Five takeaways from No. 9 Duke’s 77-69 win over Wake Forest

Taking a look at our five biggest takeaways from Duke’s 77-69 win over Wake Forest.

No players on Wake Forest’s roster were alive the last time the Wake Forest Demon Deacons beat Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

For another year, that streak will continue as No. 9 Duke outlasted Wake Forest 77-69 in a cagey affair to keep themselves in pursuit of the top spot in the ACC standings.

The last time Wake Forest won on the road against Duke, a halfway decent player named Tim Duncan was a senior for the Demon Deacons in 1997. Wednesday’s game was a close affair as Wake’s talented assortment of scoring threats gave Duke all it could handle.

The teams played a very physical, sloppy, and low-scoring first half for two of the best offensive teams in the ACC. The Demon Deacons shot just 28% in the first half, while the Blue Devils were 36% from the field. Neither team could find the touch from the 3-point range in the first half, with the Demon Deacons going just 4/19 and the Blue Devils going 3/14.

Mark Mitchell put Duke on his back in the second half, and foul trouble with Wake Forest big man Efton Reid made it nearly impossible for Wake to slow down Duke inside. Some timely shots and defense from Duke were enough to seal it away.

Duke completed their three-game homestand undefeated and will now embark on their Florida road trip. This trip will see them play road games against both Florida-based ACC schools and a trip to Winston-Salem for a rematch with these same Demon Deacons in 12 days.

Before we turn the page, here are our five takeaways from the game.

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Feb. 11

No one from Notre Dame on this list.

We’ve reached the halfway point of February. That means teams only have a month left to build their NCAA Tournament resumes. If teams aren’t on track to make that tournament, they at least want to play strong over the next month. Here are the players most likely to help their teams do that:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Feb. 4

No Notre Dame players.

We’re getting into the first full week of February now. It doesn’t seem like we already should be at this stage of the season, but we are. It’s another reminder for ACC teams that haven’t made their moves yet that the clock continues to tick. If they don’t, they’ll be put in their place by players like these conference statistical leaders:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Jan. 28

No Notre Dame players.

We have reached the point in the season where the calendar flips to another month. The contenders and pretenders slowly are starting to distinguish themselves from each other. February will separate the pack even further. Until that happens, here are the major statistical leaders in the ACC:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Jan. 21

No Notre Dame players.

College basketball is entering the final full week of January. Not to worry about the games ending anytime soon though. We still have a long way to go this season, and there are many things to decide. There’s no sense in missing any of it.

Here are the leaders in the ACC right now:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Jan. 14

No Notre Dame players.

The college basketball regular season might be half over but not the ACC season. No, we’re still getting warmed up, and the conference action continues to heat up with each passing game. The next couple of months promise to live up to the conference’s billing as one of the best in the country. You won’t want to miss it.

Here are the players to watch as of this moment:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Jan. 7

No Notre Dame players.

ACC play officially is in full swing. Now, we’ll really get to see what the teams are made of as they start to play each other. As that happens, we’ll get to see which players stand out the most. It might be too early to distinguish that right now, but we at least have an idea.

Here’s who continues to stand out in the conference at the moment:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Dec. 31

No Notre Dame players.

We would like to wish you and your a Happy New Year. We continue to explore new ways to make this site a wonderful place to visit, and we can’t wait to share them with you. The fact that you keep coming back here motivates us to do better.

Here are the ACC’s major statistical leaders as we begin 2024:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Dec. 24

No Notre Dame players.

First of all, we hope you have a very Merry Christmas. We appreciate everyone who comes to our site to read our content because we wouldn’t be here without your support. Whatever reason you have to come to this site, we hope you continue to do so for a long time to come.

Now that the holiday greetings are out of the way, let’s take a look at the ACC’s major statistical category leaders:

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Dec. 17

No Notre Dame players.

The ACC season has reached the middle of December. Time is running out for players to get their numbers up before conference play really begins. If they don’t do it now, it might be more difficult for them to do so. Here are those who have answered the call though: