No. 9 Duke picked up its biggest win of the season on Wednesday, handing No. 2 Auburn its first loss. That was the extent of the good for the ACC.
The Blue Devils emerged victorious 84-78 at Cameron Indoor Stadium, but their conference walked away from the ACC-SEC Challenge with a horrific 14-2 loss in the second year of the event. The conference recorded only one win in each night of play.
For a while, it looked like Duke was on track to be another loss. The Blue Devils came out flat, falling behind 13-2 to open the game. Their defensive effort improved after a Jon Scheyer timeout, finishing the first half on a 41-23 run.
That double-digit lead narrowed to as little as two points at times in the second half, but Auburn failed to close the distance. Despite facing an Auburn rotation dominated by upperclassmen, the difference was a young Duke team playing cleaner basketball, with only three turnovers the entire game.
Cooper Flagg, projected to be the No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, led Duke in scoring with 22 points plus 11 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks, but just as impactful was freshman Isaiah Evans. Rivals’ No. 14 overall recruit of the Class of 2024 got his first real minutes of the season and made the most of them, scoring 18 points off the bench on 6-of-9 shooting (6-of-8 from 3-point range).
It was a much-needed win for Duke, who took losses to No. 4 Kentucky and No. 1 Kansas earlier in the season. With the ACC clearly not going to hold the prestige it has in previous years, getting a big nonconference win will be huge for the Blue Devils sticking among the national elite as conference play ensues.
Now let’s talk about the other games.
The ACC/SEC Challenge was a bloodbath for the ACC
The event was decided by the end of the first night, in which the SEC went 9-1. Oddly, the sole loss was by No. 4 Kentucky against unranked Clemson. Every other game was a show of force for the SEC, or lack thereof for the ACC. All but two of the SEC’s wins were by double digits.
The second night began no better for the ACC. No. 13 Florida blew out Virginia. No. 10 Alabama boat raced No. 20 UNC. Mississippi, fresh off a 10-point loss to Butler, beat No. 18 Pittsburgh by 33 points. Two more losses followed, and then Auburn-Duke.
The only bright side for the ACC: it’s two wins were over top 5 teams.
Here’s the full scoreboard:
That’s not going to help any ACC team when Selection Sunday comes around.
The last year or so has seen the ACC weather multiple challenges as it attempts to keep its conference together and prevent the Big Ten and SEC from taking the Power Four to Power Two, having already shrunk the Power Five. These past two days won’t help the perception one of college athletics’ most historic conferences is falling behind.
