Duke win, free-throw flap
Duke held off St. John’s 80-75 but the stat people are talking about — Duke made 24 free throws to St. John’s 8, continuing a pattern from earlier rounds (21–6 vs Siena, 23–10 vs TCU). Fans and analysts are debating officiating and game management after the string of lopsided foul-line disparities. (x.com) (x.com)
In the first-round win over Siena on March 19, Duke was 18-of-21 from the free-throw line while Siena was 6-of-6, according to the official box score. (espn.com) In the second-round game against TCU on March 21, Duke hit 20 of 23 free throws while TCU went 5 of 10, per the ESPN box score. (africa.espn.com) In Friday’s Sweet 16 game, Duke converted 15 of 24 free throws and St. John’s made 4 of 8, according to the game box score. (espn.com) Across those three tournament games Duke has attempted 68 free throws and made 53, while opponents attempted 24 and made 15 — totals compiled from the three official box scores. (espn.com) TCU coach Jamie Dixon publicly disputed a technical foul and a non-call in the Duke game, saying the tech was unwarranted and that he “didn’t say anything bad,” and he called the non-call a “huge impact” on the contest. (pennlive.com) National media voices flagged the TCU sequence and subsequent foul disparity, with reporters including Jeff Borzello and Matt Norlander criticizing the officiating in postgame coverage. (heavy.com) Duke’s next opponent is No. 2 UConn in the East Region final on Sunday, March 29, a matchup in which the tournament’s recent foul-line splits have been flagged as a likely storyline. (espn.com)
