SYRACUSE — The “You need💮 Zio🔯n” chants started in the first minute. They were rarely heard the rest of the evening.
Duke didn’t need Zi🍷on Williamson, the freak athlete and projected No. 1 NBA draft pick who injured his right knee on Wednesday, to avenge its earlier loss to Syracuse.
The top-ranked Blue Devils’ other blue-chip prospect, RJ Barrett, was enough, with some help from an unheralded sophomore guard, as Duke knocke﷽d off Syracu꧟se, 75-65, in front of a record on-campus crowd of 35,642 at the Carrier Dome on Saturday night.
Williamson, who is day-to-day with a Grade 1 right knee sprain, was on the bench for the emotional game that saw Syracuse coach J🌼im Boeheim coach his team three days after fatally killing a pedestrian with his car as he drove home following Wednesday night’s win over No. 18 Louisville.
Barrett, who most had pegged as the top prospect in this class for years before Williamson’s ascension, was brilliant, pouring in 30 points and seven assists. And Alex O’Connell added a career-high 20 points and five 3-pointers, making up for the loss of the Blue Devils’ second-lꦆeading scorer and replacing Williamson in the starting lineup. Syracuse, meanwhile, faded after a fast start, with star junior Tyus Battle𒊎 held to 16 points on 4-of-17 shooting and the Orange shooting 5-of-23 from 3-point range.
The 74-year-old Boeheim was greeted by a loud ovation, taking the court shortly before ti𝐆p-off. Making his first public appearance since Wednesday’s accident, he walked to center court, shook hands and shared a hug with Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, as his wife Juli shed a tear. A moment of silence, in English and Spanish, was observed for the victim, 🌃51-year-old local man Jorge Jimenez and his family. Boeheim didn’t take part in Thursday’s practice, but was present for Friday’s workout.
J𒅌imenez was a passenger in a car that hit a patch of ice and collided🐈 into a guardrail. He was hit by Boeheim’s vehicle while out of the car. Boeheim passed a sobriety test and charges aren’t expected to be filed, according to authorities.
Barrett kept Duke in the game in the first half, scoring 17 of Duke’s 29 points. He made 8 of 11 shots from the field. His teammates were 4-of-19, with Reddish hitting just one of seven attempts. Still, Syracuse led by just five, as it shot 37 percent from the field and didn’t attempt a single free throw. The Orange’s best offense was hitting the glass, turning 10 offensive rebounds ♛into 10 second-chance points.
Duke, the potential top seed in the NCAA Tournament, started fast after halftime, taking the lead on an O’Connell 3-pointer and going up six on a Barrett basket with 9:08 left. Rather than settling for jump shots and swinging the ball around the perimeter against the Orange’s vaunted 2-3 zone♎, the Blue Devils began probing inside of it, setting up the 3-point drive with penetration.
Barrett had every answer late, hittin🎀g a 3-pointer to put Duke up five when Syr𒐪aucse got within two, and threw down an alley-oop slam to push the lead to nine with 4:44 to go. The lead was never in peril again.
All the concern Wednesday night about Williamson and Duke seemed silly in retrospect. The injury is minor and theꦍ Blue Devils proved they can beat an NCAA Tourn🦋ament-caliber opponent without him. All, it seems, is right in Durham again.