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David Hale
Multiple Authors
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Duke coach Jon Scheyer said he was outcoached and outprepared by Siena’s Gerry McNamara on Thursday, as his top-seeded Blue Devils needed a late rally to overcome a double-digit deficit and advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Duke became the first No. 1 seed to trail by double digits (11 points) to a 16-seed at the half, according to ESPN Insights, but the Blue Devils came out with a renewed focus after the break and wore down the outmanned Saints 71-65.
“That game was ours to take,” said Duke’s Cameron Boozer, who finished with a game-high 22 points along with 13 rebounds. “The first half, we put ourselves in that position. We knew we were going to be able to come out of it. We just had to come together, do what we do.”
Boozer lamented a lack of energy in the early going, but it was clear in the second half the Blue Devils had more in the tank than Siena’s starting five, who played the entire game without a substitution until the final seconds.
Siena shot just 23.5% in the second half, including a handful of missed dunks and shots around the net, watching a 13-point lead two minutes into the half dwindle. A 9-0 Duke run late turned a three-point Siena cushion into a six-point Blue Devils lead with 1:36 to play.
“We knew that, once we get stops, we can run,” Duke’s Isaiah Evans said. “I knew once we see it, instead of just saying it, we just fall into line with everything we’re trying to do.”
McNamara was emotional after the loss, crediting his players for an “elite” performance and defending his decision to play his starters throughout.
“You’re looking at a guy that played 40 minutes a lot,” said McNamara, who won a national title and made it to four NCAA tournaments as a player for Syracuse. “We just got here from [the MAAC tournament in] Atlantic City doing pretty much the same thing. … And I asked them, not that they would tell me the truth when I say, ‘Are you good?’ They tell me ‘Yeah.’ I would tell my coach the same thing, I’m fine regardless. They gave us everything.”
McNamara is considered a prime candidate for the vacant Syracuse job, and his performance in taking the top team in the country to the wire certainly underscored his credentials.
Scheyer said Thursday’s game was the “toughest moment, toughest game, toughest position I’ve ever been in in the tournament.” He credited McNamara with putting together a brilliant game plan to slow Boozer, the favorite to win national player of the year, and force Duke into a perimeter game throughout the first 20 minutes.
“[McNamara] outcoached me, he outcoached us,” Scheyer said. “That’s one of the hardest moments for me in sport, period, to not have your best stuff.”
Scheyer likened Thursday’s win to Duke’s narrow victory over Florida State in the ACC tournament a week earlier — a comparison that either provides evidence of Duke’s ability to overcome a hot opponent or is a warning sign that, eventually, the Blue Devils will fall victim to their own missteps. They play No. 9 seed TCU in the second round Saturday.
For now, however, Scheyer was happy to take the win — by whatever means necessary.
“It’s the nature of the tournament,” he said. “I wish it could just be smooth sailing. … 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. These guys, the character they showed. … The toughness down the stretch, I just think that’s what this tournament is all about.”
