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    Marvin Bagley III, Duke Upset by Boston College Behind Ky Bowman's 30 Points

    Joseph Zucker@@JosephZuckerFeatured ColumnistDecember 9, 2017

    Duke's Gary Trent Jr (2) keeps the ball away form Boston College's Ky Bowman (0) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Boston, Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
    Michael Dwyer/Associated Press

    The Boston College Eagles handed the top-ranked Duke Blue Devils their first loss of the 2017-18 season after winning 89-84 on Saturday at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.

    ESPN Stats & Info shared an interesting tidbit about the result:

    ESPN Stats & Info @ESPNStatsInfo

    With the win over No. 1 Duke, Boston College is now 2-0 against AP No. 1 teams in the last 5 seasons and 0-27 against other ranked teams

    Boston College guard Ky Bowman led all scorers with 30 points and added 10 rebounds and nine assists. The sophomore helped the Eagles shoot 50.8 percent from the field and 57.7 percent from beyond the arc. Jerome Robinson and Jordan Chatman chipped in with 24 and 22 points, respectively, for the home team as well.

    Boston College needed big performances from Bowman, Robinson and Chatman, as just seven of its players saw the floor. Johncarlos Reyes scored the Eagles' only two bench points.

    In terms of numbers, Duke freshman Marvin Bagley III had a solid game (15 points, 12 rebounds), but DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony thought Bagley was a big liability on the defensive end:

    Jonathan Givony @DraftExpress

    Down goes #1 Duke. Boston College's guards Ky Bowman and Jerome Robinson shredded Marvin Bagley and Wendell Carter in the pick and roll all game long. Duke's defense definitely a major concern.

    Grayson Allen also had one of the worst shooting nights of his college career. The Blue Devils senior was 5-of-20 from the field and 1-of-9 from the perimeter, and he finished with 14 points.

    Marvin Bagley III, Duke Upset by Boston College Behind Ky Bowman's 30 Points
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    RealGM's Keith Smith took issue with Duke's shot distribution:

    Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA

    Only 11 FGAs for Bagley and 8 for Carter. Allen, Trent and Duvall combined for 45 FGAs. That isn't going to get it done for Duke at any point. Have to get those big guys more touches. BC wasn't doing anything special on defense against the bigs either.

    While Saturday's upset was obviously a surprise, this kind of result was bound to arrive sooner or later for Duke. Bagley, Gary Trent Jr., Trevon Duval and Wendell Carter Jr. are immensely talented, but they're all freshmen as well. A team that relies on so many first-year players is going to experience a hiccup or two before the 2018 NCAA tournament.

    Boston College, meanwhile, may be seeing the fruits of its labor from a 2016-17 season in which it won nine games. The Eagles' top four scorers from last year were sophomores or younger.

    Although A.J. Turner transferred to Northwestern, Bowman, Robinson and Chatman are using the experience they gained a year ago to potentially get Boston College into the NCAA tourney discussion.

    The Eagles' true quality will be revealed when they return to conference play Dec. 30 against the No. 15 Virginia Cavaliers, but defeating Duke is a great way for Boston College to kick off its ACC schedule.