BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Duke took the court for pregame warmups just as No. 4 Auburn was upset by No. 13 Yale, and the Blue Devils decided one upset was enough for the day.
Although it got a little too close for comfort, the fourth-seeded Blue Devils pulled away from No. 13 Vermont for a 64-47 victory.
Duke knocked down six of its first seven shots in the first half but made just four of its last 16 and watched a 10-point lead diminish to two.
But Duke led 34-29 at half by shooting 11-for-16 from the line, while Vermont took just three free throws and missed them all.
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A pro-Vermont crowd — perhaps more anti-Duke — went wild as the Catamounts cut it to two again after a one-and-one, but the Blue Devils went on a 12-3 run to take a 48-37 lead with less than 10 minutes left.
A couple of minutes later, Vermont quickly scored five straight points for a momentum shift, but Duke responded with six straight and built a game-high 12-point lead with 4:53 to go. Duke then held a lead of at least nine for the remainder of the game.
In the final 16:32, Duke outscored Vermont, 28-13, including an 8-0 run in the final 4:44.
Four Blue Devils reached double-digits. Blue Devils star Kyle Filipowski only had three points, all on free throws. He took just one shot, but he grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. Outside of Shamir Bogues (18) and Aaron Deloney (14), the rest of the Catamounts combined for just 15 points, with their next-highest scorer putting up just five. Jared McCain and Mark Mitchell led Duke with 15 each.
Duke awaits the winner of No. 5 Wisconsin and No. 12 James Madison, which tips off at Barclays Center later Friday.
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