2004 Wake Forest at Duke

Re-watch #12 - The Duke Basketball Project

Dec 28, 2023

Note: Video timestamps are in parenthesis and link directly to that point of the game. You can view the full game and additional resources at the bottom. Feel free to read from start to finish, skip around to different sections, toggle between the article and video links, or watch the entire game. Thanks for reading, Go Duke!

#3 Wake Forest (11-1) at #2 Duke (13-1)
ACC Regular Season
Cameron Indoor Stadium - Durham, NC
January 17, 2004

Why this game

After re-watching UVA at Duke from 2019, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with another top-five ACC clash in Cameron, and the 2003-2004 squad is easily one of my favorite Duke teams of all-time. I can vividly remember watching this highly anticipated contest, with sensational freshman (and Winston-Salem native) Chris Paul matching up with Duke for the first time. I was a sophomore in college and, as was often my game day routine for nearly a decade (~2003-2011), I grabbed some Bojangles and arrived back at my apartment shortly before the tip. Perhaps a sad commentary on my time in college, but it didn’t get better than fried chicken and Duke Basketball on a Saturday afternoon.

Background

Wake Forest started the season 11-0, including a triple-overtime win at #4 UNC, before losing in Austin to #18 Texas a few days earlier. After dropping the final of the Great Alaska Shootout to Purdue, the Blue Devils had reeled off 10 wins in a row, pushing their streak in Cameron to 35 consecutive victories. This match-up was the 223rd meeting between Duke and Wake Forest, the most in ACC history, but it was the first time the schools had met as top-five teams. The Blue Devils had won 14 in a row in the series before a 94-80 double-overtime loss in Winston-Salem the previous season (Dad and I were at that game).

The Teams

Wake Forest, coached by the late Skip Prosser, started Chris Paul, Justin Gray, Eric Williams, Trent Srickland, and Jamaal Levy. Taron Downey, Vytas Danelius, Kyle Visser, and Jeremy Ingram saw action off the bench. Duke started Chris Duhon, Daniel Ewing, J.J. Redick, Shelden Williams, and Luol Deng. Coach K brought in Sean Dockery and Shavlik Randolph to complete his rotation. Shelden Williams would display his superior defensive prowess throughout the game, demonstrating why he would be named back-to-back NABC National Defensive Player of the Year as an upperclassman. Since its inception for the 1986-1987 season, six different Blue Devils (including Williams) have won NDPOY - can you name them? See trivia answer below.

Early Action

Before getting into the game, I want to shout out Brent Musburger and Dick Vitale in the booth - it was awesome to have that duo on the broadcast. Eric Williams scored a bucket inside on Wake’s first possession. Shelden Williams did the same a few possessions later, before J.J. Redick missed his first free throw attempt of the game, ending a streak of 54 consecutive makes from the line - thanks to Dickie V and the announcer’s jinx. A three from Daniel Ewing, a Shelden Williams block, and a screen-the-screener backdoor lob from Dockery to Duhon (14:00) would help Duke to a 14-4 lead at the 13:48 mark. With the early deficit, Wake went to a 1-2-2 three-quarter court press, dropping back into a 2-3 zone. Duke turned it over on its first opportunity against the zone, but Luol Deng flashed to the perimeter and ripped a three from the left wing the next time down the floor (15:46). After J.J. Redick got free off a baseline screen for his first basket, a three from the left corner (20:14), Dick Vitale called Redick the best shooter he had seen in college since Chris Mullin. J.J. would provide no evidence to the contrary. On the next possession, Redick curled to the left wing off floppy action, squaring his body as he buried another one from long range (22:19). The Blue Devils, now ahead by 12 points, then forced a shot clock violation and a Wake Forest timeout.

