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Blue Devils take on Salukis in Madison Square Garden

Thu 20th, November 2008

New York, NY (Sports Network) - The 10th-ranked Duke Blue Devils and Southern Illinois Salukis have made the trek to the Big Apple, for semifinal action in the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer from famed Madison Square Garden. The winner of this game will take on either Michigan or UCLA for the tournament title on Friday.

Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils recorded routs in the first two rounds of this event, posting lopsided wins over both Presbyterian (80-49) and Georgia Southern (97-54) in Durham. However, things got a lot tougher on Sunday, as Duke welcomed a quality Rhode Island program to Cameron Indoor Stadium and escaped that matchup with an 82-79 decision.

Chris Lowery's Salukis also had the luxury being the host team in one of the four regions in this event. SIU was able to get past a scrappy California (Pa) squad in opening round action (66-52) and followed that with a nice win over Massachusetts (80-73).

Duke leads the all-time series with Southern Illinois by a 2-1 count, but SIU's lone victory over the Blue Devils came in Madison Square Garden during the team's NIT championship run in 1967.

The Salukis have been solid in the early stages of the season, posting wins over the Vulcans and Minutemen. With three players currently averaging double figures, this is a team with enough offensive depth to give any opponent trouble. Carlton Fay has been the top option thus far, leading the team in scoring and rebounding (16.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg). He is followed by Bryan Mullins (11.5 ppg) and Kevin Dillard (11.5 ppg). Mullins is a Preseason All-MVC selection and with good reason, as the talented playmaker can both score and create opportunities for others. Over the first two games, Mullins has already amassed 21 assists. Dillard has been almost as effective off the bench, showing his ability to both score and distribute (7.5 apg) as well. In the big win over UMass, Fay led the offensive charge with 17 points, thanks to 7-of-10 shooting from the floor. Mullins was unstoppable, adding a double-double with 16 points and 13 assists. Dillard added 14 points and six assists off the bench, while Tony Boyle chipped in with 12 points from his forward position.

Sophomore star Kyle Singler was named the ACC's Co-Player of the Week thanks to his performance last week. All he did was average 19.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.3 blocks in three wins. Singler is one of three players averaging double digits after three games, with Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith providing plenty of perimeter balance at 14.3 and 12.7 ppg, respectively. The Blue Devils have certainly shown themselves to be a prolific offensive team in the early going, averaging 86.3 ppg, thanks to .473 shooting from the floor. In the win over the Rams, it was key free-throw shooting, especially down the stretch that erased a three-point Rhode Island lead and gave the Blue Devils the win. Duke shot .455 from the floor overall, but a much more important .875 from the charity stripe (28-of-32). Scheyer led the way with 23 points, going a perfect 13-of-13 from the free-throw line. Singler poured in 21 points in support, while Smith notched 10 points. The Blue Devils had trouble containing the red-hot shooting Rams at times (.547 shooting, 10 three-pointers), but were able to force 18 turnovers in the win.