RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jeremy Roach had 21 points and freshman Jared McCain scored 14 of his 16 after halftime to help No. 9 Duke pull away and beat North Carolina State 79-64 on Monday night.
McCain shot 5 of 7 after the break for the Blue Devils (24-6, 15-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who went from battling through a cold-shooting first half that put them in a 9-0 hole to riding a hot-shooting tear after the break. Two of McCain’s 3-pointers came during a blistering run of eight straight made shots, turning a one-point deficit into a 64-52 lead on Roach’s layup at the 7:46 mark.
Duke star big man Kyle Filipowski had just nine points while being limited by first-half foul trouble. But the Blue Devils offset that with a big performance from 6-foot-9 freshman reserve Sean Stewart, who had 12 points, five rebounds, three blocks and two steals in 26 minutes.
Duke shot 62.5% (20 of 32) after halftime and finished with a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, leading to 23 second-chance points — with much of that work coming before halftime.
Burly big man DJ Burns Jr. had a season-high 27 points on 12-for-19 shooting to lead the Wolfpack (17-13, 9-10), but leading scorer DJ Horne (17.6 points per game) had just eight points on eight shots.
It marked the Wolfpack’s third consecutive loss and fourth in five games.
BIG PICTURE
Duke: The Blue Devils have been hovering right behind No. 7 North Carolina atop the ACC standings. This win kept them on course to claim at least a share of the regular-season title by beating UNC in the schedule finale. Duke has won three straight games by double-figure margins.
N.C. State: The Wolfpack’s NCAA resume looked iffy coming into Monday with a No. 80 NET and a 1-6 record in Quadrant 1 games, with the lone win at Clemson (25th in NET) on Feb. 17. Beating the Blue Devils (10th) would have provided a jolt of optimism, though there would’ve been work still ahead at the ACC Tournament. Instead, this ended up as another missed opportunity for a team on a trek to the wrong side of the bubble.
UP NEXT
Duke: The Blue Devils host the rival Tar Heels on Saturday.
N.C. State: Plays at Pittsburgh on Saturday night.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here.
___
AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