1st Half 8:47 - Duke 23 Wake Forest 11

Closing the Half

Of course, the Demon Deacons would respond. To start their push, Jamaal Levy got a bucket in close and hit a long jumper from just inside the arc. Chris Duhon finished a driving layup and Duke almost forced another shot clock violation, but Chris Paul found Justin Gray at the top of the key. Gray banged home a deep three as the 35-second buzzer sounded (28:01). Paul then used a ball screen to hit a three of his own, his first points of the game. After Vytas Danelius sunk a short jumper, Wake Forest had now made five straight shots, and Duke’s lead was down to four at 27-23. One of my favorite things over the years is a fired up Coach K during a timeout. We saw that here, and whatever he said worked, as the Blue Devils closed strong over the remaining 4:39 of the half. Shelden Williams made two free throws, a jump hook in the paint, and found Luol Deng underneath for a layup. The Landlord then rejected Eric Williams' turnaround at the rim - Duhon pushed the ball ahead, slipped at the foul line, and flipped a pass to Daniel Ewing for a three-pointer and another Wake timeout (38:48). In all, it was a 14-7 stretch for Duke to close, expanding their lead back to double figures heading into the locker room.

Halftime - Duke 41 Wake Forest 30

Out of the Break

Daniel Ewing opened up the scoring, showing off the lost art of a shot fake, one-dribble jumper (52:51) and giving Duke its largest lead of the game. Wake would answer with a three from Justin Gray off baseline out of bounds, force a couple of turnovers, and get buckets inside from Eric Williams and Chris Paul. When Justin Gray knocked in another three, this time in transition with an assist from CP3 (59:08), it was now a 12-4 run to open the half and the Demon Deacons only trailed by three.

2nd Half 15:53 - Duke 45 Wake Forest 42

Winning Time

Crunch time isn’t always reserved for the end of the game. With Wake in the midst of their second 12-4 run of the afternoon, the next several minutes would go a long way in determining how close the contest would be coming down the stretch. After the stop action, Justin Gray and Jamaal Levy would connect on an alley-oop (1:01:07), Taron Downey would bury a corner three, and Chris Paul would hit a difficult shot driving through the lane - but it would be no match for Duke’s offensive output. The Blue Devils’ next seven possessions out of the timeout would go like this: Daniel Ewing made three - assist Luol Deng (1:00:04); Shelden Williams offensive rebound, made two; J.J. Redick made three - assist Ewing; Redick made three (followed by his signature head bob) - assist Duhon; Deng made three - assist Duhon; Redick made three (1:10:03); Sean Dockery steal, Redick layup - assist Dockery. With control of the game up for grabs, Duke scored 18 points in just under five minutes (18-7 run). J.J’s first three in the sequence started with Luol Deng grabbing a rebound in traffic and hitting it ahead to Ewing, who drove baseline and found Redick fading to the opposite corner (1:02:11). The Duke run closed with Sean Dockery picking Chris Paul’s pocket out top, and scooping a pass to Redick (1:11:12). As Wake took a timeout, Coach K welcomed Dockery back to the huddle with the same competitive fire he demonstrated in the first half, only this time he was pleased with the effort.

2nd Half 10:55 - Duke 63 Wake Forest 49

After Taron Downey made a couple of free throws, Coach Prosser elected to show a different defensive look, utilizing a half-court trap on Duke’s first pass across the timeline. Duke demonstrated the two extremes of how to deal with a man-to-man trap. On the first look, Vytas Danelius would get a steal and an uncontested dunk as Paul and Downey smothered Duhon on the sideline. Danelius’ dunk cut the lead back to 10, and Duhon found himself in the exact same trap again. This time, he would find Daniel Ewing flashing to the top of the key for an equally uncontested three (1:20:13). That brief 10-point margin was as close as Wake would get for the remainder of the game. As the broadcast approached the next media timeout, Dickie V mentioned “wait til they bring in Shaun Livingston next year at the point.” Of course, Livingston never arrived in Durham, electing instead to enter the 2004 NBA Draft directly out of high school. The NBA would end eligibility for high schoolers the following year. I always pulled for Livingston as a pro, especially through his comeback from a horrific knee injury, but not getting to watch him play in Cameron is on the short list of things I wish I could have seen as a Duke fan (stay tuned for that article).

