Trailing Siena at halftime, Duke rallies behind Cameron Boozer's double-double. Head coach Jon Scheyer praises team grit, proving tournament resilience over smooth sailing.
A week after the Blue Devils barely beat Florida State 80-79 in the ACC Tournament quarterfinal, head coach Jon Scheyer found his team trailing the Saints 43-32 at halftime of the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Duke outscored the Saints 39-22 in the second half to earn a 71-65 win in front of a crowd of 13,919 at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
The Blue Devils’ seven-man rotation was tested by Siena. Cameron Boozer led Duke with 22 points to go along with 13 rebounds and three assists.
During his postgame news conference, Scheyer said he wasn't concerned with his team's play on Thursday, suggesting that's how things go in the NCAA Tournament.
"Look, I wish it could just be smooth sailing," Scheyer said, via USA Today. "These guys, even though we have returners from last year's team, we're all in different spots. You can face a team like Siena. They're incredibly ready to play.
"We made some mistakes early that they made us pay for. All of a sudden, you want to win very badly. So you can start making plays to try to get back in the game that are probably uncharacteristic of who we've been."
Without center Patrick Ngongba, out with a foot injury, Duke surrendered 22 points in the paint in the first half. The Saints finished with 30 points in the paint.
Scheyer liked the grit his team showed in the second half.
"These guys, the character they showed -- look, we just dealt with a very similar thing," Scheyer said. "Two different teams, different situations. Florida State really is very similar in terms of we couldn't get stops in the first half.
"That game we couldn't get stops in the second half either. But the toughness down the stretch, I just think that's what this tournament is all about."
Duke will play No. 9 seed TCU in the second round on Saturday. The Horned Frogs beat No. 8 seed Ohio State 66-64 on Saturday.
Duke responded to their scare against Florida State by dominating Clemson last week. It'll be interesting to see how the Blue Devils play against TCU after being embarrassed by Siena in the first half.