No. 4 Duke Survives Against No. 7 Michigan State in First Major Road Test This Season
Another day, another close win for the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils as they beat No. 7 Michigan State in East Lansing in a gritty 66-60 victory to remain undefeated on the young season.
Defense, Defense, and More Defense
Whenever two fantastic defensive teams match up, expect not to see a lot of fireworks on offense, and that was the case today between these two teams. Neither Michigan State nor Duke was able to find any rhythm on offense throughout, with both teams shooting below 40% for the game.
The 66 points the Blue Devils scored were their fewest in a game this season. Thankfully for Duke, they have the best player in the nation this season to cure all their offensive woes in Cameron Boozer. The freshman phenom dropped 18 points, with 16 of those points coming in the second half, while also helping on the glass with an impressive 15 rebounds in the Blue Devils’ win.
Duke Keeps Winning Against Ranked Teams
When looking at some of the resumes of the top-ranked teams in the country this season, the fourth-ranked Blue Devils have arguably the best resume out of anyone so far this season. Duke’s win over No. 7 Michigan State represented its fourth win over a top-25 opponent, and its second straight win against a top-15-ranked team as well.
The only two teams in the country with as many ranked wins so far this season are the No. 2-ranked Arizona Wildcats and the No. 3-ranked Michigan Wolverines, who both boast undefeated records as well.
Michigan State’s Offensive Struggles Show Through In Loss
Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo has made a career out of engineering some of the most elite defenses in college basketball during his 30-year tenure with the Spartans. However, that level of expertise has not taken hold on the offensive side of the floor over the last several years.
The Spartans’ offense this season ranks as one of the slowest and lowest-scoring squads in the nation. While that slow and methodical approach has led to a fair amount of success this season, the offensive pitfalls associated with that game plan unfortunately reared its ugly head today for MSU. The 60 points scored and 31% field goal percentage from the floor represented season lows for the Spartans in the loss.
What’s Next For Both Teams This Season
After passing their first road test of the season, the Blue Devils will get a lengthy break before ramping things back up at home against Lipscomb on December 16. For Michigan State, they’ll have a chance to rebound from this stinging loss with a game on the road against Penn State, in what will be their first BIG 10 conference game this season.