2nd Half 7:01 - Duke 68 Wake Forest 55

Out of the media break, Shelden Williams would show why he earned his nickname, rejecting Jamaal Levy at the rim, altering two more shots in close, and securing the defensive rebound as he was fouled. The Landlord indeed (1:22:28). Williams’ defensive effort was contagious all afternoon. Duke blocked 12 shots and recorded 5 steals, while allowing Wake to shoot just 35% from the field. With the clock approaching five minutes, Coach Prosser had no choice but to extend his defense again, this time picking up full-court. The Blue Devils executed their press offense to near perfection, patiently welcoming the double-team before reversing the ball - Deng then found Duhon flashing middle, which created a 3-on-2 that ended with an easy pass to Shelden Williams for a dunk (1:28:10).

2nd Half 3:58 - Duke 76 Wake Forest 62

The only question left to answer would be the final margin. Shortly after Chris Paul fouled out, earning a “see ya” from the Crazies, Duke’s lead would reach 18 points at 81-63. As the game wound down, the broadcast showed a despondent Paul on the bench. I can remember some fans and media giving CP3 a hard time after the game for being so upset, but I loved his honest emotion. It was a look into the competitiveness that would help make Paul an 11-time All-NBA player throughout his career. Although I was glad he was on the losing side in this game, I have a ton of respect for guys like Chris who simply hate to lose. While the outcome wasn’t in doubt late, this game is still one to be remembered. It featured an offensive clinic from Duke when the game tightened, one of the great Duke stat lines from Shelden Williams (see below), a shooting exhibition from J.J., and four future NBA lottery picks (Deng, Paul, S. Williams, and Redick).

Final Score - Duke 84 Wake Forest 72

Postgame

Coach K lauded the atmosphere in Cameron, while envying his players, noting “I’m glad I’m the coach here, but I’d love to have played with that feeling.” The win was Duke’s 36th in a row in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils would push their home winning streak to 41 games (tied for 3rd best in school history), before losing to Georgia Tech on March 3rd. Duke’s longest home winning streaks are 46 games (1/13/97-2/5/00) and 45 games (2/22/09-1/19/12).

The Stats

J.J. Redick led all scorers with 23 points on 7 of 11 shooting, and Shelden Williams controlled the paint en route to a near triple-double with 16 points, 14 rebounds, 8 blocks, and 2 steals. Senior Chris Duhon dished out a career-high 14 assists, while Daniel Ewing and Luol Deng added 20 and 15 points respectively. Justin Gray led the way for Wake with 18 points, while Taron Downey added 14. Jamaal Levy posted 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Chris Paul had 7 points and 7 assists for the Deacs.

Big Picture

Wake Forest would win the rematch with Duke later that season in Winston-Salem, 90-84, before pushing undefeated #5 St. Joseph’s to the limit in the Sweet Sixteen, eventually losing 84-80. The Demon Deacons would return their top seven players and spend the entire 2004-2005 season ranked no lower than #7 in the AP poll. Duke would go on to win the ACC regular season crown, before dropping the ACC Tournament final to Maryland in overtime (Duke’s only ACC Tournament loss from 1999-2006). The top-seeded Blue Devils would move through the Atlanta Regional, winning a classic to advance to Coach K’s 10th Final Four. I’d be remiss not to mention Skip Prosser and his unexpected passing on July 26, 2007. I’m particularly fond of one of Coach Prosser’s often repeated phrases, “never delay gratitude.” It’s a mantra I’ve heard Jay Bilas often reference since, and one that I appreciate more as time goes by - don’t wait to show appreciation or tell someone thank you, because tomorrow is never guaranteed.

Trivia Answer

Shelden Williams (‘04-’05, ‘05-’06); Shane Battier (‘98-’99, ‘99-’00*, ‘00-’01); Steve Wojciechowski (‘97-’98); Grant Hill (‘92-’93); Billy King (‘87-’88); Tommy Amaker (‘86-’87)

*Battier shared the ‘99-’00 Award with Kenyon Martin of Cincinnati. No other school has more than two winners.

Full Game