Blue Devils Cruise to 95-52 Win Over Monmouth in NCAA First Round

Casey Sanders, left, deflects a shot by Monmouth's Jay Dooley (21).
(AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) - Questions about Jason Williams' health and Duke's shooting slump were answered quickly Thursday night.

The point guard proved his sprained left ankle was OK by scoring 20 of his 22 points in the first half of Duke's 95-52 victory over Monmouth on Thursday in the NCAA tournament.

Shane Battier added 21 points and 10 rebounds as Mike Krzyzewski improved to 51-14 in the NCAA tourney. During one stretch of Duke's 62-point first half, the All-American hit a pair of 3-pointers and had a layup in a span of 57 seconds.

Rahsaan Johnson, the Northeast Conference player of the year, had 11 points for Monmouth (21-10).

Duke (30-4) shot just 38 percent in three games to win the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament for a third straight year last week in Atlanta. But the Blue Devils got their shooting touch back in a big way against the 16th-seeded Hawks, going 18-for-38 from 3-point range.

The 18 3-pointers by Duke tied a school record set this season against North Carolina A&T.

"I guess we were due," Duke's Mike Dunleavy said of the team's 58 percent shooting. "We haven't had one of these games in a while. Everything was confident."

"Coming from the Georgia Dome, a really big arena, then coming into here, it makes for a better shooting background. It was a night where everybody was hitting."

Duke did get a scare up 43 points with 14:28 left when Williams came down wrong on his ankle following a twisting layup. He left the game and didn't return, getting ice on the bench as his teammates continued.

Chris Duhon whips a pass by Monmouth defender Steve Bridgemohan.
(AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Williams said teammate Matt Christensen stepped on his ankle and he'll be ready for Saturday's second round.

"I think I was just more scared than anything," Williams said. "I think it was a good move by coach to get me some rest."

Williams, was 7-for-9 from the field in 14 minutes in the opening half as Duke opened leads of 16-1, 31-12 and 46-20 before going in at halftime up 32.

The Blue Devils, entering the postseason with a No. 1 seed for the fourth straight year, said they wanted to set a tone early in the East Regional.

It took less than two minutes to do that against the Hawks, who came into the game off their most successful season since moving up to Division I in 1983.

Duke bolted to an 11-0 lead 1:24 in as Williams sank two of his six first-half 3-pointers and had a steal and layup.

Things would soon get worse for the champions of the Northeast Conference, who rallied to their league title against St. Francis (N.Y.) after being down by 20 points in the second half.

"I knew they could shoot, but I didn't know they could shoot that good," Monmouth's Kevin Owens said. "We weren't scared, but we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off. If they don't win the whole think I will be shocked."

For more information on the 2001 NCAA Tournament, visit FinalFour.net, the official site of March Madness

Blue Devils Cruise to 95-52 Win Over Monmouth in NCAA First Round

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