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. 2: Duke 93 - James Madison 55

Everyone loves a Cinderella in the NCAA Tournament. That is, of course, unless you are the team playing Cinderella.

That's the position Duke found itself in when the second round of the NCAA Tournament arrived. Seeded 4th in the South Region, Duke had to tangle with one of the darlings of the season, No. 12 seed James Madison.

During the regular season, the Dukes had secured a road win over then-No. 4 Michigan State to open the schedule and grab America's attention. Then, by virtue of a 31-3 season, they were one of the trendy picks to make a deep run in March as a double-digit seed.

What's more, a first-round win over No. 5 seeded Wisconsin only stoked those fires. That's why many were predicting that JMU would upset the Blue Devils in round two.

Fortunately, Jared McCain would have none of that talk. In a 93-55 drubbing, the freshman guard would go 10-15 from the field and 8-11 from 3-point range on his way to 30 points. In that one performance alone, he likely cemented his NBA hopes as he's projected to be a first-round pick this summer.

Any March win is special. However, shutting up a nation full of doubters by drubbing one of the darling Cinderellas of the country is something that every blue-blood relishes and that's what Duke did in this season's second-best win.

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