DURHAM, N.C. – The Wofford men's basketball team hung with second-ranked Duke to trail by just seven at the half, but the Blue Devils shot 71 percent in the second half to run away, 84-55, Wednesday afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
 
Senior Lee Skinner became the 44th member of Wofford's 1,000-point club in the loss. He needed five heading into the contest and finished with six, reaching the milestone on a jump hook in the lane with 8:16 to play.
 
Wofford (9-4) cut Duke's lead to single digits, 52-43, with 15:14 remaining. It closed a 7-2 spurt for the Terriers after Duke (12-0) came out of the locker rooms with the first seven points. After the Blue Devils opened the lead to as many as 18, sophomore Eric Garcia capped a run of four straight Wofford points to make it a 14-point affair with only 6:10 left.
 
Duke outscored the Terriers 17-2 the rest of the way and 13-0 through the final 4:52 after sophomore Jaylen Allen scored the final Wofford points of the afternoon.
 
"We got better in here today," said Wofford head coach Mike Young, facing Duke for the first time in his career. "We left some things on the table and I didn't like the outcome, but we got better.
 
"Now, we move on to the real part of the season. Our guys know they've got the target on their backs and every team we play is going to give us their best shot. I know we'll be ready for it."
 
The Terriers led Duke for nearly a minute in the first half. A 3-pointer by senior Karl Cochran put Wofford in front 15-14 halfway through the period, before Duke scored nine straight to retake the lead by seven and go into the break ahead 41-34.
 
It was the first meeting for Wofford and Duke since January 6, 1936, marking nearly 79 years between contests.
 
Cochran led Wofford's scoring effort with 13 points. The Southern Conference leader in defensive rebounds finished with five boards along with two assists.
 
Playing with a fractured jaw that is wired shut, Garcia ran the point with three assists and no turnovers. He added eight in the scoring column, shooting 3-of-4 from the floor and playing 27 minutes.
 
"He's as tough as they come," Young added on his sophomore point guard. "Just an unbelievable display of effort and toughness."
 
For Duke, it was the Preseason All-America pick Jahlil Okafor who scored a game-high 24 points. The freshman shot 11-of-13 and collected a game-high eight rebounds, coming off a career-high 27 points Monday night against Toledo.
 
Justise Winslow (16), Quinn Cook (15) and Amile Jefferson (10) joined Okafor in double figures. Winslow added seven rebounds.
 
Duke ended the contest shooting 55.8 percent (29-52) to Wofford's mark of 38.2 percent (21-55). The Terriers held the home team to 43 percent in the first half, but a 70.8 percent (17-24) second half did it in.
 
The undersized Terriers were impressive on the glass, grabbing 29 boards to finish the game just five behind Duke. Ten came on the offensive glass as Wofford reached double digits for the fifth time this season, outscoring Duke 10-5 in second chance points.
 
The Wofford men's basketball team begins its Southern Conference slate with the New Year. The defending champs begin their quest for another league title on Saturday at Samford. Tip is scheduled for 3 p.m. Eastern (2 p.m. local) at the Pete Hanna Center in Birmingham, Alabama.
 
Postgame Notes:
- Wofford finishes the non-conference schedule 9-4, recording its best such record of the Division I era.
- Senior Lee Skinner became the 44th Terrier to reach 1,000 career points with a basket at the 8:16 mark of the second half.
- Duke improved to 6-0 in the all-time series, which began in 1913 but had not been contested since 1936.
- Attendance at Cameron Indoor Stadium was announced as 9,314.