For the third straight game in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, Duke finished off its competition with a strong finish.
Unlike the prior two games, however, the 2-seed Blue Devils didn't need it to overcome a deficit. Mike Krzyzewski's team was dominant for nearly the entirety of its Elite Eight victory over 4-seed Arkansas on Saturday, beating the Razorbacks 78-69 — a score that's not indicative of how effortlessly the Blue Devils sent them home.
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Duke once again started slow, with four early turnovers, and then got into the game with three straight hustle plays by Mark Williams, who finished the game with 12 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks. From there, Duke outmuscled Buffalo State Bengals Jerseys Arkansas in the paint while hitting timely 3s to take a 45-33 lead into halftime (one of those 3s was a buzzer-beating dagger from Trevor Keels before halftime).
The game very well could have ended there, but credit to Eric Musselman's team to make it competitive right out of halftime. The Razorbacks went on a 9-2 run to draw to five points behind and force a Coach K timeout. The Blue Devils responded perfectly from there, going on a 10-0 run to take the game over and eventually send Coach K to his record 13th Final Four.
AJ Griffin (18 points), Paolo Banchero (16) and Wendell Moore Jr. (14) also scored in double digits while Keels and Jeremy Roach scored nine apiece.
Jaylin Williams put together a commendable effort in the loss, scoring 19 points and nabbing 10 rebounds to go with three assists and two steals. Stanley Umude and JD Notae scored 14 points apiece.
The Sporting News provided live updates and highlights from the Elite Eight game. Check out the full coverage below:
Duke vs. Arkansas sc Notre Dame vs. USC Rivalry shirt ore
H1 | H2 | F | |
Duke | 45 | 33 | 78 |
Arkansas | 33 | 36 | 69 |
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Duke vs. Arkansas live updates, highlights
(All times Eastern)
Second half: Duke 78, Arkansas 69
11:15 p.m.: This interview is great:
10:58 p.m.: Strong defensive effort and bucket gets Arkansas back within nine of Duke. The final score looks a little better for the Razorbacks: 78-69.
10:56 p.m.: Everything's clicking offensively for Duke; Griffin hits the pump-fake, takes a step forward and hits the mid-range field goal uncontested.
10:53 p.m.: These final four minutes are a mere formality, though it's worth noting Notae has fouled out. That will do it for the talented senior, who finishes with 17 points in the loss — and 1,999 for his career.
10:44 p.m.: Trey Wade with a 3 of his own in response to Duke. Blue Devils still lead 72-57 (and are starting to use more of the shot clock).
10:42 p.m.: Griffin may have just ended this with a corner-3 that makes it 72-5 ACC Gear clothes 8 with 6:20 left to play.
10:38 p.m.: Banchero gets the steal and is fouled by Notae, who has his fourth. It's all Blue Devils right now.
10:37 p.m.: Duke ends any run Arkansas might have enjoyed with a Griffin corner 3. Duke's lead is back to 15 (69-54).
10:36 p.m.: Umude makes his second 3 of the night to make it 66-54 Blue Devils. He'll need a few more of those to get Arkansas back in this.
10:35 p.m.: Au'Diese Toney is called for his fourth foul on Banchero, who goes to the charity stripe for two.
10:32 p.m.: Jaylin Williams hits the free throw, cutting Duke's lead to 63-51. Arkansas Baylor Bears Jerseys going with soft pressure on the inbound pass.
10:32 p.m.: Jaylin Williams scores out of the timeout, sending in a forceful dunk and an and-1 opportunity following a Banchero foul.
10:30 p.m.: And now Moore drives hard into the paint, stops, and hits the step-back 2 to extend Duke's lead to 63-48.
10:29 p.m.: The timeout proves effective as Duke extends its scoring run to eight and gets its largest lead of the game — 13 points, at 61-48.
10:23 p.m.: Banchero and Griffin get timely layups to stop the bleeding and extend Duke's lead back to 57-48.
10:19 p.m.: Jaylin Williams gets an and-1 layup to give Arkansas a 9-2 run. Duke's lead has diminished to 53-48, causing Coach K to take a timeout with 13:13 left in the game.
10:17 p.m.: Jaylin Williams and Umude get cons Texas vs. Oklahoma Rivalry Jerseys ecutive scores for Arkansas to get the Razorbacks' back under 10. Duke's lead is now 51-43.
10:11 p.m.: Moore gets the steal and the mid-range jumper in transition to give Duke a 49-37 lead.
10:08 p.m.: Stanley Umude's 3-point attempt bounces off the rim onto the top of the backboard — for the second time this tournament, a cheerleader comes in to put the ball back in play.
10:06 p.m.: Notae gets the first bucket of the half for Arkansas, his first since 12:40 of the first half. He'll need to get involved more if Arkansas wants to get back in this.
