Boozers, Evans help Duke stave off Siena’s historic upset bid

By Jacob Conley (@gwujake)

GREENVILLE, S.C. — It wasn’t easy, but the Duke Blue Devils are moving on to the next round of the NCAA Tournament.

The number-one overall seed had to erase an 11-point halftime deficit thanks to double-doubles from Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans to defeat a game Siena team, 71-65.

“It doesn’t matter what you win by or how pretty it is,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said. “It’s about getting the job done, learning and growing from it.”

Duke started 3-for-3 from the field as Cam Boozer and Evans hit threes. Siena also hit a pair from beyond the arc and then took a 12-10 lead on a reverse layup by Justice Shoats. The Saints not only stayed with Duke over the next segment, they took a 22-16 lead on a pair of threes from Brendan Coyle with 11:22 left in the first half.

Francis Folefac went right at Cam Boozer in the post for a personal 4-0 run to give Siena a double-digit lead. Boozer’s parade to the foul line kept the Saints from extending their lead, but a three from Gavin Doty kept the Blue Devils at arm’s length. A putback slam by Riley Mulvey dug the Duke hole even deeper. Cayden Boozer answered with pair of quick buckets, but Doty kept kitting shot after shot with each successive basket. As a result, Siena led at halftime, 43-32, the first time a 16-seed had led by double digits at the intermission in NCAA Tournament history since the field was expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

Evans got Duke off to a good start in the second half with a pair of dunks, and Cam Boozer hit a pair from the line. Nik Khamenia drained a three and Cayden Boozer converted a fast-break layup. As a result, Duke had cut the deficit to 47-43 with 14:51 left. Coyle kept the Saints in front with a pair of threes as the underdogs led, 53-49.

Evans hit a three for Duke, as did Cayden Boozer. Every time Duke looked to take the lead, though, Siena would hit a big shot. Doty’s next three pushed the advantage up to five points, but putbacks from Evans and Cam Boozer cut the deficit to 61-60 with 5:47 remaining.

Duke finally took the lead on an Evans layup, as the score stood at 63-61 with 3:56 left. Cam Boozer followed with a pair of foul shots as the Duke run extended to 9-0. Cayden Boozer made the tally 67-61 with a running layup as Duke was in the midst of a 15-3 extended run. Evans salted the game away from the foul line as Duke staved off the upset, 71-65.

THE TOUGHEST ONE: Duke coach Jon Scheyer has been a part of plenty of 16 vs. 1 matchups as a player, as an assistant and now as a head coach. He admits this was the toughest one he has been a part of by far.

“Toughest one. Not close,” he said. “Toughest moment I have ever been in in the tournament. You have to credit Siena. I remember a few of these, 2018-19 North Dakota State. These games are so fragile. Unfortunately, you lose some, and I have been on the other end in the past, so you an appreciation for it (winning).”

THE COMEBACK: Duke did not erase its 13-point second-half deficit all at once. It was a long slow hill to climb that was keyed by defense and rebounding. The Blue Devils held Siena to just 22 points in the second half and 2-for-11 from the floor in the last 7:53 of the contest. But for Cameron Boozer, who finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds, the outcome was never in doubt.

“The game was ours to take,” he said. “In the first half, we put ourselves in that position. In the second half, we just had to come together and do what we do.”

THE SUPPORTING CAST: In addition to Cameron Boozer’s big game, Isaiah Evans had a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds while Cayden Boozer scored 19.

“They played at such a high level,” Scheyer said. “Cayden throughout the whole game, 19 points and zero turnovers. Isaiah had a double…I think these guys have showed over and over what they are about and today was no exception.”

UP NEXT: Duke (33-2) will face No. 9 seed TCU on Saturday, while Siena’s season ends at 23-12.