By Aaron Beard
Associated Press
DURHAM ó Mike Krzyzewski had his Duke players come to Cameron Indoor Stadium the day before their Atlantic Coast Conference opener to look at the countless banners hanging in the rafters.
The message?
ěWe tried to impress on our guys that itís their turn to try to do something in the ACC,î the Hall of Fame coach said.
Nolan Smith and the top-ranked Blue Devils took their first step Sunday night, with the senior scoring a season-high 28 points in the 74-63 win over Miami in the league opener for both teams.
Reserve guard Andre Dawkins added 16 points for the Blue Devils (13-0, 1-0), who have won 23 straight games dating to last seasonís run to the ACC and NCAA tournament titles. Kyle Singler added 14 points on a night when the Blue Devils didnít shoot all that well but still maintained a comfortable lead for much of the game.
It was a good start as the Blue Devils aim for a 12th ACC regular-season crown under Krzyzewski. Smith had a run of 13 straight points in the first half that gave Duke its double-digit lead, and the Hurricanes (11-4, 0-1) played the reigning champions basically even the rest of the way.
ěYou donít win one of those (banners) without showing up every day in our conference,î Krzyzewski said. ěItís just different. You donít play for your total record. You play for your ACC record. Thatís the way weíve approached it, especially since the mid ë90s. And we get better as a result of doing that.î
The Blue Devils led by 13 points at halftime and Miami twice got as close as nine, the last time at 56-47 on a layup by Durand Scott with about 61/2 minutes to play. But the Blue Devils answered with a 7-0 run capped by a jumper and a long 3-pointer from Dawkins that made it 63-47 with 4:33 left.
Reggie Johnson tied his career high with 22 points for Miami, despite battling foul trouble much of the game.
The Hurricanes missed 14 of 17 3-point attempts and shot 37 percent overall. That included plenty of shots in the paint, particularly while Johnson sat on the bench and Smith went on his run.
ěItís kind of demoralizing when you have those bunnies around the hoop and you donít make them,î Miami coach Frank Haith said. ěWe missed a lot of those in the first half. We had some open looks there at the end ó guys who normally make shots … and we just didnít knock them down.î
Smith went 9 of 15 from the field, closing his night with his fourth 3.