No. 1 overall seed Duke got past a massive scare Thursday, storming back from an 11-point halftime deficit for a nail-biting 71-65 victory over No. 16 Siena.
Duke trailed 43-32 at the midway point, becoming the first-ever 1-seed to trail a 16-seed by double digits at halftime in NCAA Tournament history, per ESPN Research.
Senior forward Maliq Brown admitted the Blue Devils had underestimated Siena.
The Blue Devils took over down the stretch, fueled by Wooden Award front-runner Cameron Boozer, who finished with 22 points and 13 boards.
Boozer’s brother, Cayden, also had a solid showing in his NCAA Tournament debut, tallying 19 points, five assists, and two boards.