Duke fans had plenty of reasons to cheer on Saturday. They reserved their loudest applause for the Blue Devils’ most diminutive player.
Duke took on Illinois in a rare non-conference clash this late in the season as part of the SentinelOne Classic held at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, N.Y. Duke took control early with a 13-4 run that gave the Blue Devils a 17-point lead midway through the first half.
The Blue Devils’ lead ballooned further throughout the game. Once Duke built a 40-point cushion, head coach Jon Scheyer inserted fan-favorite senior Spencer Hubbard to soak up some garbage time minutes.
Hubbard took his one and only shot attempt with 50 seconds left in the game. The 5’8″ senior pulled up from the top of the key and a three-pointer to give Duke a 110-65 lead — their largest of the game.
The jolt of electricity from the crowd would have made anyone believe that Hubbard had just hit a game-winner to seal a national championship. In reality, Duke beat Illinois 110-67. The 43-point loss was the Fighting Illini’s worst in program history.
After playing as a walk-on in his first two years at Duke, Hubbard was awarded a full-ride scholarship in 2023. Hubbard entered Saturday’s game with just 10 total points in his 22 career appearances for the Blue Devils.
