The only problem for the Cavaliers (15-7, 5-4 ACC) was that even after that glorious burst of basketball, they were still down by 19 points.

Duke wiped out Virginia so thoroughly in the first half that it was never seriously threatened after halftime, even when the up-and-down Cavs finally exploded for piles of points.

Third-ranked Duke (18-2, 9-0) beat Virginia in Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday afternoon 106-86, scoring at least 100 points against the Cavs for the fifth straight time. Duke has won 31 straight ACC regular-season games, 11 straight against Virginia, 46 straight at home and 18 in a row this season.

Ho hum.

The widely held theory before the game was that Duke would be exhausted after its emotional overtime win on Thursday in Chapel Hill and would be ripe for an upset from the rested Cavs, who had taken them into overtime in Charlottesville. There were even rampant rumors that Duke’s freshman point guard Jason Williams had broken his hand in the second half of the clash with the Tar Heels.

But the fatigue theory was disproved in roughly two minutes. That’s how long it took for Duke to build an 8-0 lead.

“We just had to come to work,” said Duke freshman Carlos Boozer, who matched his career-high with 25 points and had nine boards. “Tired or not, you just play. That’s why we’re 9-0 in this league.”

The broken hand chatter was dispelled in even less time, as Williams (who did have a wrap around a finger — he was inadvertently kicked by a Tar Heel) raced around and made some pretty incredible passes.

The lead built, and then it grew, and then it escalated, and then it mushroomed, and then it swelled — until onlookers simply ran out of verbs.

Suddenly it was 18-6. Then it was 33-14, and then it was 48-21. By halftime, Duke led by 32.

The Blue Devils could do no wrong. They shot 68 percent in the first half, made just five turnovers in a racehorse game, pounded Virginia 24-15 on the boards and played relentless defense.

It was a performance that rendered normally loquacious Virginia coach Pete Gillen virtually speechless.

“Our guys got nervous. They just got shook up by what was happening,” Gillen said. “We blew point-blank layups and then we got even more nervous.”

Even when Duke fouled up,things worked out.

On one Cavalier possession, Duke’s Mike Dunleavy and Nate James collided head on, with both going down in a heap. But even with a 5-on-3 advantage, Virginia couldn’t score.

And on the last play of the half, Williams fired a wild pass that was headed out of bounds. Somehow, though, it caromed off a Cavalier and right back to a wide-open Williams, who gleefully laid the ball in the basket at the buzzer for a 65-33 lead. It was more points than even Duke’s mighty squad of 1998-99 ever scored in a half.

“I was shocked at how hot we were,” said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. “Virginia is an outstanding team, but we had amazing focus. I was very proud of how our guys played.”

Chris Carrawell and Boozer had 16 points each — by halftime.

The lead reached an embarrassing 37 points early in the second half, before Duke finally lost its mental edge and hit the wall, prompting a face-saving, if not game-saving, surge by the Cavs.

“Mental fatigue set in,” said Krzyzewski. “And instead of looking amazingly focused, we started looking amazingly tired.”

With Virginia guard Donald Hand scoring 18 of his 27 points in a flurry, the Cavs chopped Duke’s monstrous lead virtually in half in a matter of minutes. Cameron Crazies looked concerned. Krzyzewski looked concerned. The Blue Devil players did not look concerned.

Williams, who had one of his best games with 13 points, 13 assists and only two turnovers, started getting the ball inside once more to Boozer. Then Carrawell, who also scored 25, dropped in a couple of shots to clam things down.

With 8:05 remaining and the Cavs within 90-72 and beginning to dream of a miracle, Hand collided with Shane Battier. It was going to be the fourth foul on one or the other. The foul was assessed to Hand. He left the game for several minutes, and Duke took advantage to cruise home.

After the smoke settled, though, it was obvious that Duke had very little left in its tank.

“You could see it in their faces,” said Krzyzewski. “Carrawell’s got that satisfied look in his eyes, but he’s exhausted.”

Exhausted but confident.

“We played two great games — today and against Carolina,” he said. “We have a team that is tough — physically, emotionally and mentally.”

“Maryland’s next,” chimed in the once quiet Boozer, whose assertiveness is growing with each passing game. “We’re a confident team. It’s there turn on Wednesday night.”

n