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Kelly leads No. 5 Duke past Georgia Tech

Jan 7, 2012 - 8:51 PM Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Ryan Kelly scored 14 of his career-high 21 points at the foul line, eight of which came down the stretch as fifth-ranked Duke opened the ACC portion of its schedule with an 81-74 win over Georgia Tech at Philips Arena.

Seth Curry had 15 points and three steals for the Blue Devils (13-2, 1-0 ACC), who rebounded from Wednesday's loss to an unranked Temple squad in Philadelphia.

Duke hasn't lost back-to-back games since February 11 and 15, 2009.

Glen Rice, Jr. matched a career-high with 28 points, but the Yellow Jackets (7-8, 0-1) suffered their fourth straight loss.

"We played against a highly talented and very well coached team and we put ourselves into a position where we could win in the last three minutes," said Georgia Tech head coach Brian Gregory.

Georgia Tech trailed by two at 75-73 after Rice nailed the last of his four three-pointers with 29.5 seconds remaining. Kelly, who didn't miss a free throw attempt, put Duke up four on its next possession, then sealed the win by converting another pair after Mfon Udofia and Rice missed consecutive shots for the Yellow Jackets.

"We had to play really well to win and there was a lot of game pressure on at the end [and] to see our guys respond that way is terrific," said Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Duke raced out to a 16-6 lead and went up 18 at 32-14 when Mason Plumlee hit a free throw to complete a three-point play with about eight minutes remaining. But Georgia Tech ended the first half on a 21-8 run, closing the gap at the break to 40-35 on a Udofia trey.

The Blue Devils gradually regained their double-digit lead in the second half, and Curry hit from beyond the arc to put the visitors up 61-51 with just under nine minutes left.

Georgia Tech scored the next six points to stay within striking distance.

Game Notes

Quinn Cook posted 10 points and five assists for Duke, which outscored Georgia Tech 29-12 at the foul line...Plumlee contributed nine points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks...Udofia scored 19 points for the Yellow Jackets, who held a 38-26 rebounding advantage...The Blue Devils were just 6-of-22 from three-point range...Georgia Tech has lost all three of its games at Philips Arena this season...The Yellow Jackets dropped their sixth consecutive conference opener.