Mike Krzyzewski’s final ACC Tournament didn’t waste any time finding drama.
The retiring coach’s top-seeded Duke team survived a scare from No. 9 Syracuse on Thursday in the quarterfinals at Barclays Center, fending off a late deficit to win 88-79 and advance to Friday’s semifinals.
The Orange, whose only path to the NCAA Tournament was by winning the conference tournament, went ahead by as many as seven points early in the second half and then led 79-78 with 3:38 to go before running out of gas.
Syracuse’s Jimmy Boeheim (r.) scored 28 points in their loss to Duke on Thursday. AP
Buddy Boeheim was suspended for Thursday’s game after punching a Florida State player on Wednesday. APThe Blue Devils made sure Krzyzewski didn’t go one-and-done in his ACC farewell, finishing the game on a 10-0 run to stick around for at least another day in Brooklyn. Wendell Moore Jr. led the way with 26 points and eight assists.
Duke had jumped out to an early double-digit lead in the first half before Syracuse swung the momentum by halftime, taking a 40-36 advantage into the break.
The Orange were playing without leading scorer Buddy Boeheim, who was suspended for one game after hitting a Florida State player in the gut in Wednesday’s second round. His brother, Jimmy Boeheim, nearly pulled it out for Syracuse, pouring in a game-high 28 points.
