Marquette upset the Blue Devils 73-62 to win the CBE Classic at Municipal Auditorium because James was unstoppable in the second half and because McNeal's six steals disrupted Duke's halfcourt offense.,”KANSAS CITY, Mo.-Despite No. 9 Duke's best efforts to slow down the pace of Tuesday night's CBE Classic Championship game against No. 13 Marquette, Dominic James and Jerel McNeal would have none of it.
Marquette upset the Blue Devils 73-62 to win the CBE Classic at Municipal Auditorium because James was unstoppable in the second half and because McNeal's six steals disrupted Duke's halfcourt offense.
"To win validates the hard work we're trying to put in," Marquette head coach Tom Crean said. It validated "the way they're buying into how we have to defend, how we have to rebound, how we have to run and how we have to move the ball on offense."
James led Marquette with 25 points and took over the game midway through the second period. He assisted on a David Cubillan three-pointer that gave the team a 54-52 lead with 10:03 left.
"We knew (Duke) liked to get up and pressure a lot," James said. "That pressure allows us to penetrate and create for our teammates."
Although James had seven assists, he created for himself down the stretch. He drained a three-pointer over DeMarcus Nelson's outstretched arm to put Marquette up 64-58. On the following possession, he shot-faked from behind the arc, stepped forward to make a 15-foot jumper. He was fouled in the process and drained the free throw to put Marquette up nine with 3:57 left.
Duke never got closer.
"Until you play against that quickness – we don't have that – so you're playing against something you're seeing for the first time," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "And you're just a half-second too late."
Tell that to Greg Paulus.
Duke's point guard committed six of the Blue Devils' 19 turnovers, and he likely will be having nightmares of McNeal's quick hands for days to come. Trailing 50-45 in the second half, McNeal galvanized an 11-2 Marquette run by ripping the ball away from Paulus' hands and converting on the subsequent fast break.
"It was the first time we had seen guards of that strength, maturity and physicality all year," Duke forward David McClure said. "I think it took us a little off guard."
McNeal, who finished with 17 points and six rebounds, cut the deficit to 52-51 after he picked Paulus' pocket again to set up a transition layup.
"The tempo was established from our defense," Crean said.
Duke initially countered Marquette's pressure by executing its patient halfcourt offense and led by as many as seven points in the first half. Nelson scored 11 of his 13 points in the first six minutes as Duke took a 15-8 lead.
The Blue Devils' offense stalled late in the second half, however.
Forward Josh McRoberts, who led Duke with 15 points and was his team's main option in halfcourt sets, went 1-for-9 from the field in the second half. Duke went nearly five minutes without scoring late in the game.
The Blue Devils became the sixth Marquette opponent to commit 18 or more turnovers. Until teams learn how to take care of the ball against the Golden Eagles, James and McNeal will continue to make them pay.
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