NEW YORK—Madison Square Garden was posed as a neutral site for Thursday’s non-conference matchup between No. 8 Duke and UCLA, but in the first few minutes of the context, it looked and felt anything but.
After sophomore guard/forward Kyle Anderson lobbed an alley-oop pass to redshirt senior forward Travis Wear to give the Bruins an early 2-0 lead in what ended in a 37-37 halftime draw, the Blue Devils took over.
Made three-pointers by Duke junior guard Quinn Cook and redshirt senior guard Andre Dawkins, as well as a successful three-point play by freshman forward Jabari Parker, stretched Duke’s lead to as much as 10 midway through the first half.
Still, the Bruins chipped away. Anderson scored five consecutive points and sophomore guard Jordan Adams drove the lane effectively during an 11-2 UCLA counter that brought the Bruins back into the contest.
With Duke redshirt sophomore forward Rodney Hood and Parker out of the game for a small stretch with just under 10 minutes to play, the Bruins took advantage. Freshman guards Zach LaVine and Bryce Alford, who didn’t see their first minutes until well after five minutes had passed in the game, combined to create UCLA’s most lethal scoring weapon. The two freshmen totaled a 3-for-4 effort beyond the three-point stripe, giving the Bruins as much as a six-point lead with just over five minutes left to play.
The Blue Devils rode their most versatile asset, Parker, over the last stretch of the half and were rewarded handsomely. Duke eliminated the small deficit and Parker finished the half with a game-high 11 points and five rebounds.
Redshirt senior forward David Wear leads all UCLA scorers with eight.
Compiled by Andrew Erickson, Bruin Sports senior staff.