No. 6 Duke crushes Albany 111-70

DeMarcus Nelson scored 23 points and No. 6 Duke turned in a sharp offensive performance after an exam break to beat Albany 111-70 on Monday night.

Reserve Jon Scheyer added 18 points for the Blue Devils (10-0), who shot 60 percent and quickly turned this game into a rout. Duke had five players score in double figures and hit 15 of 26 3-pointers, continuing its strong outside shooting of recent games.

Duke improved to 10-0 for the sixth time in eight seasons, while Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski earned his 785th career victory to move within a game of tying Lefty Driesell for sixth on the all-time list.

Tim Ambrose scored a career-best 24 points for the Great Danes (5-5), who fell behind by double figures about 5 1/2 minutes in and trailed by 26 points at halftime.

The Blue Devils hadn't played since beating Michigan 95-67 on Dec. 8, but they showed little rust from their layoff despite playing without starter Lance Thomas, who sat out with a sprained ankle. Nelson hit a driving shot and a 3-pointer in the first 2 minutes en route to 16 points on 5-for-6 shooting in the half.

The 23 points were one shy of tying a career-high for the senior, who also had six rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in 26 minutes.

But Nelson wasn't alone. Eight players scored in the first half while Duke shot 20-for-33 (61 percent) and hit nine of 14 3-pointers to build a 57-31 lead. Scheyer scored 10 points in a span of just more than 2 minutes — including consecutive 3s — to give Duke a 78-46 lead with 12:49 left.

The Blue Devils poured it on the rest of the way, cracking the century mark on Nelson's free throw that made it 100-57 with 6:08 left.

The Blue Devils' biggest struggles came at the free throw line, where Duke went 20-of-34 (59 percent).