NCAAB Game Preview - Duke at Clemson

Tue Jan 14, 2020 7:00 PM EST

Duke has been on another roll and seems to be picking up steam in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The third-ranked Blue Devils hit the road to visit Clemson for Tuesday night's game, taking on a team that is bound to be bubbling with confidence as well.

Duke (15-1, 5-0 ACC), which has won three league road games, has run its overall winning streak to nine games and remains the only ACC team without a conference loss.

"All of them are getting better," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of his players. "We've got to keep developing our team."

The Blue Devils have won six games by margins of 30 or more points this season. That includes Saturday night's 90-59 drubbing of visiting Wake Forest.

"I'm sure there will be stuff that we can work on that we'll find out in the film (study)," Duke forward Jack White said.

Clemson (8-7, 2-3) won Saturday for the first time ever in Chapel Hill, defeating host North Carolina 79-76 in overtime. That ended an 0-for-59 string for Clemson road games in the series.

The outcome included the Tigers rallying from 10 points down in the final two minutes of regulation.

"We kept telling our guys throughout the 40 minutes that you have to give yourself a chance at the end," Clemson coach Brad Brownell said.

That type of response showed that the Tigers are capable of putting things together.

"Our kids really executed down the stretch," Brownell said. "I thought the last five or six minutes of regulation and overtime we executed our offense really well and got good shots. We got some layups. It was a fantastic comeback, and certain a terrific win for us."

It also demonstrated that Clemson doesn't have to play at a peak level to end up with a desired result.

"To come back and keep fighting for 40 minutes when you don't have your best stuff for a while," Brownell said of the potential long-term impact. "Our guys didn't buckle."

Clemson forward Aamir Simms scored the final nine points of regulation against the Tar Heels, including the tying 3-pointer to force overtime. In the extra session, Simms scored or assisted on six of the Tigers' nine points.

"He delivered at the most important times in that game," Brownell said.

Duke has had four different players as its leading scorer across the past six games.

"It just kind of felt like Duke was scoring the whole night," White said, referring to his team against Wake Forest. "I think we shared the ball really well and just kind of took what they gave us."

Five players have posted double-figure point totals for Duke in four games this season.

While the offensive numbers continue to be impressive, the Blue Devils have locked down on defense. Their past seven opponents have failed to eclipse the 65-point mark.

Duke is 5-0 in ACC play for the 14th time in school history and first since the 2008-09 season.

--Field Level Media