Duke rolls to 100-42 victory over Niagara

Chip Alexander, The News & Observer on Nov 21, 2025

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DURHAM, N.C. — Mike Krzyzewski made another walk to midcourt Friday at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The former Duke coach was back to welcome one of his former players, Greg Paulus, now in his seventh season as head coach at Niagara. Krzyzewski, Paulus and Duke coach Jon Scheyer then dutifully stood together for a round of photos and video.

It was much like the preseason exhibition game when former Duke All-America and Devils assistant coach Johnny Dawkins came back to Cameron with his team, Central Florida. Coach K, the photos, the smiles. It also had the same result after 40 minutes: a comfortable Blue Devils win.

The Devils, ranked No. 5 in this week’s AP poll, rolled past the Purple Eagles, 100-42, at Cameron. After their high-profile win over Kansas at New York’s Madison Square Garden, the Devils returned home, never trailed and never let up in their sixth win of the season.

On a night when everyone on the bench contributed, Patrick Ngongba II led six players in double figures with 17 points to go with his team-high eight rebounds. Freshman Cameron Boozer, on more of a low-key night, had 14 points for the Blue Devils, who were 17 for 33 on 3-pointers in shooting 58% from the field.

What was learned about the Devils?

Feel good game for Devils

For Duke, it was one of those feel-good games. Everybody touches the ball, gets their looks, gets their shots. Given the talent disparity, there was no pressure on the Blue Devils, nor would there be any in-game pressure.

But it also was the kind of game where everyone got in their defensive touches. It was Duke’s Maliq Brown blocking a shot on a Niagara inbounds play.

It was Isaiah Evans getting a deflection. It was Nik Khamenia making a quick switch and getting a hand on a ball, and Dame Sarr smothering Niagara’s Vice Zanki, poking at the ball.

The Blue Devils used full court defensive pressure with a 1-2-2 zone look. With Brown at the point, it was a quick 6-9 forward as a long-armed road block in front of some short Niagara guards.

Early in the second half, Ngongba teamed up with Evans for a turnover near midcourt that led to a Ngongba transition dunk. Later, Foster did the same to feed Boozer for a slam.

Early in the second half, Khamenia believed he had knocked the ball off the leg of a Niagara player for a turnover. The freshman looked to the Duke bench and wanted Scheyer to challenge the call, but Scheyer smiled and waved it off — Duke led 57-21.

The Blue Devils in the half court make their defensive screens look so smooth, so well-rehearsed. They cover up well with their help defense. They’re rarely caught out of position. It’s a very sound.

Statistical oddity for Duke

Call it a statistical oddity that caused a second look. With 16 minutes played in the game, Boozer did not have a rebound.

Niagara was missing shots – the Purple Eagles were 6-of-24 from the field in the opening half – but Boozer did not grab one of the misses until about four minutes remained.

One reason: Ngongba. He had seven of Duke’s 17 rebounds in the first half. The Devils also limited the Purple Eagles to four offensive boards in the first half.

Blue Devils come at you in waves

Scheyer kept the subs flowing freely. All Paulus could do was stand by his bench, arms crossed, as if thinking he has seen all this before in Cameron — when he wore Duke blue.

The Devils had Boozer, Ngongba, Caleb Foster, Evans and Sarr as the starters. That was more than Niagara could handle as the Devils quickly took a 15-3 lead in bolting to a 47-19 cushion at the half.

At one point in the first half, Scheyer had Cayden Boozer, Brown, Khamenia, Evans and Darren Harris on the floor. One had to wonder how many ACC teams that unit could beat.

Cayden Boozer, a player not lacking confidence as a freshman, was sharp with his ballhandling, passing and shooting Friday. He made the most of his minutes Friday.

‘Brotherhood’ weekend for Duke

Duke’s men’s basketball likes to call itself “The Brotherhood” and that will be the case on a homecoming-type weekend.

Paulus brought in Niagara on Friday. On Sunday, the Devils will face Howard, coached by former Duke player Kenny Blakeney. Krzyzewski should be at that one, too.

Adding another twist is that Duke agreed to have Niagara and Howard play each other Saturday at 4 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium. That allows the two schools to work in two games on their trip to Durham and on Duke’s home floor, which should create some basketball memories for their players.

Cool idea. Creative, too. Other schools might want to consider such things.