Duke basketball continues dominance in Chicago with star’s game winner

The Duke basketball dominance in Chicago continues. 

It was a great 24 hours in the United Center for anyone associated with the Due basketball program.

On Tuesday night, the No. 9 Blue Devils (2-1) got back on the winning track with a 74-65 victory over No. 18 Michigan State (1-2) behind 18 points from freshman guard Caleb Foster.

It remains to be seen if Foster will be a one-and-done, but no one had any questions if Paolo Banchero would be a one-and-done for Duke and he is proving why he is one of the brightest young stars in the NBA.

Approximately 24 hours after Foster and the Blue Devils boarded the plane back to Durham, Banchero took center stage in the Windy City and delivered a game winning shot for the Orlando Magic to defeat the Chicago Bulls, 96-94.

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The reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, with the game tied at 94, caught the inbounds pass on the right wing and backed down the much smaller Alex Caruso into the paint before he would hit a turnaround jump shot with 1.4 seconds remaining.

Chicago, without a timeout, was not able to get a shot before time expired.

Duke basketball product showing up when it matters most

It was not a perfect game for Paolo Banchero before his clutch basket as he was just 3-of-11 with 15 points and nine rebounds, but his final two points pushed him to being the team’s leading scorer in the low-scoring affair.

Banchero made the last three field goals in the game for the Magic.

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The No. 1 overall draft pick is averaging 18.9 points per contest through 11 games of his second season in the NBA while also adding 6.8 rebounds. 5.1 assists, and 1.5 steals per game on 46.5-percent shooting from the field and a much improved 38.7-percent from 3-point range.

Orlando (6-5) has performed well in the early part of the season as the young squad looks to take the next step in its development and compete for the spot in the playoffs.