Jordan Scott Owned the Paint Against Duke

No. 5 Michigan State upset No. 2 Duke 79-73 on Tuesday night at the Champions Classic at the United Center in Chicago. The Spartans won it on the defensive end, and sophomore Jordan Scott had as much to do with that as anyone on the floor.

Michigan State blocked eight Duke shots, and Scott had six of them. Cam Ward, the Spartans big man who came off the bench to score 14 points, did not need much prompting to say what Scott does for this defense.

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“Jordan is the X factor on defense,” Ward said, per ESPN. “He does it all. He had six blocks tonight. He’s everywhere all the time, and it’s just a luxury to have him on our team, especially when he can be that guy for us.” Detroit Free Press beat reporter Chris Solari posted the line from the postgame room.

Nov 10, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Michigan State Spartans forward Jordan Scott (6) defends Duke Blue Devils guard Cayden Boozer (2) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

Tom Izzo Said Jordan Scott Changed the Game

Tom Izzo got to the same place from the other direction. Scott shot 2-for-7 from the floor and 1-for-4 from 3-point range, and his head coach still called it about as good a game as a player can have on that kind of shooting night.

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“Not impressive, and yet he probably changed the whole game himself with his defense, with his rebounding, with his effort-related stats,” Izzo said, per the Detroit Free Press.

Jordan Scott Is Michigan State’s Rim Protector

Scott is averaging 2.7 blocks and 1.7 steals through three games, and the Duke night carried most of it. He blocked two shots against Quinnipiac, none against Toledo, then six against the Blue Devils, where he also finished with nine rebounds, two steals and five points in 31 minutes.

Duke shot 33.3% from the floor for the game and was held to 25 points in the first half. Scott is the reason the Blue Devils could not get comfortable at the rim, and he did it…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/jordan-scott-owned-paint-against-155500399.html

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Publish date : 2026-11-11 15:55:00

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