SALT LAKE CITY, March 22 (UPI) -- Dahntay Jones scored 16 of his career-high 28 points in the first 9 1/2 minutes Saturday night as the third-seeded Duke Blue Devils had no trouble with No. 14 Central Michigan en route to an 86-60 rout in the second round of the NCAA Tournament's West Region.
Duke (26-6) will face Kansas on Thursday in Anaheim. The Blue Devils earned their sixth straight trip to the regional semifinals since a second-round loss to Providence in 1997.
Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski talked at length on Friday about how impressed he was with Central Michigan's turnaround from a nine-win season to 25 victories and the Mid-American Conference championship. He also said the Chippewas' Chris Kaman was the best center his team had seen all year.
Jones showed little respect for Central Michigan (25-7) with a jumper and a pair of three-pointers in the opening four minutes. He threw down a one-handed dunk with just under 11 minutes to go in the first half for a 24-17 advantage.
Freshman J.J. Redick scored eight points in an 11-1 surge that gave Duke a 40-25 lead with 3:36 left. The Blue Devils rolled into halftime with a 47-33 cushion.
The beating continued in the second half as Duke sprinted out with another 11-1 tear. Chris Duhon dunked off a fast break to cap it for a 58-34 advantage with 16:50 to play.
