Counting down the five defining wins for Duke basketball in 2023-24 season

These five wins helped propel the Duke basketball team to the Elite 8 and defined what was another fascinating season for the Blue Devils.

Mar 29, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Duke Blue Devils center Kyle Filipowski (30) reacts after a basket during the second half in the semifinals of the South Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament against the Houston Cougars at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports / Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

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No. 3: Duke 78 - No. 10 Baylor 70

This season, Duke didn't have many marquee non-conference wins to open the schedule. In fact, the Blue Devils dropped high-profile early-season games to Arizona and Arkansas before ACC play got going.

One massive non-con win, though, came at Madison Square Garden in New York City against No. 10 Baylor. In fact, the 78-70 win was by far the best non-con win of the regular season.

This was a game that saw backup center Ryan Young have to play key minutes down the stretch with starting center Kyle Filipowski saddled with four fouls. Though Young scored only four points and grabbed only three rebounds in eight minutes of action, he had a critical go-ahead layup as part of the decisive 14-1 Duke run in the second half.

Duke held Baylor 18 points below its season average that night. A large part of that effort was a result of forcing 13 turnovers from the Bears.

Jared McCain led the way with 21 points while Roach added 18 as Duke's starters scored all but four of their team's points. However, Young came up with some key plays off the bench when needed to help spark his team.

Baylor would spend all year ranked in the top 25 and would finish the season ranked as high as No. 14. That's why this non-conference win was one of the best of the season for Duke.

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