NEW YORK – Duke feels gentle personification in Madison Square Garden. It seemed to be that approach again Saturday, solely when a Blue Devils were during a giveaway chuck line.

Freshman Austin Rivers scored 18 points and a seventh-ranked Blue Devils overcame a 27-for-44 opening during a line to kick Washington, 86-80.

“(Saturday), one of a stories, utterly obviously, is a missed giveaway throws,” Duke manager Mike Krzyzewski said. “You know, we make giveaway throws it’s not that tighten during a end. Now when we skip giveaway throws like that, a outcome can be opposite during a finish and we can lose. And so a fact that we did that and still won doesn’t annul a unequivocally good opening that we had.”

The Blue Devils (9-1) seemed in control, holding a 19-point lead 3 times in a second half. But a Huskies (4-4) shook off a terrible initial half and started chipping divided during a deficit. They were means to pull as tighten as 6 points late when Duke, that entered a diversion sharpened 67.4 percent from a line, done only 12 of 18 giveaway throws during a final 2:30, including a widen where a Blue Devils done 1 of 2 on 4 uninterrupted trips.

“So overall, with a tainted trouble, missed giveaway throws and personification a good opponent, we suspicion this was a heck of a win for us,”
Krzyzewski said.

Abdul Gaddy’s expostulate got Washington within 78-72 with 58 seconds to play. The Blue Devils had done 4 of their past 8 giveaway throws when Andre Dawkins done dual with 57 seconds to go. The giveaway chuck sharpened was a lot improved during a final 51 seconds as a Blue Devils done 6-of-8 with Dawkins creation 1-of-2 with 7 seconds to play for an 86-77 lead. Terrence Ross strike a prolonged 3 during a buzzer for a final domain in front of a throng of 15,525.

Dawkins combined 17 points for Duke, while Ryan Kelly had 16 and 8 rebounds and Mason Plumlee had 12 points and 9 rebounds.

“We knew they would measure in spurts and they did,” Dawkins said. “We got a small messy though we were means to finish a diversion out.”

Dawkins pronounced a difficulty his teammates had during a line didn’t impact him.

“I took those giveaway throws like they were a initial of a game,” he said. “You can’t worry about what happened in a past. You have to take caring of right then.”

Plumlee entered a diversion sharpened 42.3 percent from a line (22-of-52) though was only 2 of 11 on Saturday.

“That can’t happen,” Plumlee pronounced of a giveaway chuck shooting. “That was on me and nobody else. I’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Freshman Tony Wroten had a season-high 23 points for a Huskies while C.J. Wilcox combined 22 and Ross had 16.

The Blue Devils were in a building for a initial time given Krzyzewski became a winningest men’s Division we manager with feat No. 903 final month opposite Michigan State. They have won 14 of their past 16 games during Madison Square Garden and are 22-7 there underneath Krzyzewski.

“We adore entrance adult to Madison Square Garden,” Krzyzewski said. “We try to do it once each year and, good crowd, a propagandize loves it. … we adore personification during Cameron, though outward of Cameron, Madison Square Garden is a place.”

Rivers loves it.

“I could play here each day, this is fun,” pronounced Rivers, a son of Boston Celtics manager Doc Rivers. “We play here all a time, so we competence as good get used to it.”

Rivers and associate ensure Seth Curry both fouled out, giving profitable mins down a widen to Tyler Thornton and Quinn Cook.

“Quinn Cook unequivocally gave us some outrageous mins in doing a round and he was 4 of 6 from a line,” Krzyzewski said.

Washington was personification in a Garden for a second time in 5 days. The Huskies lost, 79-77, to No. 11 Marquette in a Jimmy V Classic on Tuesday. The group got to spend copiousness of giveaway time in New York City, saying Broadway shows and visiting a 9/11 Memorial, though a outing didn’t do most for a won-loss record.

“We resolved a really prolonged highway outing where a group has schooled some profitable lessons,” Washington manager Lorenzo Romar said.

Dawkins had 14 points as a Blue Devils took a 40-26 halftime lead, outrebounding a Huskies 27-18 and outscoring them inside 22-10. Washington shot only 32.3 percent in a half (10 of 31). The Huskies were means to even a numbers out, finishing tied during 38 in points in a paint and removing within 41-36 in rebounds. They shot 61.8 percent in a second half (21 of 34).

“I was unapproachable that a guys didn’t quit,” Romar said. “Our guys hung in there, battled, scrapped.”

Kelly, who was 2 of 10 from a margin in a initial half, scored 7 points as Duke non-stop a second half on a 9-4 run to lead 49-30 with 17:53 to play.

The detriment forsaken a Pac-12 to 0-10 this deteriorate opposite ranked teams.