There was no Zion Williamson. No RJ Barrett. No Cam Reddish.

The players Tre Jones teamed with last year, that stole the nation’s attention, were off in different parts of the country, in their first year of professional basketball.

Instead, Jones was surrounded mostly by freshmen, first-year players experiencing their introduction to college basketball at a jam-packed Madison Square Garden against an experienced Final Four contender.

“This year it’s his team, so he feels less pressure with more responsibility,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said.

Jones acted like it, playing his best with the game on the line.

The sophomore sank the game’s biggest shot, a left-wing jumper that hit every part of the rim before dropping to give fourth-ranked Duke a three-point lead with 1:33 remaining. He scored the Blue Devils’ final six points, sealing a 68-66 victory over No. 3 Kansas in the Champions Classic, and finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals in 39 impactful minutes.

“I know as a freshman last year, trying to be a leader, I was still trying to look at other guys, older guys, that had been through it before, to see what it really was like,” said Jones, his on-ball defense integral in forcing a whopping 28 Kansas turnovers. “Knowing [our freshmen] are going through the same thing, I know I have to always have a strong face, always got to be doing the right thing, so they know what to do and they’re able to look at someone.”

There was some thought Jones was going pro, as his brother Tyus did following his one year at Duke after its last national championship in 2015, but he opted to return to school. Tuesday night, he was a godsend, keeping his younger teammates composed in difficult times, reminding them after a big run the game was far from over.

“He can be in the NBA right now, but he’s back and wants to get better,” freshman Cassius Stanley said. “He’s talking to us, when we have issues at practice, or [we have] questions, he breaks it down for us. He’s like a coach on the court.”

Duke yet again has a new set of highly rated freshmen, five-star recruits such as Vernon Carey Jr. and Matthew Hurt, but nothing like the group from last year that featured three top-10 draft picks. In fact, Stanley, a four-star guard from Los Angeles, was their best freshman against Kansas, scoring 11 of his 13 points after halftime, including the go-ahead three-point play with 2:29 left.

There are other returning players besides Jones, but they’re role players who won’t be nearly as instrumental to the Blue Devils’ success. Jones will run the team. His quick hands will be key to their defense. And, as Tuesday night illustrated, when the game is on the line the ball will be in his hands.

“I definitely embrace it,” Jones said. “I feel that every basketball player growing up, that’s their big dream, down the stretch trying to make plays for your team to win the game. What better place to do it than here.”

He’ll need to do a lot of that this year. As Coach K said, it’s his team. Jones seems ready for the spotlight.