In a matchup pitting undefeated teams ranked in the top five of the country, the Ohio State Buckeyes raced to a 11-0 lead in the opening minutes and currently lead the Duke Blue Devils 47-28 at halftime at Value City Arena in Columbus in the most anticipated game of this season's Big Ten Vs. ACC Challenge.
The Buckeyes have built on that 11-0 lead, and the usual suspects are leading the charge for Ohio State: Sophomore preseason All-American forward Jared Sullinger has scored 13 points on 5-7 shooting and senior guard William Buford has notched 13 points on 5-9 shooting. Sophomore forward Deshaun Thomas has also come through with 13 points on 6-8 shooting.
In short, Ohio State has scored early, easily and often against Duke, shooting 60.6 % from the field en route to 47 points in a highly impressive first half overall.
Meanwhile, Duke's fearsome three point shooting -- they entered tonight shooting 45.9 % and are coming off making 11-25 in a win over Kansas to claim the Maui Invitational championship -- has been a non-factor thus far, as the Blue Devils have made just 1-7 from long range.
Freshman guard Austin Rivers has delivered for Duke however, showing off a wicked crossover and scoring 13 points, and forward Mason Plumlee has also chipped in with eight for the Blue Devils, but everyone else combined for Duke has scored just seven.