Filipowski’s 28 paces Blue Devils
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NO. 21 DUKE 89, HOFSTRA 68
DURHAM, N.C. — Kyle Filipowski knocked down shots, attacked the glass and set up teammates on kickouts. By the end of the night, he had flirted with a triple-double while No. 21 Duke pulled away after halftime for a comfortable win.
The 7-foot preseason Associated Press All-American had 28 points, 12 rebounds and a career-best 8 assists as the Blue Devils beat Hofstra 89-68 on Tuesday night, turning in a productive all-around performance that included 4 three-pointers and 3 blocked shots.
Coach Jon Scheyer said Filipowski was “just a force,” coming after he had just 17 points in his previous two games combined and shot 2 for 10 in his last outing. While his shooting improved Tuesday, he turned the ball over seven times.
“I think for me it was just a little mental,” Filipowski said. “But I’ve got a great supporting cast, great teammates, great coaches. They keep their confidence high in me and when I don’t overthink it, things tend to go really well. Getting out of that funk, just playing, having fun — it’s a great feeling.”
Duke (7-3) shot 55%, made 11 of 22 3-pointers and had four players in double figures while playing again without injured point guard Tyrese Proctor (ankle).
Jeremy Roach added 19 points and eight assists for Duke, which trailed 37-32 late in the first half before closing on a 12-2 burst before the break. That included a run of five straight made shots, a flurry that continued into the second half as Filipowski hit one right-corner three-pointer and then another to eventually push Duke to a 55-43 lead.
“I thought we had great discipline, starting with controlling the ball,” Scheyer said. “I thought our pressure throughout — we didn’t pressure to get steals, but I just thought our pressure wore on them some.”
Darlinstone Dubar scored 24 points and hit seven threes to lead the Pride (6-4), who shot 50% but committed 14 turnovers that led to 31 points for the Blue Devils, including 20 in the second half when they outscored the Pride 45-29.
“I think it was their size and athleticism that gave us some trouble,” Hofstra Coach Speedy Claxton said. “We’re not used to playing that size and athleticism on a daily basis.”
Picked fourth in the Coastal Athletic Association, the Pride had regrouped from a 1-2 start by winning five straight games before a loss Saturday at St. Louis. Hofstra was trying for just its fourth win against an AP Top 25 opponent after claiming one in each of the previous two seasons.
Dubar, who came in averaging 17.7 points, hit five three-pointers by halftime. And he was eager to let Duke’s famously rowdy fans know about it.
After the third, he stared into the courtside section of “Cameron Crazies” as he backpedaled downcourt and raised a finger to his lips to demand quiet. Moments later, he hit another one, then ran down the court while counting off each three with his left hand for all to see.
NO. 12 TENNESSEE 74, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 56
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Jonas Aidoo had 29 points and 11 rebounds and No. 12 Tennessee beat Georgia Southern 74-56 on Tuesday night.
The winless Eagles (0-10) had no answer for the 6-foot-11 Aidoo, who also had two steals and two blocks. Aidoo was the only double-digit scorer for the Volunteers (7-3).
“[Aidoo] was really good tonight,” Tennessee Coach Rick Barnes said. “Now, it’s about consistency. Can he do it the next time out?”
First-year Eagles Coach Charlie Henry spent the four previous seasons as an assistant at Alabama. He saw plenty of Aidoo, a junior.
“That’s a development success story for [Tennessee],” Henry said. “He has a great touch offensively. That game has expanded. He can shut off the rim on defense.”
“You can go anywhere with confidence,” said Aidoo. “It will take you anywhere.”
After trailing by as many as 28 points shortly after halftime, Georgia Southern cut the difference to 13 with a 10-point spurt midway through the second half. Derrick Harris came off the bench to score all but two of his 13 points in the second half for the Eagles.
Barnes was upset that Aidoo shot 10 of 16 from the field and his other four starters combined to go 6 of 23 and committed 11 turnovers.
“We always talk about consistency, mental toughness and discipline,” Barnes said. “They have to know it’s a 40-minute game, not 20 minutes.”
Aidoo scored the first 10 points of the game and had 21 by halftime as the Vols led 49-21. It was the most first-half points scored by a Tennessee player in 10 years.
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NO. 7 LSU 133, MCNEESE STATE 44
BATON ROUGE — Aalyah Del Rosario had 27 points and 10 rebounds and Angel Reese added 21 points and 10 rebounds as No. 7 LSU set school records for points in a game and margin of victory in its rout of McNeese State on Tuesday night.
LSU easily surpassed its previous point total of 125, set in a win over Bellarmine (125-41) in November 2022. The Tigers’ 89-point margin of victory eclipsed their 76-point win over Prairie View (104-28) in 1995.
The game was tied at 10 when LSU scored a school-record 47 straight points as part of a 56-2 run that stretched from 3:24 left in the first quarter until McNeese scored on an Emellia Tenbrock layup with 8:19 left in the third.
LSU blanked McNeese 30-0 in the second quarter. The Cowgirls went 0 of 7 from the field and committed 16 turnovers, leading to 22 points for the Tigers. McNeese committed 36 turnovers in the game, leading to 52 LSU points off turnovers.
Anneesah Morrow added 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers, who had six players score in double figures. Mikaylah Williams scored 26 points, Flau’jae Johnson had 16 and Angelica Velez 10.
Alva Mofalk and Tenbrock led McNeese with 12 points each.