UNCASVILLE, Conn. _ Duke knew it would have its work cut out for it Sunday.
Top-ranked team in the nation or not, the Blue Devils were banged up. For the first time this season, Mike Krzyzewski started a freshman. Frank Jackson got the nod after sophomore forward Chase Jeter hurt his ankle on a fall in Saturday's semifinal game.
It took a half for some separation, but Duke left Mohegan Sun Arena the Hall of Fame Tip-Off champions with a 75-65 win over No. 21 Rhode Island, its first loss of the year.
The Rams hung around in the first half, even after not scoring until 16:31 of a half that started off low-scoring.
The teams didn't break into double digits until 11:44 remained in the half, when junior guard Grayson Allen drove the baseline for his first make of the day. He finished with 10 points, joining Duke's 1,000-point club in the first half.
With a limited Jeter, who came in about halfway through the first for a few minutes (8 minutes all together), graduate student Amile Jefferson manned the bigs in a small lineup. He started off with four points and two rebounds in less than 2 minutes. He finished with 17 points and led the game with 15 rebounds.
In the second half, Jefferson had an answer for Rhode Island's Hassan Martin, who had seven blocks Sunday. Jefferson bent down with the ball and waited for the contact, drawing the foul on Martin and converting a three-point play. It gave Duke (4-1) a controlled 41-28 lead and kept its offensive momentum turning, which started with Luke Kennard after halftime.
The guard scored five quick points after the break, a layup and a 3 from the top of the key, forcing a timeout. Kennard maintained his steam throughout, scoring half of his game-best 24 points in the second half. He also distributed when he saw fit, dropping off a pass to Jackson in transition. Jackson finished for a 46-30 Duke lead with 14:11 left.
Kennard played until the 2:52 mark of the second with just one foul. He picked two about 3 seconds apart, then. Matt Jones (13 points), who'd been in second-half foul trouble the previous two games, collected his first at 2:15.
Rhode Island (4-1) played in flashes the second half that weren't enough to get closer than 10 points. No matter how many Jared Terrell (22 points) 3-pointers or Hassan Martin blocks.
Duke played its third game this week, including a 77-75, last-second loss to Kansas on Tuesday. The team arrived in Connecticut on Friday, already missing half of its freshman class with no time table on when they'll play.
