Duke holds off Kansas: No. 5 Blue Devils survive shorthanded No. 24 Jayhawks in 2025 Champions Classic

Duke led just 69-64 coming out of a timeout with 3:51 remaining and was faced with a challenging situation. The Blue Devils had just two seconds remaining on the shot clock and were inbounding the ball from underneath the basket. It was going to take a perfect bit of execution for the Blue Devils to get a clean look, and that's what they got. Isaiah Evans ran off a screen from Patrick Ngonba and found a sliver of daylight in the left corner. Cayden Boozer hit him with the inbounds pass, and Evans elevated to make a back-breaking 3-pointer over Kohl Rosario at the shot-clock buzzer. A miss would have given Kansas a chance to cut the deficit back to a single possession, but the make seemed to break the Jayhawks' will.

Much of the discourse around Duke early this season has centered around freshman phenom Cam Boozer, and understandably so. The five-star forward has inserted himself into the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. While Cam was great again Tuesday against Kansas, his twin brother also provided a significant lift. Cayden Boozer, who is a 6-foot-4 guard, scored all seven of his points in a span of less than three minutes in the second half just as Kansas was attempting to rally. He also finished with four rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes while providing a significant spark off the bench.

Patrick Ngonba continued a strong start to his sophomore season by finished with 13 points and seven rebounds on 4 of 4 shooting. He is reaping the benefits of playing alongside Cam Boozer, who is frequently commanding double teams. Ngongba is thriving as a lob threat and finisher at the rim. Ngongba even flashed his chops as a facilitator with this dime to Maliq Brown in the second half. He's now finished with at least two assists in each of Duke's first five games.

No. 5 Duke withstood a gritty effort from No. 24 Kansas in the Champions Classic on Tuesday night to escape with a 78-66 win inside Madison Square Garden. The final margin of victory obscured just how tense the action was for much of a close second half.

Kansas guard Melvin Council Jr. cut KU's deficit to 67-64 with a 3-pointer at the 4:59 mark. But the Jayhawks didn't score again until 41 seconds remained. As KU went cold down the stretch, Duke stars Cam Boozer and Isaiah Evans helped put the finishing touches on a significant early-season victory.

Boozer finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Blue Devils (5-0), while Evans added 16 points. A Boozer layup with 1:33 remaining extended Duke's lead to double-digits.

Kansas led 26-21 in the first half when star center Flory Bidunga exited after picking up his second foul at the 6:40 mark. Duke outscored the Jayhawks 20-7 over the remainder of the first half with Bidunga on the bench to take a 41-33 lead into the break.

Playing without star freshman guard Darryn Peterson for a third straight game, Kansas got 22 points from Tre White, 15 from Bidunga and 14 from Council. But the Jayhawks made just 4 of 21 attempts from beyond the arc, and that lack of perimeter firepower finally caught up to them in the end.

With the aforementioned foul trouble for Bryson Tiller and Flory Bidunga, the defensive game plan for containing Cam Boozer is tough to navigate. Bill Self could try and go with an offense/defense substitution pattern down the stretch, but that would likely entail putting in freshman Paul Mbiya, who hasn't played since logging four minutes in the first half. Plus, the Jayhawks can't afford to risk an offensive possession without one of those two on the floor.

With 5:21 remaining and Duke clinging to a 67-61 lead, the bigs on both sides are in foul trouble. Patrick Ngongba has four for Duke, while Bryson Tiller and Flory Bidunga each have four for Kansas. Kansas has been the more physical and aggressive team in this half, attacking the paint relentlessly on a night when the 3-point shot hasn't been falling. But that backfired a bit on Tiller when he was whistled for a charge while barreling toward the basket.

7:28 2H: Duke 62, Kansas 57

Kansas is feasting in the paint once again. Bryson Tiller just brought the Jayhawks within 62-57 with a lefty layup before the under 8 media timeout. Tiller and Flory Bidunga are an issue for Duke, but Bidunga just picked up his fourth foul. For Duke, Patrick Ngongba has also been on the bench with four fouls. Blue Devils star freshman Cam Boozer is struggling to get clean looks. He is just 4 of 12 from the floor.

9:45 2H: Duke 60, Kansas 53

It was getting dark early for Kansas as Duke extended its lead to 10 early in the second half. But the Jayhawks responded as Melvin Council Jr. has come alive in the second half. He's got 9 of his 12 after the break to keep KU within striking distance. On the other side, Cayden Boozer has seven points the second half and is keying the Blue Devils, who are working hard to keep Kansas at arm's length. The Jayhawks have cut it to five on a few occasions.

15:56 2H: Duke 51, Kansas 41

Dame Sarr was having a quiet night until he drilled a 3-pointer from the left corner off an Isaiah Evans pass. That make gave Duke its largest lead of the night entering the u16 media timeout. Kansas is just 2 of 11 from 3-point range and didn't get a single 3-pointer up in the opening minutes of the second half. The Jayhawks have returned to attacking the basket, but it's going to tough to keep up unless they buckle down defensively.

Kansas get something from guards Melvin Council Jr. and Jayden Dawson in the second half if it wants to have a chance. The two combined to go 2 of 11 from the floor in the first half. The Jayhawks also need to reconsider double-teaming Cam Boozer. He already has four assists to go with seven points and four rebounds. The Blue Devils have the weapons around Boozer to make you pay for sending a double.

