By PAUL GOTHAM
Initial thoughts following Duke’s win over Wisconsin in the National Championship.
Making the adjustment
Wisconsin converted eight first-half offensive rebounds into an 11-4 advantage in second-chance points. Sam Dekker scored six of those points. Duke allowed just three offensive boards after the break and two second-chance points. The teams finished with 13 apiece in second-chance opportunities. Dekker ended the night with 12 points on 6-of-15 shooting including 0-of-6 behind the arc.
Closing it out
With 13:23 remaining, Wisconsin took its largest lead of the game at 48-39. Over the last 8:55 of the game, Duke limited Wisconsin to 4-of-16 shooting. Wisconsin came into the contest ranked number one in the nation with 1.275 points per possession. The Blue Devils allowed 1.06 ppp. Wisconsin took 21 3-pointers on the night. The Badgers hit seven. Duke went 4-of-11 from long range.
Along came Allen
With Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow on the bench and Duke trailing by nine, Grayson Allen went on his own 8-0 run. The freshman took a Marshall Plumlee feed and drilled a trey. Two possessions later, Allen added three more with an and-one. He cut the deficit to four with a pair of free throws. One minute later, Duke trailed by two.
MOP
Tyus Jones finished with a game-high 23 on 7-of-13 shooting including 2-of-3 behind the arc. Doug Gottlieb summed it up best:
“Sinking” on Ball screens is not the way to guard Tyus Jones.
— Doug Gottlieb (@GottliebShow) April 7, 2015
Et al
Both teams scored 32 in the paint and 13 on second-chance points. Duke had a slight edge in points off turnovers (9-7) and on the fast break (4-0). The Blue Devils bench outscored their counterparts 18-7. Duke outscored Wisconsin at the foul line, 16-6.
Lead changes
Duke’s five previous NCAA Tournament had a combined 11 lead changes. Monday night’s championship included 16 changes in the advantage. Wisconsin led for 18:19. Duke held the advantage for 17:05. The game was tied five times for 4:36.
They said it
Wisconsin’s Bo Ryan: “Well, Dekker’s been played like that before. Maybe not as physical. But he just was off with his outside shot. We all would have liked to have seen one or two of those go down, but they didn’t. And that happens in games. He hasn’t had very many of those. But it happens.”
Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski: “My team had great grit and determination. Our defense down the stretch was magnificent. We scored. I mean, we were fabulous down the stretch. I mean, I don’t know how you can be any better than we were down the stretch, except Tyus going in for that layup when he should have taken it to the side, and I wanted to break his neck (smiling). Other than that, yeah, great, great stuff. I’m proud of my team.”
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