Wednesday, December 23, 1998

DUKE 71, KENTUCKY 60

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No comeback this time

BY RUSTY HAMPTON
Louisville Courier-Journal

Wayne Turner collides with Corey Maggette. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — As his players shot layups during halftime of Tuesday night's latest Game of the Decade against Duke, Kentucky coach Tubby Smith stomped the floor, glared at the court and screamed at a Wildcat: “Will you concentrate?”

        Maybe Smith sensed that the No. 3-ranked Cats, who trailed, 39-34, were in trouble. If he did, it was a distress no measure of sideline prodding could overcome.

        The second-ranked Blue Devils scored the first 11 points of the second half, then held on to beat the Cats, 71-60 at Continental Airlines Arena in the nightcap of the Jimmy V Classic.

        For Duke (11-1), it was sweet revenge, payback for last year's incredible comeback win by the Cats in the final of the NCAA Tournament South Region. That Kentucky victory, of course, was retribution for the Blue Devils' 104-103 overtime triumph in a 1992 region final.

        For Kentucky (10-2), the setback showed just how much work the Cats have to do if they want to meet up again with Duke in March.

        “This certainly makes our guys understand how much harder we have to play night in and night out,” Smith said. “They learned they've got to raise their level of intensity even more.”

Actress and UK grad Ashley Judd cheers for the Wildcats. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Sophomore forward Elton Brand led the Blue Devils with 22 points. Guard Trajan Langdon had 18 and forward Chris Carrawell 10.

        “It wasn't about being pretty tonight,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “It was tough to get open shots for both teams, and if you scored, you earned it.

        “I thought overall we made it difficult for them to score.”

        Krzyzewski was particularly pleased with how Duke kept the Wildcats out of their running game and forced them to take bad shots.

        Seniors Heshimu Evans and Scott Padgett had 13 points each to lead Kentucky, but neither played nearly as well as in other big games this season. Padgett, in foul trouble most of the game, shot 3-of-8. Evans clanged several three-pointers and finished 5-of-16.

Elton Brand was too much for Michael Bradley. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        The Devils blocked eight shots, held the Cats to season-low 34.9 percent shooting, including 27.3 percent in the second half, and forced 16 turnovers. That was more than enough to offset Kentucky's 45-36 rebound advantage.

        “We have to play a lot more physical and with a lot more focus,” the Cats' Michael Bradley said. “We can't back down from any team. We just didn't play as physical as them tonight.”

        Duke led by 10 three times in the first half, but Kentucky stayed within striking distance.

        The Cats then turned it over or missed shots on their first six possessions of the second half. The Devils capitalized. Carrawell had a three-pointer in the 11-0 run, and Langdon capped it with a fast break after two missed free throws by Padgett.

        The closest Kentucky could come after that was eight points.

        “They had the killer instinct,” Smith said. “I could tell they were hungry for the game, and they were the aggressor. Every time we tried to make a run, they came up with a big shot or a big play.”

        The Blue Devils had missed their first six shots of the game and didn't score until Brand grabbed a miss and slammed it home at the 17:04 mark.

        By then, Kentucky's Wayne Turner had scored twice on drives. After Brand's dunk, a jam by Bradley off a slick pass from Padgett made it 6-2. A Duke turnover started a fast break that Turner finished.

        It didn't take Duke long to wipe out an 8-2 deficit, however, outscoring the Cats, 14-2 over the next four minutes.

        Langdon drilled a three-pointer to start the run, and freshman Corey Maggette's three-pointer gave Duke its first lead, 12-10. The 14-2 run left Duke with a 16-10 lead at the 12:11 mark.

        The Devils stretched the lead to 10 three times as Brand heated up. First he finished a break to make it 27-17 at 6:36. Thirty seconds later, he connected on a 10-foot turnaround for a 29-19 advantage. After a three-pointer by Tayshaun Prince, Langdon found a hole in the zone and answered, making it 32-22.

        But the Cats rallied. Padgett made two free throws, and Bradley scored twice inside. Evans scored on a drive, and Wayne Turner got loose for another fast-break layup. When Jules Camara rebounded a missed free throw and banked home a 10-footer, Kentucky had sliced the deficit to 37-34 with 50 seconds left in the half.

        But Duke scored the last two points of the half, then opened the second half with its 11-0 surge.

        “I was not surprised that they were aggressive,” Padgett said. “Duke always plays aggressively. But I was surprised about the way we reacted to it. ... I never expected us to back down to anyone in any game.”

DUKE (71)
                      fg    ft    rb
               min   m-a   m-a   o-t  a pf   tp
Carrawell       30  4-10   1-2   2-7  1  2   10
Battier         25   0-5   2-4   2-2  1  3    2
Burgess         17   0-2   3-6   0-1  0  1    3
Avery           36   3-8   3-5   1-6  7  2    9
Langdon         36  5-13   6-6   0-7  2  3   18
Brand           35  9-12   4-5   3-8  0  3   22
James           11   2-2   0-0   1-1  0  1    4
Maggette        10   1-1   0-0   0-2  2  5    3
_______________________________________________
TOTALS         200 24-53 19-28  9-34 13 20   71
_______________________________________________


Percentages: FG-.453, FT-.679. 3-Point Goals:
4-18, .222 (Carrawell 1-2, Battier 0-4, Avery
0-3, Langdon 2-8, Maggette 1-1). Team rebounds:
2. Blocked shots: 8 (Maggette 3, Burgess 2, Brand
2, Battier). Turnovers: 13 (Avery 3, Carrawell 3,
Brand 2, Langdon 2, Battier, James, Maggette).
Steals: 8 (Avery 2, Battier 2, Burgess,
Carrawell, Langdon, Maggette).


KENTUCKY (60)
                      fg    ft    rb
               min   m-a   m-a   o-t  a pf   tp
Padgett         33   3-8   6-8  4-10  2  4   13
Evans           38  5-16   2-3   3-7  3  4   13
Bradley         24   5-9   2-4   2-2  1  4   12
Turner          37  5-11   1-5   1-5  1  0   11
Prince          24   2-6   0-0   3-6  0  1    5
Smith           15   0-5   2-2   1-3  1  2    2
Hogan            1   0-0   0-0   1-1  0  0    0
Allison          5   0-2   0-0   1-2  0  0    0
Camara          14   2-5   0-0   2-2  1  2    4
Magloire         9   0-1   0-0   1-1  1  5    0
_______________________________________________
TOTALS         200 22-63 13-22 19-39 10 22   60
_______________________________________________


Percentages: FG-.349, FT-.591. 3-Point Goals:
3-16, .188 (Padgett 1-2, Evans 1-7, Turner 0-2,
Prince 1-3, Smith 0-2). Team rebounds: 6. Blocked
shots: 4 (Bradley 2, Camara, Magloire).
Turnovers: 15 (Turner 4, Bradley 3, Evans 2,
Prince 2, Allison, Camara, Magloire, Padgett).
Steals: 10 (Evans 3, Padgett 3, Turner 3, Prince).
__________________________________
Duke               39   32  -   71
Kentucky           34   26  -   60
__________________________________
Technical fouls: Kentucky 1 (Bench).  A: 20,029.
Officials: Frank Scagliotta, John Clougherty, Tom
Lopes.

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