DURHAM, N.C. – Two games in roughly 24 hours is not an easy task for any college basketball team. But when you add in that the fact that the second of the two contests is against the fourth-ranked team in the country, it is a formidable task at best. 

Still, the Fairifeld University men's basketball team made a solid effort against the nationally-ranked Duke Blue Devils but the second half proved to be too much. After trailing by only 14 points at the half, Duke outscored Fairfield by a 65-29 margin in the second half to pull away with a 109-59 win.

                Amadou Sidibe got things started with a hook off glass that put the first points of the game on the board. Duke scored the next seven points to take a 7-2 lead just three minutes into the contest. Mike  Kirkland stopped the run for Fairfield, but the Blue Devils came right back with a 14-2 run that pushed the Fairfield deficit to double figures at 21-6.

                The lead would reach 15 points when Grayson Allen hit a shot that brought the score to 25-10 with 10 minutes remaining. The Stags would start chipping away at the lead slowly, mainly at the hands of Marcus Gilbert. The junior would score 10 points over the six minutes that sparked a 16-8 spurt which the Stags back to within seven points at 33-26. The home team would close out the half by scoring 14 of the final 21 points of the half to head into halftime in front 44-30.

                Duke built its lead with a quick start to the second half, scoring 11 of the first 15 points of the half to push its advantage to 55-34 with 15:51 on the clock. Jerome Segura netted a pair of free throws to stop the Blue Devil's momentum for a moment, but the home team came right back with eight more points wrapped around a layup from K.J. Rose that brought the score to 64-38 with 14:09 remaining.

                The Blue Devils kept pressing which allowed the team to pull away, leading by as many as 35 points with 11 minutes remaining. The Stags changed up their lineup which garnered minutes for Tyler Nelson, Kevin Degnan, and Demarcus Threatt. Threatt scored his first points as a Stag on a pair of free throws with 10:40 on the clock, while Degnan added his first basket at the 9:36 mark.

                Four of Duke's starters reached double figures with Justise Winslow leading the way with 18 points. Quinn Cook and Jahlil Okafor each added 17 points for the Blue Devils.

                Fairfield returns to the court next weekend when it hosts the bracket of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Webster Bank Arena. The Stags will welcome Sam Houston State, South Dakota, and Wofford for three doubleheaders from November 21-23.