CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) - The Miami Hurricanes turned a rare sellout into a blowout, upsetting Duke for their first victory ever over a No. 1 team.
No. 25-ranked Miami delighted a boisterous crowd by holding the Blue Devils without a field goal for more than 8 minutes in the first half Wednesday night, and went on to win 90-63.
Duke seemed rattled by the capacity crowd, only the 10th in 10 years at Miami's on-campus arena. Students began lining up for seats outside the arena almost 24 hours before tipoff, a rarity for the attendance-challenged Hurricanes.
``I don't know how you can sit outside for a basketball game for that long,'' Miami guard Durand Scott said. ``That made me want to win for them even more.''
Miami (14-3, 5-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) took control with a stunning 25-1 run midway through the opening half. The Blue Devils missed 13 consecutive shots despite numerous good looks, while four Hurricanes hit 3-pointers during the run that transformed a 14-13 deficit into a 38-15 lead.
Duke (16-2, 3-2) fell to 0-2 when playing on an opponent's court. The Blue Devils' other loss came at North Carolina State, a defeat cost them the No. 1 ranking.
After regaining the top spot this week, they endured the third-worst defeat ever for a No. 1 team. The last time Duke lost a regular-season game by a bigger margin was in January 1984.
``We expected them to be terrific, and we have to match terrific, and then you have a terrific game,'' Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. ``What you had was a terrific win for them, but not a terrific game. We didn't hold our end of the bargain.''
The Hurricanes, who are alone atop the league standings, won their sixth consecutive game. They beat Duke for the second straight time - but only the fourth time in the 19-game series.
Miami had been 0-6 against No. 1 teams. Coach Jim Larranaga also beat a No. 1 team for the first time.
``This is a great memory,'' Larranaga said.
Scott scored a season-high 25 points for the Hurricanes, and Kenny Kadji added a season-high 22. Shane Larkin had 18 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Durham, N.C. native Julian Gamble had 10 rebounds and four blocked shots.
Miami senior center Reggie Johnson came off the bench in his first action since being sidelined with a broken left thumb Dec. 18. He had two points and five rebounds in 16 minutes.
``I feel like when I told the guys today I was playing, it gave the guys a lot more energy,'' Johnson said. ``That really helped us.''
The Hurricanes, ranked this week for the first time in three years, improved to 8-0 at home.
Seth Curry, Tyler Thornton and Quinn Cook went a combined 1 for 29 for the Blue Devils, who shot a season-low 30 percent. Rasheed Sulaimon led them with 16 points.
Duke went 4 for 23 from 3-point range, while Miami went 9 for 19 and shot 57 percent overall.
``Especially in the first couple of minutes, we got a lot of great shots,'' Blue Devils forward Mason Plumlee said. ``You're going to miss some, but you have to keep shooting. The biggest mistake you can make is questioning your shot because you're missing open shots.''
Kadji made two 3s during the Hurricanes' first-half spurt, then capped it with a three-point play. Duke shot 22 percent in the first half, including two for 11 on 3-pointers, and trailed 42-19 at halftime.
There was no letup by the Hurricanes to start the second half. They scored the first seven points for a shocking 49-19 lead, and punctuated the drubbing with five dunks in the final 10 minutes.
``Some teams come out the second half flat and think they have the game won,'' Larkin said, ``but we stayed with it with the same energy in the second half. We played great the whole game.''
A Duke mistake - one in a long series - early in the second half had Krzyzewski red-faced and on the court, screaming at his team. But he couldn't inspire a turnaround.
``Over-rated,'' fans chanted with 3 minutes left. When the game ended, they poured onto the court and mobbed their team.
``The crowd I'm sure helped them some,'' Krzyzewski said. ``But they didn't need much help.''
