Duke wins opener in quest for 5 straight in ACC tourney
- Mar. 09, 2021 07:06 PM EST
Duke center Mark Williams, middle, Duke forward Matthew Hurt, bottom, and Boston forward James Karnik, top, look for the rebound during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke center Mark Williams, middle, Duke forward Matthew Hurt, bottom, and Boston forward James Karnik, top, look for the rebound during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Boston head coach Scott Spinelli directs his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Boston forward CJ Felder (1) reaches it to grab the ball from Duke forward Jalen Johnson, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke forward Henry Coleman III, left, blocks the shot of Boston guard Jay Heath (5) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Boston head coach Scott Spinelli, right, talks with Boston guard Jay Heath (5) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski directs his team during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Boston College in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke center Mark Williams, left, guard DJ Steward (2) guard Jordan Goldwire (14) and Duke forward Joey Baker (13) celebrate their 86-51 win over Boston College in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Boston guard Makai Ashton-Langford (4) drives to the basket as Duke center Mark Williams (15) and teammate forward Matthew Hurt, left, defend during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke forward Henry Coleman III, front, passes to Duke guard Jeremy Roach (3) as Boston College guard Demarr Langford Jr., middle left, and teammate, center, Justin Vander Baan, left, defend during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, March 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
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GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — DJ Steward scored 17 points, Mark Williams added 13 points and 10th-seeded Duke beat Boston College 86-51 on Tuesday to begin its quest of winning five-straight games in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.

No team has won five ACC tournament games in five days — but Duke (12-11) likely must do so to avoid missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1995.

Steward, Williams and Jeremy Roach — all freshmen — combined for 27 of Duke's 41 first-half points. Steward scored 13 points with three of Duke's eight 3-pointers and Williams was 5 of 6 from the field for 11 points.

Jordan Goldwire closed the first half with a 3-pointer, and he made 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions, capping an 11-2 run, to give Duke a 22-point lead with 12:31 remaining.

The Blue Devils, starting the tournament with their lowest seed ever, made six of their first 10 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 15, while 15th-seed Boston College was just 1 of 15. Duke had 17 2-point baskets en route to posting its second largest margin of victory in an ACC tourney game.

Goldwire, a senior, scored 12 points on a career-high four 3-pointers for Duke, which snapped a three-game skid. The Blue Devils advance to play No. 7 Louisville on Wednesday, looking to stop a three-game losing streak in the series. The Cardinals won 70-65 on Jan. 23, and 80-73 in overtime on Feb. 27 to spoil Matthew Hurt's 37-point performance.

Boston College (4-16), under interim head coach Scott Spinelli, did not have a player score in double figures after shooting just 39.1%. Makai Ashton-Langford had nine points and DeMarr Langford and James Karnik each added eight.

Duke has won 16 of the last 17 meetings between the schools, including an 83-82 win at Cameron Indoor Stadium earlier this season. BC’s CJ Felder scored a career-high 24 points in that contest, but was held to just four points on 2-of-8 shooting in the tournament.

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