Zion puts on a show in return to SC

COLUMBIA — The beginning of the end of Friday’s first-round matchup in the NCAA East Regional was stunning, and sudden.

Duke’s Zion Williamson was the main reason why.

Playing his first collegiate game in his home state an hour and a half down the interstate from where he starred at Spartanburg Day School during his preps career, Williamson electrified the Colonial Life Arena in the first seven minutes of the second half, scoring 13 of his 25 points as the Blue Devils turned a 31-27 halftime advantage over North Dakota State into a rout, leading 47-30 on their way to an 85-62 victory.

“My teammates told me to be myself," Williamson said. "In that situation it was more just being in the right place at the right time.”

Williamson couldn’t have started much hotter. He won the tip for the Blue Devils, started the scoring with a quick bucket inside, and brought the crowd to its feet early with an emphatic blocked shot that sailed over Duke’s bench and well into the stands beyond. But his first-half impact was limited. He made a layup off a lob 14:34 into the game, then another basket a minute later. His two-handed dunk over a defender electrified the arena at the nine-minute mark, and he scored once more with just under six minutes to play. His 10 first-half points tied for the team lead with R.J. Barrett.

But Williamson’s second-chance points were limited as Duke was at times content to work the perimeter and settle for the 3-ball. Duke attempted nine 3-pointers before the break, making just two.

The opening moments of the second half were a different story.

Williamson started a 9-0 run with a nifty move to the basket, scoring and drawing a foul. He missed the free throw, but got his own rebound and dunked the miss. A defensive rebound led to Cameron Reddish’s 3-pointer, and Williamson picked up a steal, gathering it in and going behind his back before laying it up, and Duke stretched its lead to 40-27 with the second half just more than two minutes old.

Williamson wasn’t done, with another layup, a 3-pointer, and a dunk all coming before the 14-minute mark as Duke increased the lead to 20 at 52-32.

Williamson finished with 25 points, three rebounds, a block and a steal, playing just 30 minutes in the win.

Williamson said his return to South Carolina on such a big stage was a thrill.

"I remember watching March Madness in high school and middle school, the intense games," he said. "Last night in my hotel room watching I was like ‘wow, we’re here.’ We had to put that excitement aside and play our game."