Fansided

Michigan State Vs Duke Final Score: Blue Devils Cruise, Win 81-71

By Hayden Kane

Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports
Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Duke Blue Devils notched a big victory in the first week of college basketball action, defeating the Michigan State Spartans as part of the Champions Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. 

Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones had their first national test as the headliners of Duke’s star recruiting class on Tuesday night. It’s safe to say that they passed with flying colors as the Blue Devils cruised to an easy 81-71 victory over Tom Izzo and the Michigan State Spartans.

More from Mens Basketball

Okafor might have entered this game as the player best known in Duke’s leading recruiting class, and he had spurts where he looked to be every bit the offensive force that he has been touted as. In total he scored 17 points on a ridiculous 8-for-10 shooting night that included a six-point spurt right out of the gate. Fellow freshman Jones matched Okafor with 17 of his own.

Neither of those players was the leading scorer for Duke, however. That was returning player Quinn Cook, who scored 19 points and pitched in six assists as well. He went 3-for-4 shooting beyond the arc, further illustrating how well Duke shot the ball as a team in this game.

On the Michigan State side of things, there was certainly no shortage of offense. Brandon Dawson led the way with 18 points and nine rebounds as the Spartans shot 50 percent from the floor. The problem was, they could not stop Duke.

Each time Michigan State crept closer in this game, it felt like Duke had the answer with a spurt of their own. Okafor was everything advertised, and Duke was awfully impressive in the first of many national showcases this season.

Duke is now 3-0 on the season. Their next game comes Friday against the Temple Owls. Michigan State is now 1-1 and will look to get healthy against the mighty Loyola Ramblers this weekend.

More from FanSided