Tennessee State Tigers at Duke Blue Devils
· NCAA Men's Basketball
55 - 65
Kennard, No. 5 Duke top Tennessee St 65-55 in Giles' debut
Luke Kennard scored 24 points and No. 5 Duke beat Tennessee State 65-55 on Monday in the college debut of touted freshman Harry Giles.
Freshman forward Jayson Tatum added 14 points and Grayson Allen finished with 12 for the Blue Devils (11-1), who plodded through 30 mostly sluggish minutes before pulling away from a pesky Tigers team that threatened to spoil a big night for Giles.
"This game was a learning experience for us," Kennard said. "We can't take anything for granted. We've got to play each and every game like it's the biggest game of the year. ... I just don't think we were really ready to play. ... Our energy wasn't there, our enthusiasm wasn't there, and we just didn't really have one guy that's bringing us all the energy, and we really needed that tonight."
Darreon Reddick and Tahjere McCall scored 14 points apiece for the Tigers (8-3).
Amile Jefferson had a career-best 18 rebounds for Duke, which finally got Giles on the floor for the first time. One of the nation's top recruits, he missed his senior season in high school with torn knee ligaments in his right knee and then missed the first 11 games at Duke after having his left knee scoped in October.
"First game, that was just shaking the rust off and getting the kinks out," Giles said. "I think each day, each game, each practice, I'll get better."
BIG PICTURE
Tennessee State: This was the second time in nine days that the Tigers threw a scare into the host team at an historic Atlantic Coast Conference venue, after taking North Carolina State to overtime in the Wolfpack's first game at renovated Reynolds Coliseum. Tennessee State's three losses have all come on the road against Power 5 programs, with the other defeat coming at Vanderbilt.
"Hopefully, we realized that if we play as a team, we currently feel like we can play with anybody in the country, but we need to try to get to the point where we can consistently beat high-level teams," coach Dana Ford said.
But Duke shot a season-worst 37 percent and finished just 19 of 32 from the free throw line while establishing a season-low scoring total by 10 points. The previous low was 75, both in the loss to Kansas and the win against Rhode Island.
"We're in October, not December, with our team," coach Mike Krzyzewski said.
STAT SHEET
HARRY CHRISTMAS
UP NEXT
Tennessee State: The Tigers have eight days before their next game, a home date with Division III Covenant on Dec. 27.
Duke: The Blue Devils play Elon on Wednesday night at the Greensboro Coliseum.
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How can I watch Tennessee State vs. Duke?
Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 55 - 65 |
| 2nd 0:12 | Chase Jeter Defensive Rebound. | 55 - 65 |
| 2nd 0:12 | Samson Oyediran missed Free Throw. | 55 - 65 |
| 2nd 0:12 | Samson Oyediran made Free Throw. | 55 - 65 |
| 2nd 0:12 | Foul on Jayson Tatum. | 54 - 65 |
Statistics
 TNST |
 DUKE |
|
|---|---|---|
| 22-51 | FG | 19-51 |
| 43 | Field Goal % | 37 |
| 2-16 | 3PT | 8-24 |
| 13 | Three Point % | 33 |
| 9-15 | FT | 19-32 |
| 60 | Free Throw % | 59 |
| 29 | Rebounds | 41 |
| 4 | Offensive Rebounds | 14 |
| 25 | Defensive Rebounds | 27 |
| 7 | Assists | 12 |
| 4 | Steals | 7 |
| 1 | Blocks | 3 |
| 13 | Turnovers | 12 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
| 13 | Total Turnovers | 12 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Points Off Turnovers | 0 |
| 0 | Fast Break Points | 0 |
| 0 | Points in Paint | 0 |
| 25 | Fouls | 19 |
| 5 | Largest Lead | 20 |
Game Information
Location: Durham, NC
Capacity:
2025-26 Ohio Valley Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee State | 15-5 | - | 23-10 |
| Morehead State | 15-5 | - | 20-13 |
| Southeast Missouri State | 14-6 | 1 | 20-13 |
| UT Martin | 13-7 | 2 | 22-11 |
| SIU Edwardsville | 12-8 | 3 | 19-13 |
| Lindenwood | 11-9 | 4 | 18-15 |
| Little Rock | 9-11 | 6 | 12-20 |
| Tennessee Tech | 8-12 | 6 | 13-18 |
| Eastern Illinois | 8-12 | 7 | 13-20 |
| Southern Indiana | 4-16 | 11 | 7-23 |
| Western Illinois | 1-19 | 14 | 5-26 |
2025-26 Atlantic Coast Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke | 17-1 | - | 35-3 |
| Virginia | 15-3 | 2 | 30-6 |
| Miami | 13-5 | 4 | 26-9 |
| North Carolina | 12-6 | 5 | 24-9 |
| Clemson | 12-6 | 5 | 24-11 |
| Louisville | 11-7 | 6 | 24-11 |
| NC State | 10-8 | 7 | 20-14 |
| Florida State | 10-8 | 7 | 18-15 |
| California | 9-9 | 8 | 22-12 |
| Stanford | 9-9 | 8 | 20-13 |
| Virginia Tech | 8-10 | 9 | 19-13 |
| SMU | 8-10 | 9 | 20-14 |
| Wake Forest | 7-11 | 10 | 18-17 |
| Syracuse | 6-12 | 11 | 15-17 |
| Pittsburgh | 5-13 | 12 | 13-20 |
| Notre Dame | 4-14 | 13 | 13-18 |
| Boston College | 4-14 | 13 | 11-20 |
| Georgia Tech | 2-16 | 15 | 11-20 |