Blue Devils Win Their ACC Home Opener With Comeback Win Over FSU

The Duke Blue Devils got back on track in ACC play as they won their conference home opener 100-93 over the Florida State Seminoles. It was yet another comeback win for the Blue Devils and another display of how Duke has the best front court in college basketball.

Florida State never went away today. Maybe it was because Duke was at home but it was one of those games where if you weren’t looking at the scoreboard for a majority of the game, you would have thought that Duke was up by a wide margin.

Florida State seemingly made everything from outside the arc, going 15-32 from deep. They were led by Phil Cofer who led the Seminoles with 28 points but didn’t score for the final 15:54 of the game. Braian Angola chipped in 23 as well for the Seminoles.

For as bad as the Blue Devils shot from outside, 8-30, they made up for it in the paint. They out rebounded Florida State 53-35 and scored 56 points in the paint. Marvin Bagley dominated with 32 points and 21 (!) boards. Wendell Carter added 14 points and 16 boards while combing with Bagley to grab 18 offensive rebounds. Grayson Allen added 22 points but only shot 3-10 from long range.

This Florida State team was pesky. They killed Duke from downtown and that was what kept them in the game. Early in the second half, it looked like they were going to pull away but Duke went on a 14-0 run which included a Bagley four point play and me jumping an unofficial two feet in the air following it. The Seminoles had zero answer for Dukes bigs. Bagley and Carter were having their way, grabbing seemingly every rebound in their vicinity and getting to the line a combined 17 times. They only shot a combined 7-17 but still, the only answer Florida State had was to foul the big fellas.

Next: Duke Men's Basketball 2017 Year Review

Takeaways:

-Trae Young is deservedly getting praise as the most exciting freshman in college basketball but Marvin Bagley is the best basketball player in the nation. The guy is like a magnet. Rebounds just end up in his hands at alarming rates and he knows what to do when he gets them.

–Wendell Carter is such a fundamentally sound big man as a freshman. I have yet to see him grab a rebound without two hands, which is a huge reason as to why he’s such a prolific rebounder. He also has great footwork and feel in the post not only on offense but on defense as well. He also showed some major stones when he drew a charge with four fouls late in the second half.

-Grayson Allen is exactly the leader this team needs. When things start getting hectic he provides a calming factor to the whole team. I’ve still yet to see him miss the pump fake, dribble and take a three play.

-Trevon Duval needs less minutes. While he’s been a good slasher for Duke this season, his lack of an outside shot is a killer when Duke shoots like they did today. He got into foul trouble early and he makes some bone headed decisions that I’m still trying to wrap my head around. Give Goldwire for minutes.

-Duke needs more production from the bench. They only had three points from the reserves on an Alex O’Connell three. By comparison, Florida State had 24 bench points. The Blue Devils don’t have bad bench guys either. Moving forward, I’d like to see more production from them.