HALF: Duke 41, Kansas 33

Duke started out playing some shaky defense, but it closed the first half with a bang as Kansas dealt with foul trouble. Isaiah Evans drilled a 3-pointer from the left wing with four seconds left in the half to put Duke up 41-33. The Jayhawks were outscored 20-7 after star big man Flory Bidunga exited with two fouls at the 6:40 mark. Bill Self might regret leaving him on the bench for so long. With Bryson Tiller also out with two fouls, it forced Self to rely on freshman Paul Mbiya for some big minutes. Tre White led Kansas with 15 points in the first half. Evans led Duke with 11.

2:41 1H: Duke 35, Kansas 30

Soon after scoring his 12th point of the first half, Kansas wing Tre White picked up his second foul. Bill Self sent him to the bench alongside Flory Bidunga, leaving the Jayhawks with a strange group of perimeter players around freshman big Paul Mbiya. Duke capitalized.

3:48 1H: Kansas 30, Duke 30

Kansas was mired in a significant offensive drought before Tre White took Maliq Brown off the dribble for an and-1 bucket heading into the under-4 media timeout. With Darryn Peterson out, White is carrying a significant load for the Jayhawks. He is up to 12 points on 4 of 7 shooting. Flory Bidunga has 8 for KU, but he's been on the bench the past three minutes after picking up his second foul.

Kansas is bringing double teams at Cam Boozer when he catches the ball. The only problem with that is he's an excellent passer. He just found Patrick Ngongba wide open under the basket, resulting in Flory Bidunga picking up his second foul and Ngongba making a trip to the free-throw line.

8:23 1H: Kansas 24, Duke 18

Duke got Cam Boozer back onto the floor after a brief breather, but the Blue Devils remain out of sorts offensively. It's been nearly three minutes since they've scored as the looks aren't coming naturally within the flow of the offense. The latest blunder, a Cam Boozer turnover, led to yet another transition dunk for Flory Bidunga via a lob from Jayden Dawson.

11:14 1H: Kansas 20, Duke 17

Duke sophomore Isaiah Evans is going to be a huge piece for this team, which needs a complimentary scorer to emerge. He's off to a strong start against Kansas. After hitting an early 3-pointer, he is headed to the free-throw line to try and finish 3-point play. The Blue Devils weathered the early storm from Kansas and have done a much better job of keeping the Jayhawks out of the paint over the past few minutes.

14:34 1H: Kansas 14, Duke 10

Playing without star guard Darryn Peterson, Kansas has been relentless in the early-going about playing in transition and attacking the basket. The Jayhawks attempted just one 3-pointer over the first 5+ minutes. Early, it was Flory Bidunga, who has six points. But Kansas has been sharing the rock and spreading the production around. Duke coach Jon Scheyer is not going to be happy with his team's transition defense.

The betting line likely reflects Peterson's absence, which makes sense. Outside of a slow start against Texas in the first game of the season, Duke has looked sharp. If Peterson were suiting up, I expect this line (and game) would be a lot closer. However, I think Duke covers and walks away from New York with another key win on its résumé. I don't think Kansas has enough scoring without Peterson to win this game outright. Pick: Duke -10.5

In each of the previous 14 seasons, four of college basketball's best programs have met in a high-profile doubleheader called the Champions Classic. On Tuesday night, they'll do it again, for a 15th time, this time inside New York's Madison Square Garden.

Here are the matchups:

* 6:30 p.m. ET: Kentucky vs. Michigan State

* 9:00 p.m. ET: Duke vs. Kansas

All four teams are in Tuesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, where Purdue remains No. 1 for the 10th consecutive day.

College basketball rankings: Champions Classic headlines as Top 25 And 1 teams battle in Madison Square Garden

Gary Parrish

Kansas coach Bill Self said after last weekend's win over Princeton that Darryn Peterson will be out for "the immediate future." While he didn't specify a timeline, Peterson won't play against Duke. The Jayhawks have struggled to generate offense without him, and his absence will force Tre White and others to shoulder more of the scoring load. Replacing a player with Peterson's production and pedigree is no small task.

Even after losing reigning CBS Sports National Player of the Year Cooper Flagg to the NBA, Duke has reloaded with another blue-chip star. Cameron Boozer enters this matchup averaging 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists. He can roll out of bed and post a double-double, even on an off night. He's coming off his best performance yet — 35 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and three steals in a blowout win over Indiana State. Tuesday's game against Kansas will be his toughest test so far.

Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, will miss Tuesday night's showdown with No. 5 Duke in the Champions Classic as he continues to deal with a hamstring injury, CBS Sports' Matt Norlander reports. Kansas coach Bill Self told reporters Saturday after the Jayhawks' win over Princeton that Peterson would be out for the "immediate future." 

The Duke game will be the third consecutive absence for Peterson, who last played in the loss to North Carolina on Nov. 7. Field of 68 first reported Peterson would be out vs. the Blue Devils. 

Darryn Peterson injury: Kansas star, top NBA Draft prospect out vs. Duke in Champions Classic

Cameron Salerno