2020 has seen a lot of firsts, and the latest one there is the #8 Michigan State Spartans’ men’s basketball team picking up a 75-69 victory in a road game against the #6 Duke Blue Devils Tuesday night. That was the first time that Michigan State had ever picked up a win in Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium (they had lost their previous three games there). And while there weren’t any fans in attendance, that’s still a very notable win for the Spartans:
First big win of the season ✅
First win at Cameron Indoor ✅Catch all the action from @MSU_Basketball's W against No. 6 Duke ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/iJNajHaWvI
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 2, 2020
This is also a notable loss for the Blue Devils, who have now lost non-conference games for two years running (following a surprising loss to Stephen F. Austin last year). That’s a rare stat for them:
After falling to Michigan State, Duke has now lost a home non-conference game for the second consecutive season. (Stephen F. Austin last year).
Prior to that, their last loss in home non-conference game was on February 26, 2000 against St. John's. pic.twitter.com/VKric7OlaC
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 2, 2020
Duke's non-conference home losses since 2000:
St. John's 83-82 (2000)
Stephen F. Austin 85-83 (2019)
Michigan State 75-69 (2020)— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) December 2, 2020
Tonight marks the first time Duke has lost a non-conference home game by more than 2 points since December 2, 1995, when the Blue Devils lost to Illinois by 10 (75-65).
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) December 2, 2020
Michigan State trailed by 10 points early on, but battled back to take a 37-33 lead at halftime. The Spartans then held on from there, and they were very impressive on defense, holding Duke to 20 of 62 shooting and five makes on 23 three-point attempts. Rocket Watts led the way for Michigan State with 20 points, while Joey Hauser and Malik Hall each recorded double-doubles.
For Duke, Matthew Hurt posted 21 points and 13 rebounds in a losing cause, and the Blue Devils got to the line 30 times and made 24 of those shots. But their in-play offense left many things to be desired. We’ll see where both of these teams go from here.
[Screencap via @CBBonFox]
