After Jon Scheyer held center Patrick Ngongba II out of Duke's first-round matchup against the Siena Saints, college basketball experts and "exeperts" (overzealous fans) let him hear it, despite the fact that the Blue Devils won and advanced.
Then, in the second round, Scheyer had Ngongba back in the rotation, and as the No. 1-seed Duke Blue Devils blew past the No. 9-seed TCU Horned Frogs in the second half, anyone who thought Scheyer had been wrong to keep him out of the first game grew really quiet.
No, Ngongba didn't have a record-breaking performance, or even a double-digit night in any stat column, but his presence back on the court was everything it needed to be.
In other words, Scheyer's "gamble" to rest him for the first game of the NCAA Tournament paid its dividends.
Patrick Ngongba sitting vs. Siena worked out perfectly vs. TCU
The Blue Devils' usual starting center entered the game for 13 minutes and earned an undeniably respectable performance. By the end of the matchup, with Duke moving on to the Sweet 16, Ngongba had earned four points, four rebounds, four assists, and one block.
It may have taken until the second half, but Ngongba shook off the rust (committing four turnovers), and he looked in fine form as the Blue Devils ran away with the second-round matchup.
Patrick Ngongba goes strong to the cup and gets a deuce for @DukeMBB 😤 pic.twitter.com/F30spKiR1e
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 21, 2026
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Cameron Boozer led the charge once again for the Blue Devils, despite racking up a flagrant foul early on in the matchup. He finished the night with a jaw-dropping 19 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and one block, coming alive during Duke's second-half performance.
His twin, Cayden Boozer, earned nine points, five assists, and four rebounds while leading the offensive charge and playing consistent defense, especially throughout the final 20 minutes.
Even Dame Sarr had the game of a lifetime, amassing 14 points, eight rebounds, two steals, one assist, and one block. Isaiah Evans didn't miss out on the party either, earning 17 points, three rebounds, and one assist.
In the second half, the Blue Devils played "Duke defense," according to Scheyer, and held the Horned Frogs to just 20 points after halftime.
Duke demolished the Horned Frogs, despite leading by just four points at halftime, to secure the 81-58 win over TCU. Now, the Blue Devils will move on to the Sweet 16, where they will face the winner of No. 5-seed St. John's versus No. 4-seed Kansas.