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Dawkins shines as Duke routs Bradley

Dec 9, 2010 - 5:17 AM Durham, NC (Sports Network) - Top-ranked Duke received some bad news before the game, then found some good news during it, as Andre Dawkins scored 28 points as part of a replacement tandem for injured star point guard Kyrie Irving in the Blue Devils' 83-48 rout of Bradley at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Irving, second in the team in points per game and first in assists, is out indefinitely with a right toe injury. He sat on the bench, relegated to cheerleader instead of the player many think is the nation's best at this point in the season.

"Kyrie's injury is a serious one," said Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski. "It's being evaluated by our medical team here at Duke and with medical people from different parts of the country who are experts in foot injuries. Not to save him for any period of time or whatever, but he could be out for a long time. He could possibly be out for the year."

His replacements picked up the slack, especially in the second half, as the sluggish Blue Devils made just 5-of-17 from beyond the arc in the first half before scoring 51 second-half points. Dawkins made 8-of-14 three-pointers and Seth Curry, the transfer from Liberty and brother of NBA guard Stephen Curry, added eight points, four rebounds and four assists.

Kyle Singler contributed 17 points and six rebounds for the Blue Devils (9-0), but while he and Dawkins shined, Nolan Smith struggled in his transition to the point. Duke's leading scorer entering the game, Smith scored just two points and didn't make any of his eight field goal attempts, but did distribute 10 assists to just two turnovers.

In the process, Krzyzewski won his 877th game, passing Kentucky legend Adolph Rupp for third place on the all-time wins list. Next in his sights is Dean Smith, the long-time head coach at Duke's arch-rival, North Carolina, where he won 879 games.

"I mean for me it's obviously a heck of a thing but I really don't, I have never really dwelled on anything like that, number of national championships or number of wins," he said.

Walt Lemon, Jr. scored 14 points and Will Egolf added 11 for Bradley (4-5), which has lost five straight after a 4-0 start -- including a victory at Southern California.

"They're really good with their pressure and they're athletic and they have a lot of like sizes and they can switch," said Bradley head coach Jim Les.

Duke, uncertain without its floor leader, crept its way through the first half, scoring 20 points in the first five-plus minutes then adding just 12 more over the remainder of the half. The Blue Devils held a 20-7 edge on Dawkins' trey with 15:04 left in the half, but neither team put a dent in the scoring ledger the rest of the way. Duke shot just 38.7 percent even with a 3- for-3 effort from Miles Plumlee. Bradley was even worse, connecting on only 30.8 percent of its shots and 1-of-5 three-pointers.

The Blue Devils' edge eclipsed the 30-point barrier at 63-32 with 9:37 remaining on a Dawkins three-pointer, this one off a post feed back outside from Singler. Dawkins eighth and final trey made the score 81-46 with just under two minutes to go, finishing off a career night for the guard.

Game Notes

Plumlee scored 14 points on a perfect 7-for-7 shooting night...The Blue Devils shot 50 percent from the floor, including a 62.1 percent effort in the second half. Duke made 15 three-pointers, 10 after halftime...The Blue Devils scored 17 points off 13 Bradley turnovers...Duke has won two of the three meetings between the schools...Krzyzewski is chasing his mentor, Bobby Knight, who sits at the top of the all-time wins list with 902.