Curry leads Duke past Minnesota
BY Associated Press
Friday, November 23, 2012
11/23/12 at 4:41 AM
Seth Curry scored 25 points and Mason Plumlee added 20 points and a career-high-matching 17 rebounds as No. 5 Duke's starters scored all but two of the Blue Devils' points in an 89-71 victory over Minnesota on Thursday in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis at Paradise Island, Bahamas.
Plumlee was coming off a career-high 28 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field, 10 of 11 from the free throw line and had nine rebounds in the Blue Devils' previous game, an 88-67 win over Florida Gulf Coast.
Sophomore point guard Quinn Cook had a career-high 17 points for the Blue Devils who extended their regular-season tournament winning streak to 21 games, a run that stretches to the championship game of the 2006 CBE Classic.
Duke (4-0) will face VCU in Friday's semifinals. The Rams beat No. 19 Memphis 78-65.
Rodney Williams had 16 points for the Golden Gophers (4-1), who just couldn't cut into the Blue Devils' lead in the second half.
This was Duke's 150th consecutive game ranked in the Top Ten and the Blue Devils are 150-30 in those games.
No. 13 Missouri 78, Stanford 70: In Paradise Island, Bahamas, Laurence Bowers scored 19 points, as usual most were in the second half, and grabbed 10 rebounds for Missouri in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Bowers, who had 13 points in the second half Thursday, has scored more points after halftime in every game this season for the Tigers (4-0). He came in averaging 15.5 points per game, including 14.0 in the second half.
Missouri will face No. 2 Louiville, which beat Northern Iowa on Thursday, in Friday's semifinals.
Phil Pressey had 18 points and eight assists for Missouri, which had just three field goals over the final 9:10 and they were all grouped in a 1:57 span starting with 2:12 to play.
Chasson Randle had 22 points for the Cardinal (3-2), who have lost two straight after an eight-game winning streak.
No. 17 Gonzaga 57, Clemson 49: In Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Elias Harris and Kelly Olynyk each scored 13 points to help lift Gonzaga in a first round game at the Old Spice Classic.
Olynyk started after missing the previous three games due to a violation of the student code of conduct. The junior forward, who had his first two shots blocked, also had three rebounds.
Clemson got 10 points from Adonis Filer. Milton Jennings had six points and eight rebounds.
Sam Dower had 11 points for Gonzaga (4-0), which will go against Oklahoma in Friday's semifinals. Clemson (2-1) will face Texas-El Paso in the loser's bracket.
VCU 78, No. 19 Memphis 65: In Paradise Island, Bahamas, Treveon Graham scored 26 points and Rob Brandenberg added 15, including two late 3-pointers, for VCU in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The Rams used their frenetic style of play to take a 16-point lead in the first half only to see the Tigers pull to 63-61 with 4:05 to play. VCU then went on an 11-0 run with all the points scored by Graham and Brandenberg. Brandenberg hit two 3s in the run and Graham one as the Rams finished 13 for 22 from behind the arc.
Associated Images:
Duke forward Mason Plumlee (center) scores as Minnesota's Andre Hollins (left) and Elliott Eliason defend during Thursday's game in Paradise Island, Bahamas. JOHN BAZEMORE/AP
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