First half: Duke 45, Arkansas 33
9:45 p.m.: Halftime stats from Duke-Arkansas (it's all Blue Devils so far):
Duke | Arkansas | |
Field goals | 17-31 | 13-32 |
Field goal % | 54.8% | 40.6% |
3-pointers | 2-5 | 4-11 |
3-point % | 40% | 36.4 |
Free throws | 9-10 | 3-3 |
Free throw % | 90% | 100% |
Rebounds | 22 | 12 |
Assists | 5 | 5 |
Steals | 3 | 2 |
Blocks | 4 | 3 |
Turnovers | 7 | 5 |
Fouls | 7 | 8 |
Largest lead | 12 | 3 |
9:43 p.m.: Trevor Keels hits a dagger of a 3 at the halftime buzzer to give Duke an 8-0 run and 45-33 lead. That's also the largest deficit for Arkansas this tournament.
9:38 p.m.: Banchero gets the hesitation 3 to give Duke a 40-33 lead from the top of the key. That's Duke's first 3 of the night.
9:28 p.m.: Jeremy Roach gets an and-one to basket to erase a Davonte Davis 3. Duke's lead is back to 31-24.
9:26 p.m.: AJ Griffin scores two free throws and then hits a mid-range jumper for four straight points to give Duke a 28-21 lead. That basket is the first Blue Devils score from outside the paint.
9:19 p.m.: Jaylin Williams gets the and-one layup to shorten Duke's lead to 22-19.
9:19 p.m.: Two Duke possessions end with charge calls, eliciting some disagreements from Duke faithful in attendance.
9:16 p.m.: Wendell Moore Jr.'s slicing layup gives Duke an 8-0 run and extends the lead to 22-14.
9:14 p.m.: Banchero goes 4 for 4 on two trips to the free throw line to extend Duke's lead to 20-14.
9:09 p.m.: Duke leads 15-14 at the second TV timeout.
9:06 p.m.: OK, Mark Williams: The big man hustles twice down the court for put-back layups for Duke. Following an Arkansas score, he gets a steal and gets a fastbreak dunk. He has eight points and four rebounds; he also gives Duke a 14-11 lead.
9:04 p.m.: Duke gets another turnover on the ensuing possession, but holds up defensively on the other end. Mark Williams gets the and-1 layup on the ensuing Duke possession, but fails to sink the foul shot. Arkansas still leads 9-8.
9 p.m.: There's the first media Michigan vs. Ohio State Rivalry Jerseys timeout. Arkansas looks fast and loose while Duke looks a little uncomfortable. (Nothing out of the ordinary there for the Blue Devils).
8 Boston College Eagles clothes :58 p.m.: There's Duke's third turnover. Following a 3 by Notae, the Razorbacks led 7-4.
8:56 pm.: Another turnover in two possessions for Duke. The Blue Devils, you'll remember, had three airballs and a turnover in the first four possessions against Texas Tech in the Sweet 16.
8:54 p.m.: The Blue Devils win the tip-off, but commit a turnover on their opening drive.
8:47 p.m.: Duke and Arkansas' starting five:
Duke vs. Arkansas start time
- Date: Saturday, March 26
- Time: 8:49 p.m. ET | 5:49 p.m. PT (approx.)
The Duke-Arkansas game will tip off at approximately 8:49 p.m. ET from the Chase Center in San Francisco. The start time could be delayed depending on when Saturday's first Elite Eight game, No. Ball State Cardinals clothes 2 Villanova vs. No. 5 Houston, ends.
What channel is Duke vs. Arkansas on?
- TV channel: TBS
- Live stream: Sling TV
Duke vs. Arkansas will be the second of two TBS broadcasts of Saturday's Elite Eight games. Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery and Reggie Miller will call the game while Tracy Wolfson will report from the sidelines. Streaming options include Sling TV.
Duke vs. Arkansas series history
Duke and Arkansas have a brief, but curious, history against each other. The Blue Devils first met the Razorbacks in the 1990 Final Four, with the former winning 97-83 (before going on to lose 103-73 to UNLV in the national championship game).
The teams next met in November of the next season, with No. 7 Duke losing 98-88 to the second-ranked Razorbacks. The teams' last meeting came in the 1994 NCAA Tournament championship, with Nolan Richardson's team winning 76-72 to keep Coach K from winning his third title in four seasons.
With Saturday's game, the Blue Devils and Razorbacks will have met a total of four times, three of which came in one of the final three rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
Date | Winning team | NCAA Crewneck Sweatshirt Score | Location |
March 31, 1990 | Duke | 97-83 | McNichols Sports Arena (Denver) |
Nov. 21, 1990 | Arkansas | 98-88 | Madison Square Garden (New York) |
April 4, 1994 | Arkansas | 76-72 | Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, N.C.) |