Duke uses giant run to pound Cornell
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}There was an early moment of trepidation in Cameron Indoor Stadium on Wednesday night before top-ranked Duke turned it on in a scoring surge rarely seen.
Seth Curry led a balanced attack with 20 points and Mason Plumlee added 18 points and nine boards, as the Blue Devils used an eye-popping second-half run to rout Cornell, 88-47.
Rasheed Sulaimon posted 16 points and Quinn Cook added six points and 12 assists for the Blue Devils (10-0), who posted their 99th straight non- conference victory in Durham, the longest such streak in the country. They used a 41-4 scoring start to the second half to break open a close game early.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"In the second half we came out with a lot more energy," said Curry. "Our defense was a lot better. We translated tipped balls into layups and fast- break points."
Shonn Miller led Cornell (4-7) with 14 points and six rebounds. The Big Red made things interesting early just two days after falling by 11 points at Vanderbilt.
Cornell had an early 12-8 lead and still was within striking distance at 28-25 after Miller's jumper with just under six minutes to play in the first half. The Blue Devils built a 41-30 margin at the half, but it was a methodical extension of the advantage that served as little evidence for the oncoming onslaught.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Blue Devils started the second half with a 41-4 surge, including 10 points from Curry, to take an 82-34 lead. Cornell went nearly 6 1/2 minutes before its first points of the half, missing its first 10 shots, and started the second half 2-of-17 from the floor.
Duke didn't miss much during that time period, making 13 of its first 15 shots including Amile Jefferson's slam for a 57-30 lead. Errick Peck's bucket for the Big Red stopped a 19-0 run, but Curry responded with six in a row for a 66-32 lead.
The rout was on from there as Duke played every player on its bench and all but two scored.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Game Notes
Jefferson scored eight points and Alex Murphy added seven off the bench ... Duke ended the game on a 60-21 run ... The 41-4 scoring surge spanned 12 minutes, 45 seconds ... Mike Krzyzewski improved to 24-1 against the Ivy League as Duke head coach .. Duke didn't score a single second-chance point in the win.