C.L. Brown, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Five observations: Duke advances to Final Four, beats Gonzaga

HOUSTON – The Duke Blue Devils advanced to the Final Four with a 66-52 victory over the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Duke will take on the Michigan State Spartans -- in a rematch of a Nov. 18 meeting won 81-71 by Duke -- in the national semifinals Saturday in Indianapolis.

Here are five observations:

  • Kyle Wiltjer knows how to use his body. Didn’t matter if he was being defended by one of Duke’s bigs or a smaller guard got switched off on him, Wiltjer gave everyone the bump-and-back-down move to get where he wanted to be and would score from there. Duke’s Justise Winslow plays power forward in Duke's small lineup and Gonzaga coach Mark Few recognized Wiltjer could not guard him on defense. But Wiltjer’s offense proved Winslow couldn’t handle him, either. He was 5-of-7 in the first half and his 13 points accounted for half the Zags' total. However, Wiltjer finished with just 16.

  • Duke made good on its plan to limit the Zags’ 3-point shooting. That could be part of the reason why Wiltjer scored so much inside the paint. The Blue Devils didn’t sag much in the lane and didn't allow the Bulldogs open looks from outside. Gonzaga entered the game averaging 17.5 3-point attempts per game. The Bulldogs had just two in the first half and finished the game 2-of-10.

  • Early in the season Matt Jones wrote, "Why not me?" on one of his sneakers. The sophomore had lost a lot of confidence in his freshman season and in turn was a shell of the player coach Mike Krzyzewski recruited to Duke. He has no problems with his confidence now. Jones wasn’t afraid to take the big shots when the Blue Devils needed them. When the Zags tied the game early in the second half, Jones responded with a big 3-pointer from the top of the key. Jones finished with a tournament-high 16 points and was 4-of-7 from 3-point range.

  • Gonzaga center Przemek Karnowski didn’t need much help in defending Duke’s Jahlil Okafor. Although Karnowski did draw two fouls early and played just six minutes of the first half, he managed to stay out of foul trouble in the second half. Karnowski didn’t give any ground to Okafor in the paint and wasn’t shaken by his quickness. Okafor finished with nine points on 4-of-10 shooting. It was the first time this season Okafor was held to single digits in consecutive games.

  • Quinn Cook will finally raise a banner. The senior guard had been much maligned during his previous three seasons at Duke. Many even questioned if he could coexist with Tyus Jones this season, as his role changed from point guard to playing off the ball. Cook adapted and became the leader the Blue Devils needed on such a young team.

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