GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — After Duke took control with a big run in the second quarter, Kennedy Brown scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half to help the seventh-seeded Blue Devils They defeated seeded Georgia Tech 70-58. 2nd round of the ACC Tournament on Thursday night.
Brown made the only shot of the first half, but his teammates built a 38-26 lead. Behind Brown, the Blue Devils held a double-digit lead for all but 54 seconds of the second half.
Duke advanced to play No. 10 North Carolina State, the No. 2 seed, in Friday night's quarterfinals.
Freshman Oluchi Okanawa, the first ACC player of the year in Duke history, led the Blue Devils (20-10) with 15 points. Ashron Jackson added 11 points, all in the crucial second quarter, and Jaydyn Donovan had 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting. Brown and Donovan each had eight rebounds to maintain a 42-27 rebounding advantage and a 20-point difference in points in the paint.
Tony Morgan had 19 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and two steals for the Yellow Jackets (17-15), who lost 83-46 to Duke in their only regular-season matchup. Kara Dunn scored 14 points and Luzne Augustinite added 11 points.
Duke's defense was low in the ACC at 57.8 points per game and had a high shooting percentage of 36.6%. The Yellow Jackets made 3-of-12 3-pointers for an overall shooting percentage of 37.7 percent (20-of-53). Georgia Tech went 15-of-25 from the foul line and Duke went 3-of-5.
Duke used two runs to take a 38-26 lead at halftime. Onanwa scored five points and Raegan Richardson added four points for the Blue Devils, who scored the final 11 points of the first quarter to take a 17-8 lead. The Yellow Jackets opened the second quarter with a 12-3 run to tie the game at 20, but then Duke mounted an 18-1 onslaught.
Jackson made two threes and a layup before Donovan made it 30-20. After Georgia Tech's free throws, Richardson made a jumper, Taina Mair made a 3 and Camila Mmsbo made a three-point play to make it 38-21. The Yellow Jackets scored the final five points of the first half.
