NCAA News Wire
Duke 80, Pittsburgh 65
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
PITTSBURGH — Freshman forward Jabari Parker scored a game-high 21 points and senior guard Andre Dawkins came off the bench to score 20 points and spark a decisive second-half run as the No. 17 Duke Blue Devils beat the No. 18 Pittsburgh Panthers 80-65 on Monday night.
Dawkins made seven of nine shots from the field, including six of seven from 3-point range. Duke (17-4 overall and 6-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) is 10-0 this season when Dawkins scores in double figures.
Parker also had 11 rebounds for his third straight double-double and seventh of the season. Sophomore forward Amile Jefferson added 14 points and 10 rebounds and sophomore forward Rodney Hood finished with 13 points.
Pitt (18-3, 6-2) was led by senior forward Lamar Patterson’s 14 points. Senior center Talib Zanna had 11 points and 11 rebounds and sophomore guard James Robinson added 10 points and five assists.
Idle Virginia (15-5, 6-1) took over sole possession of second place in the ACC with Pitt’s loss. Duke (17-4, 6-2) and Pitt (18-3, 6-2) are now tied for third while No. 2 Syracuse (19-0, 6-0) remains atop the standings.
The top four teams meet this weekend. Duke visits Syracuse on Saturday and Pitt hosts Virginia on Sunday.
Duke took the lead for good at 44-40 with 15:24 left after a jumper by Hood and a layup by Johnson.
An 18-6 run increased the Blue Devils’ lead to a commanding 72-57 with 3:16 remaining. Dawkins sparked the surge with 11 points, nine coming on three 3-pointers.
After Pitt closed to 72-62, Dawkins put the Panthers away by draining another 3 with 2:10 to go.
Parker scored 16 points in the first half as Duke took a 34-32 lead at intermission.
It was a closely contested half that included nine lead changes and five ties.
Duke did not take its first lead until Dawkins made a 3-point field goal with 5:24 left to put the Blue Devils on top 24-21. The lead then changed five times before Hood nailed a trey to give Duke a two-point lead at the break.
NOTES: This was hyped as the biggest regular-season college basketball game ever played in Pittsburgh, and some evidence came in the fact that seats were going for as much as $1,200 apiece on the secondary ticket market. … Both coaches — Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski and Pitt’s Jamie Dixon — took part in a pregame ceremony honoring Dick Groat, who was an All-America guard at Duke in the 1950s and has served as the color commentator on Pitt radio broadcasts for 35 years. … Duke last played at Pitt on Jan, 12, 1974, with the Panthers winning 64-42 at Fitzgerald Field House. The schools’ last meeting overall came on Dec. 20, 2007, with Pitt winning 65-64 in the Aeropostale Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York. … The game marked the 23rd time that ranked teams met in the 12-year history of the Petersen Events Center.
