CORAL GABLES, Florida – – Elijah Olaniyi scored 21 points, Anthony Walker and Isaiah Wong added 16 points each and Miami overcame an unstable foul by defeating Duke 77-75 on Monday, ending a four-game loss to the letter.
The Hurricanes, whose previous three games with the Blue Devils were defeats by at least 30 points, made this difficult by losing 4 of 8 free throws, including the front end of two opportunities 1 and 1, in the final 75 seconds.
But Walker made a pair 12.8 seconds from the end that proved to be the difference. He scored 77-73 before tipping Duke striker Wendell Moore Jr. at 4.9 seconds.
Wong missed the attack with 4.3 seconds left, but Duke ended his frustrating night by not being able to land a final shot.
With only six scholarship holders available, Miami (7-10, 3-9 Atlantic Coast Conference) had lost four games in a row without reaching 60 points in any of them. Wong was questionable after spraining an ankle on Saturday.
But Wong appeared well and the Hurricanes had no problem getting the ball in, shooting 52.5%, including 17 of 28 (60.7%) in the second half. When Duke moved into a 3-2 zone, one of Division I’s worst 3-point shooting teams (28.4%) scored 7 out of 15 behind the hoop, led by Olaniyi’s 3 out of 5 shot.
Matthew Hurt led the Blue Devils (7-6, 5-4) with 21 points. Moore scored 18 points, DJ Steward scored 14 and Jalen Johnson 13. Duke was just 5 of 18 (27.8%) away and hit 46% overall, 44% in the second half.
There were 20 changes of advantage and the big advantage for both teams was six points. Duke led 35-33 at the break.
The next game for both teams is on Saturday. Duke faces North Carolina when both are disqualified for the first time since the 1959-60 season. Miami plays in 16th place, Virginia Tech.
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