DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) — Plenty of Blue Devils fans packed the Lenovo Center in Raleigh for Friday’s win against Mount St. Mary’s, but Duke faithful was cheering loudly near the campus in Durham.
Only about 30 minutes away from the action, fans and students got their first taste of March Madness.
Jessica Welch, who headed over to Clouds Brewing in downtown Durham, said, “There’s a lot of hype around the games. People are really excited to cheer for them. All of Durham gets excited, so we’re always happy to have that support.”
Although they didn’t have tickets to see the game in person, dozens of Blue Devils fans visited bars and restaurants across the Bull City to see their favorite team win its first game of tournament.
“It’s exciting,” Duke fan Edward Araque said. “I love the fact that they’re the No. 1 seed. I love the fact everyone gets excited about it. All the schools come together and it’s one and done. That’s really exciting about college basketball.”
Duke student Alice Schaack said, “We’re medical students, so we’re two months away from graduation. It’s really nice to have it be so exciting in our final year.”
Said Duke student Lauren Steele, “I really like watching this team play specifically. I think it’s the deepest team we’ve had since we’ve been at Duke at least.”
The Blue Devils defeated the Mountaineers in a 93-49 blowout.
“Playing them is an opportunity to make a big statement in the first round, show the rest of the NCAA that we are the best team here and we’re super excited,” Duke student Rani Bleznak said.
Some won’t be watching the game on TV next time. Duke advances to play Baylor, who defeated Mississippi State 72-75 earlier Friday. The second round matchup will be Sunday at the Lenovo Center.
“I was just so confident in our team winning by a lot today, I already bought tickets for Sunday,” Emma Ostlund said. “I’ll be there against Baylor.”
Duke student Olivia Smith said, “This is our last March Madness altogether, which is really exciting. We’re excited to see Cooper Flagg. Our freshman year was Coach K’s last year, so we’re hoping we can win our senior year.”