Duke basketball best display of the season results in blowout victory over Pittsburgh
![Jan 9, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Jared McCain (0) reacts as he Jan 9, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Jared McCain (0) reacts as he](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4176,h_2349,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/175/01hkrtws053vx6b5rprg.jpg)
It's very rare that the Duke basketball team gets a cruise control victory on the road in ACC play but Tuesday night in Pittsburgh might have been even easier than that.
On Duke's second offensive possession, Kyle Filipowski would grab two offensive rebounds and eventually get the putback layup to drop and the Blue Devils were off and running.
Jared McCain went strong to the basket on the next trip down the floor for Duke and never looked back.
It wasn't too long before the Blue Devils built a 20-point lead in the first half, 36-16, with still 5:59 to play before halftime. Jon Scheyer's team finally showed its potential and why this team earned so much hype in the preseason.
Duke led by 25 points, 48-23, at halftime and sucked the life not only out of the Panthers (10-6, 1-4 ACC) team, but its sold out crowd.
The second half looked very similar to the first half, building the lead as high as 34 points, 62-28, before the Blue Devils finally eased up over the course of the final ten minutes, winning 75-53.
Despite Duke's decisive margin of victory, only Filipowski and McCain reached double figuers but the sophomore looked like his vintage self after struggling against Notre Dame on Saturday.
The All-American candidate ended the night with 26 points and 10 rebounds on 11-of-12 shooting, only missing his first shot attempt of the game, and going 4-for-4 from 3-point range.
As a team, the Blue Devils shot 51.8-percent from the floor and 44.0-percent (11-of-25) from 3-point range. Everyone who stepped on the floor scored at least three points with the exception of Jaylen Blakes, who suffered a cut on his hand in the first half, and did not return until midway through the second half.
Blakes would have attempted two free throws on the play where he was injured but had to go back to the locker room to get the cut cleaned.
No. 11 Duke (12-3, 3-1 ACC), after sweeping its two game road trip, will return home and look for revenge against Georgia Tech (8-7, 1-3 ACC), which upset the Blue Devils in early December for its only league win of the season thus far, on Saturday afternoon (5:00 p.m. ET, ACC Network).
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