Stephen Curry shoots over a pair of Duke defenders Wednesday night. (Tim Cowie photo)

Davidson’s men’s basketball team fell far behind Duke Wednesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham and it looked like a rout in the making. But as they often do, the Wildcats clawed their way back. They were within 8 points with 3:53 left, thanks to star guard Stephen Curry’s second half scoring flurry. In the end, Davidson lost to the nation’s No. 2 team, 79-67, on national TV in one of the most unfriendly arenas in college basketball.

Mr. Curry, described later by a New York Times writer as “the best show in college basketball this season,” finished with 29 points – right at his nation-leading average. Andrew Lovedale added 15. For Duke, Jon Scheyer and Kyle Singler both had 22.

Davidson fell behind by 13 at halftime, 47-34. Midway through the second half, the Cats were down by 25. But then Mr. Curry began finding his range. By game’s end, they had outscored Duke 43-42 in the second half, though they still came up short.

DURHAM, NC - Brendan McKillop (1) of Davidson breaks by Duke's Kyle Singler (12). McKillop had 3 points and a steal as Duke defeats Davidson 79-67. (Tim Cowie photo)

The Wildcats are now 10-3 on the year, with all three losses coming to nationally-ranked teams. The other losses were to Oklahoma and Purdue. Duke is now 13-1 overall this season.

LINKS

Jan. 8, 2008, “Blue Devils hold off Curry, Davidson”

Game story from Davidson Sports Information, DavidsonWildcats.com

ESPN.com game recap and stats.

Jan. 7, 2008, Associated Press (via Google), “No. 2 Duke tops Davidson, 79-67.”

Jan. 7, 2008, CharlotteObserver.com Duke-Davidson photo gallery.