Freshman forward Zion Williamson scored 21 of his 27 points in the first half as No. 4 Duke won its home opener by defeating visiting Army 94-72 in a Veterans Day matchup Sunday afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
It was an all-out offensive display for Duke freshmen. Cam Reddish added 25 points and RJ Barrett had 23 points for the Blue Devils (2-0).
The trio of high scorers combined to shoot 29 of 54 from the field. Williamson, who was 11 of 14, also pulled in 16 rebounds, while freshman guard Tre Jones supplied seven assists.
Matt Wilson led Army (1-1) with 15 points. Tommy Funk added 12, Alex King had 11 and Jordan Fox provided 10.
Duke was coming off a 34-point rout of No. 2 Kentucky on Tuesday night in Indianapolis, but the Blue Devils experienced more glitches against Army until pouring it on at about the 10-minute mark of the second half.
Reddish hit three 3-pointers in the first six minutes as part of giving Duke a 20-13 lead.
Williamson had 10 of Duke's first 24 points.
After trailing by 11, Army had several strong stretches and was within 44-42 -- causing a few angry reactions from Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski on the bench following his team's defensive breakdowns.
The Blue Devils scored the final six points of the first half, but Army's Fox opened the second half with a 3-pointer as part of a 5-0 run.
Reddish bagged a couple of threes, but later it was 67-61 before Duke came out of a timeout with a defensive stop before an 11-0 spurt.
Both teams hit seven 3-point shots in the first half, with Duke finishing with 15 and Army ending with 12.
Duke has won 140 consecutive nonconference home games for the longest active streak in the country.
Krzyzewski, a former Army player and ex-coach of the team, improved to 7-0 as a coach against his alma mater.
Army hadn't faced a ranked opponent since November 2016 when it opened the season against then-No. 5 Oregon.
--Field Level Media
Army | Duke | |
Matt Wilson 15 | Scoring | Zion Williamson 27 |
Tommy Funk 10 | Assists | Tre Jones 7 |
Josh Caldwell 9 | Rebounds | Zion Williamson 16 |
Matt Wilson 3 | Free Throws Made | Zion Williamson 5 |
Tommy Funk 2 | Steals | Cam Reddish 2 |
Ben Kinker 1 | Blocks | Zion Williamson 6 |