for its electric atmosphere and loyal fans called the “Cameron Crazies.” The NC State men’s basketball team experienced firsthand just how difficult and disruptive of a place it can be as it fell to the rival Duke Blue Devils 88-80 Saturday in Durham.
Bad luck is the only way to describe State’s first half against the Blue Devils (17-6, 6-4 ACC). The Pack (12-12, 2-9 ACC) played the Blue Devils close throughout the half, as Duke never pulled ahead by more than 10.
Much like the last meeting between these two teams, the Blue Devils ran a full-court press for most of the half to try and slow down junior Cat Barber. It seemed to work as Barber was surprisingly quiet in the half, scoring only nine points on 3-of-6 shooting. Barber’s first points didn’t come until midway through the first half, when he crossed up Duke freshman Derryck Thornton and nailed a beautiful 3-pointer.
“[Cat’s] a good player, and he’s gonna find his spots,” head coach Mark Gottfried said. “He’s got great spirit, kept playing hard. He was terrific, just absolutely terrific today.”
Duke freshman Luke Kennard has struggled all season long and was due for a big game. Kennard was a killer from beyond the arc as he made 6 of his 11 3-pointers on the day. Several defensive breakdowns by the Pack gave Kennard open looks all day and he converted on most of his opportunities.
“The guy who really hurt us was Kennard,” Gottfried said. “Luke’s been struggling, but he went and made some big shots for them.”
Freshman Maverick Rowan was pacing the Wolfpack offense, scoring 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including 3 of 6 from 3-point range. Sophomore Abdul-Malik Abu was all over Duke’s frontcourt in the half, grabbing eight rebounds and scoring eight points.
As for the rest of State’s offense, the shots just weren’t falling. The Pack’s shot selection was great in the half, but it failed to convert on most of its opportunities.
The Blue Devils were led by sophomore stud Grayson Allen, who had a team-high 12 points. Duke shot 53.6 percent from the floor in the half, but entered the break only up six on State 41-35. The Wolfpack didn’t have a poor shooting half either as it made 40.6 percent of its shots in the first half.
When the second half started, the Pack came out firing on all cylinders. Barber and sophomore Cody Martin were making plays, Abu was finishing around the basket, and the Pack was playing fantastic defense.
However, State suffered through a major shooting slump after taking a 50-49 lead early in the second half. State went 1-for-11 from the field over a seven-minute stretch, and Duke capitalized on the Pack’s shooting woes. The Blue Devils went on an 18-4 run to take a 67-54 with 10 minutes to go in the half.
The Wolfpack was able to put together a run of its own to close the gap to four with 7:34 to go. The Pack made it a game late as it traded baskets with Duke during the latter portion of the second half.
“It seemed like every big shot they needed to make, they made it,” Gottfried said. “But, even when they made a big shot, we responded, we came right back and we seemed to answer it.”
Under two minutes to go, Allen drove hard to the basket and collided with Barber, the latter called for a blocking foul. Barber fell awkwardly on his right hand, and could be seen grimacing as he held it. When asked about the injury after the game, Gottfried said Barber would be getting x-rays and he didn’t know what the prognosis was. .
Barber finished with 26 points to go along with six assists. Abu added another double-double to his resume after a 16-point, 17-rebound performance. For the Blue Devils, Allen led the way with 28 points followed closely behind by Kennard’s 26.
“Both teams just played their hearts out,” Gottfried said. “We got to get regrouped, we’re not gonna hang our heads. We’re gonna find a way to shore up some things, but I’m extremely proud of our competitive spirit to day.”
Prior to today’s game, only Barber and junior BeeJay Anya had played a regular season game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The Wolfpack return to action Saturday Feb. 13 at PNC Arena as it faces the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. It then hits the road for a matchup with the No. 9 Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville, Virginia.
