Duke FALLS to Tennessee 65-52 in second round, as Volunteers move on to first Sweet 16 since 2019
Duke FALLS to Tennessee 65-52 in the second round, as the Volunteers move on to the first Sweet 16 since 2019
Duke was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament in the second round after losing 65-52 to fifth-seeded Tennessee.
Olivier Nkamhoua tied his career high with 27 points, including 13 straight for Tennessee during a decisive second-half stretch, and the fourth-seeded Volunteers beat Duke on Saturday to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019.
Tennessee (25-10) ended Duke’s 10-game winning streak and sent first-year coach Jon Scheyer, tasked with replacing Mike Krzyzewski, home after just two games of the NCAA Tournament.
Nkamhoua put an exclamation point on Tennessee’s win with an emphatic jab with 1:15 remaining. He prompted the Vols fans to start chanting and sent many Duke fans heading for the exits.
Tennessee advanced to face Florida Atlantic or Fairleigh Dickinson on Thursday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The Tennessee Volunteers have moved to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2019
Tennessee forward Jonas Aidoo (0) reacts in front of Duke center Kyle Filipowski
Tyrese Proctor #5 of the Duke Blue Devils shoots the ball over Olivier Nkamhou
Duke was sentenced to a second-round exit under first-year head coach Jon Scheyer
Duke didn’t handle Tennessee’s physical style very well all afternoon. The Volunteers set the tone early on, clearly wanting to push Kyle Filipowski and get their hands in the faces of guards Jeremy Roach and Tyrese Proctor.
Vols big man Uros Plavsic committed two offensive fouls in the first four minutes, both against Filipowski. Later, Duke’s 7-footer was elbowed in the face and ended up with a small cut below his left eye.
The Blue Devils trailed by six at halftime and were unable to take control of the game despite cutting the Volunteers’ lead to two in the second half.
Proctor struggled to throw the ball multiple times, got a five-second call, turned it over once and nearly lost it again. Roach struggled even more, ending the first half with three fouls and four turnovers.
Meanwhile, the Vols took much better care of the ball than they did in their first-round win against Louisiana-Lafayette. They turned it over just nine times, the fewest since point guard Zakai Zeigler suffered a season-ending knee injury last month.
Proctor led Duke with 16 points. Roach and Filipowski each contributed 13.