Duke builds big lead over Tennessee in Cameron Indoor exhibition

What happened

Duke pulled far ahead of Tennessee in a preseason exhibition at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina, on Tuesday night. According to Yahoo Sports' live updates, the Blue Devils led 54-30 at halftime and 86-48 with 9:38 left in the second half, the latest score available at the time of writing. ^[1]

Duke led 9-2, 24-6 and 36-12 at successive first-half media timeouts, and 70-38 at the 13:10 mark of the second half, the same updates show. A final score and full box score had not been found in the sources reviewed, so the result is treated here as unconfirmed. ^[1]

Who stood out

The live tracker's player tables, which appear to reflect halftime totals, showed Duke's Dame Sarr and Patrick Ngongba with 11 points each, Deron Rippey Jr. with 10 and John Blackwell with 8. For Tennessee, Juke Harris and Troy Henderson each had 7 and Dai Dai Ames had 6. Full-game stat lines have not been confirmed. ^[1]

Tennessee guard Terrence Hill Jr. left with a left ankle injury and was listed as unlikely to return, according to the same live updates. The extent of the injury has not been reported. ^[1]

Why the game drew attention

Duke was ranked No. 2 and Tennessee No. 8 in the AP and USA TODAY Coaches preseason polls, according to Duke Athletics. The two programs are the only ones to reach the Elite Eight in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments, the school said. Tip-off was at 7 p.m. ET on ACC Network. ^[2]

Duke won last year's exhibition meeting 83-76 at Tennessee, Tennessee Athletics noted. The regular-season series is tied 8-8 across 16 games, and the most recent official meeting was a 65-52 Tennessee win in the 2023 NCAA Tournament. ^[4]

Rosters and background

Duke opened its preseason with a 102-62 scrimmage win over Belmont on Oct. 8. Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans were selected in the 2026 NBA Draft, and Duke's preseason All-ACC first-team picks are Blackwell and Ngongba, per Duke Athletics. ^[2]

Tennessee rebuilt through the transfer portal, adding nine transfers and four freshmen since March, 247Sports reported. The Volunteers lost their first exhibition 86-70 to Xavier on Oct. 15. Coach Rick Barnes said afterward he wanted to "guard somebody," according to the same report. ^[3]

What comes next

Exhibition games do not count in the standings. Duke's regular season follows, and the schedule includes several top-20 opponents, Duke Athletics said. This report will need a confirmed final score and box score once official recaps are published. ^[2]