Second-chance points and fast-break scoring define No. 2 Duke men’s basketball’s win against Wake Forest

When Duke walked off the court after playing Wake Forest at LJVM Coliseum in January, Blue Devil fans let out a sigh of relief. A win was far from guaranteed after the Demon Deacons came out of the halftime locker room with vengeance, racking up as much as a 14-point lead. While Duke eventually grit its way to victory, the question remained: How would the Blue Devils find an answer when Wake Forest came to Durham?

Just over a month later, with Cameron Indoor Stadium rocking on senior night, Duke left no doubt through 40 minutes. Trouncing the Demon Deacons by 33, the Blue Devil team that stepped onto Coach K Court looked entirely different from the one five weeks ago. So, what was the change?

“These guys have been incredibly unselfish, incredibly driven, and it’s made … for a great collective toughness that we’ve had,” head coach Jon Scheyer said.

It’s difficult to quantify toughness or point to exactly where it shows up on a stat sheet. Ultimately, it was Wake Forest head coach Steve Forbes who laid it out best.

“Their points really came off of turnovers, second-chance points, the fast breaks,” Forbes said.

It all started with Cooper Flagg on the defensive end, less than six minutes into the contest. The freshman knocked the ball away from Tre’Von Spillers as Efton Reid III tried to pass to him, tapping it towards Kon Knueppel. The Milwaukee native sped down the floor and kicked it out to graduate transfer Sion James for a triple.

From that point on, Duke scored 17 more fast-break points compared to the Demon Deacons’ six, giving it an offensive edge that metastasized into an enormous lead. When the Blue Devils narrowly escaped Winston Salem, N.C., nearly a month ago, the scene looked very different: Duke tallied just two fast-break points to Wake Forest’s 12. This time around, the home squad played with a faster tempo to beat its opponents in transition, capitalizing on opportunities for quick buckets.

Even when the Blue Devils missed shots, there was a teammate to help give a second chance. Duke stepped up its offensive rebounding efforts, nabbing 18 for a total of 22 second-chance points. No one was more central to this effort than freshman center Khaman Maluach, whose work on the glass seemed to give the Blue Devils’ offense life. Once more, the story in March was vastly different than the one written in January. Last time out, Duke only had five second-chance points, preventing it from making the most of its offensive opportunities. On their home court, the Blue Devils did not make the same mistake twice, playing together as a cohesive unit to cash in on offensive possessions.

“I thought we just were able to come together,” graduate forward Mason Gillis said after the game. “Coach talked about at halftime [to] show our growth. I think we did [that].”

While things like the points off turnovers were certainly impressive — Duke scored 23 points off Demon Deacon errors compared to four for the visitors — it was the Blue Devils’ unselfish play that truly made the difference. With 19 assists, Scheyer’s squad shared the rock effectively to keep Wake Forest’s defense on its toes and create open shots. Leading the way was none other than Flagg, whose seven assists helped the likes of Gillis and James score critical threes on their final games in Cameron Indoor. These assisted buckets gave Duke the edge, creating a level of togetherness that the Blue Devils lacked last time around.

“The biggest thing was the ball was moving this time,” James said. “Last time we played … they stood us up and slowed our offense down, but today the ball was still popping all the way around.”

There are certainly other arguments to be made for why Duke achieved such a massive victory this time around. Yes, Flagg pulled off another impressive performance. Yes, it was the last home game of the year. Yes, the energy of a home game is different.

When it comes down to it, though, not all of those things can be depended upon to win in March. Instead, it is the unquantifiable stats of toughness and togetherness that define a team’s success in the postseason. If the Blue Devils can continue playing with a fast tempo to capitalize on turnovers and make the most of offensive opportunities, they just may find themselves booking a trip to San Antonio.