No. 24 SMU visits No. 6 Duke following Boozer's 27-point game

Published Jan. 9, 2026 4:43 a.m. ET
Associated Press

SMU Mustangs (12-3, 1-1 ACC) at Duke Blue Devils (14-1, 3-0 ACC)

Durham, North Carolina; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: No. 6 Duke takes on No. 24 SMU after Cameron Boozer scored 27 points in Duke's 84-73 victory over the Louisville Cardinals.

The Blue Devils have gone 7-0 in home games. Duke is second in the ACC with 27.7 defensive rebounds per game led by Boozer averaging 6.5.

The Mustangs are 1-1 against ACC opponents. SMU has a 1-0 record in games decided by less than 4 points.

Duke averages 9.7 made 3-pointers per game, 1.2 more made shots than the 8.5 per game SMU gives up. SMU averages 7.9 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.3 fewer makes per game than Duke allows.

The matchup Saturday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Boozer is averaging 23.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals for the Blue Devils. Isaiah Evans is averaging 14.2 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 40.6% over the past 10 games.

Kevin Miller is scoring 20.6 points per game with 3.9 rebounds and 7.1 assists for the Mustangs. Jaron Pierre Jr. is averaging 17.5 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Blue Devils: 9-1, averaging 84.4 points, 36.8 rebounds, 16.4 assists, 8.6 steals and 4.1 blocks per game while shooting 49.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.9 points per game.

Mustangs: 7-3, averaging 89.1 points, 35.2 rebounds, 19.0 assists, 8.0 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 49.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 78.1 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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