Jon Scheyer challenged top recruit Cameron Boozer at half. The Duke freshman responded in a big way

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Duke coach Jon Scheyer offered a challenge to star recruit Cameron Boozer at halftime of the Blue Devils’ season opener Tuesday night against Texas, bluntly telling the 6-foot-9 freshman forward phenom that he was “playing soft.”

Boozer got the message — and then proceeded to take over the game.

After failing to score in the first half, Boozer rallied to finish with 15 points and 13 rebounds — 10 of those after halftime — as the sixth-ranked Blue Devils overcame a 33-32 halftime deficit to beat Texas 75-60 in the Dick Vitale Invitational at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte.

“I just tried to wash it off,” Boozer said of his disappointing first half, which included missing all seven shots from the field.

Texas coach Sean Miller walked away impressed, calling Boozer a “one-man wrecking crew.”

“I think he’s one of the best players in the country,” Miller said. “I’d have a hard time believing there’s a freshman that is any better. … His ability to rebound is amazing. He had 12 defensive rebounds tonight. That’s really difficult in a college game at 40 minutes to get 12 defensive rebounds.”

“And,” Miller added, “he might have had a subpar game for him.”

Boozer changed the momentum of the game in a number of ways.

He stepped up his physicality to get to the line 12 times in the second half, converting nine free throws. Along with his second half double-double, he also had three assists, two steals and a block.

One play in particular stood out — when Boozer got the ball in the low post, spun away from his defender and made a layup while drawing a foul for a three-point play, helping Duke build a 14-point lead with five minutes remaining.

It’s the type of game that have some believing Boozer, the son of former Duke great and NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer, is a can’t miss lottery pick in next year’s NBA draft.

“He’s just a competitor and he’s a winner, and the ability to flip that switch in game, I think that’s what a lot of guys struggle with,” Scheyer said. “That’s, that’s not an easy thing.”

Miller said he liked how his team bottled up Boozer in the first half.

But he said Duke’s ability to stretch the floor makes them tough to defend for the entire 40 minutes.

“The way they play, they put tremendous pressure on the defense,” Miller said. “I think what you’ll find is generally that second half against Duke is tough. Because it’s just you can do it for a while, but it’s like that running game in football and then that third and fourth quarter, it’s like, man, they just beat you down.” ___

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