JACKSONVILLE, Fla.- No. 1 seeded Duke was able to avoid the upset bug as they captured a convincing 73-44 victory Friday night over No. 16 seed Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
UAPB shot 32 percent from the field as Tavaris Washington led the Golden Lions in scoring with nine points. Duke came out clicking on all cylinders early as they raced off to a double digit advantage at 15-5 at the 14:34 mark of the first half.
"I think our players were a little nervous to start the game," said Ivory of his team who had won 18 of 22 going into the game. "Sometimes you play not to lose and we were trying to not make mistakes."
The Golden Lions trailed Duke 39-20 at halftime after struggling to find any type of offensive rythym throughout the first stanza.
The second half was played closer as Duke only outscored UAPB by ten points at 34-24. UAPB would get no closer than 19 points (41-22) in the second half. Arkansas-Pine Bluff only shot seven free throws during the game while committing 16 turnovers.
Despite the loss 2010 was an amazing year for UAPB's basketball program. Arkansas-Pine Bluff was able to capture its first NCAA field of 64 appearance after beating Winthrop 61-44 in the tournament opener on Tuesday.
"I think this is going to help our program," Ivory said. "We accomplished some things that we've never done. We've got to keep working and get better."
The Golden Lions end their season two games over .500 at 18-16 while going 14-4 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play.
