Duke will get a chance to avenge a lopsided loss to Ohio State as the Blue Devils host the Buckeyes in an ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Wed., Nov. 28, at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
Exact game times for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge will be set at a later date, but the OSU-Duke match-up is almost certain to air in a prime spot on ESPN.Ohio State took an 85-63 win over Duke in a Challenge match-up on Nov. 29 at Value City Arena. That game matched up No. 2-ranked Ohio State with No. 3 Duke in arguably the biggest nonconference game in the 14-year history of VCA.
Duke has four starters back from a 27-7 team that fizzled down the stretch with three losses in its last four games. The capper was a 75-70 loss to 15th-seeded Lehigh in an NCAA second-round tournament game – in Greensboro, N.C., no less. That was certainly an early exit for a Duke program just two years removed from its latest national title under Mike Krzyzewski.
Guard Austin Rivers is leaving Durham after one year for the NBA. But 6'10" Mason Plumlee (11.1 ppg, 9.2 rpg) will be back for his senior year.
Also returning are guard Seth Curry (13.2 ppg), forward Ryan Kelly (11.8 ppg) and guards Andre Dawkins (8.4 ppg), Quinn Cook and Tyler Thornton. Duke also adds shooting guard Rasheed Sulaimon (ranked 11th nationally).
Ohio State has three starters back from its 31-8 team that won a share of the Big Ten title and reached the Final Four. The Buckeyes lost guard William Buford to graduation and saw center Jared Sullinger leave early for the NBA.
Wing Deshaun Thomas (15.9 ppg) announced he would be back. Thomas averaged just under 20 points per game in OSU’s Final Four run and could be poised for a big year. Guards Aaron Craft and Lenzelle Smith Jr. also return. OSU coach Thad Matta will ask sophs-to-be Sam Thompson, LaQuinton Ross, Shannon Scott and 6'11" Amir Williams to step up and fill the voids.
Sullinger led Ohio State with 21 points and eight rebounds in the win over Duke, while Buford added 20 points, five rebounds and four assists. Thomas had 18 points, connecting on 8 of 12 shots from the floor. Craft chipped in 17 points, eight assists and five rebounds. Craft was 7 of 11 from the floor, including 3 of 4 on threes.
As a team, the Buckeyes were 59.3 percent from the floor (35 of 59) and connected on 57.1 percent of their threes (8 of 14). The Buckeyes led by as many as 24 points in the second half of that rout.
Rivers led the way for Duke with 22 points, while Mason Plumlee had 16 points and eight rebounds.
Duke came to Columbus six days after winning the Maui Invitational in Hawaii, where they took wins over Tennessee, Michigan and Kansas.
“This was our seventh game in 13 days,” Krzyzewski said after the game. “We just got back from Maui. We weren’t able to get as juiced up as we needed going on the road. Even if we had done that, I’m not sure we beat them tonight.
“Sometimes you just get your butt kicked … I’ve had my butt kicked before and we’ve kicked some butt. Tonight, my butt is sore,” he added with a chuckle.
The loss was Duke’s worst loss by margin since a 77-54 loss to Villanova in the 2009 NCAA Sweet 16. It was the Blue Devils’ worst regular season loss since a 74-47 decision at Clemson earlier in that 2009 season.
