DURHAM, N.C. — Freshman Kyle Filipowski had 16 points, including a key three-point play with 2:37 left, to help No. 17 Duke beat No. 25 Ohio State 81-72 on Wednesday night in the final ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Jeremy Roach added 13 points for the Blue Devils (7-2), who had a strong stretch late in the first half to take a 10-point lead into the break. Duke tenaciously held its lead even as the Buckeyes (5-2) stayed within reach and repeatedly made multiple pushes to climb closer, including three separate times of getting the margin to five points.
The last came when Sean McNeil buried a 3-pointer from the left wing with 3:06 left, bringing Ohio State as close as 72-67.
But the 7-foot Filipowski, part of the Blue Devils' No. 1-ranked recruiting class for Jon Scheyer's debut season as coach, had an immediate answer. He put the ball on the floor for a spinning basket through contact from Justice Sueing, and his ensuing free throw pushed that margin back to eight.
The Buckeyes got no closer than six again.
Ohio State's Zed Key posted his second straight big game against Duke. After finishing with 20 points in last year's home win against the then-No. 1 Blue Devils, he had 17 of his 21 points after halftime in this one to go with eight rebounds.
Ohio State shot 50% after hafltime behind the 6-8 Key's work in the paint. The problem was the Buckeyes had a rough final 9 minutes of the first half, managing just two baskets in the final 8:38 while committing seven turnovers.
That helped Duke gradually stretch out a lead once it did a better job of protecting the paint. They scored 18 points off turnovers in that opening half to take the 39-29 halftime lead, but managed just two points off those miscues after halftime.
BIG PICTURE
Ohio State: The Buckeyes rebounded from a loss to No. 24 San Diego State to open the Maui Invitational by beating Cincinnati and Texas Tech to finish in fifth in the prestigious early season tournament. That helped them crack the AP Top 25 this week for the first time this season, and this tough-nosed performance shouldn't shake that.
Duke: Both of the Blue Devils' losses this season have come against power-conference opponents, first against No. 9 Kansas in the Champions Classic and last weekend's loss to the Boilermakers in the title game of the Phil Knight Legacy tournament. The Blue Devils hadn't lost a third time before January since the 1982-83 season, when Mike Krzyzewski's third team started 2-4 on the way to an 11-17 record. That mark will stand for now as Duke pushes into December.
UP NEXT
Ohio State: The Buckeyes host St. Francis on Saturday.
Duke: The Blue Devils host Boston College on Saturday in Jon Scheyer's first ACC game as head coach.
