Nolan Smith scored 12 of his 14 points during the decisive first-half run that led #5 Duke to its third win in four days, 78-58 over Montana on Sunday.
Gerald Henderson also had 14 points, Kyle Singler finished with 13 and Jon Scheyer scored 12 for the Blue Devils (6-0), who played without co-captain Greg Paulus -- a starter-turned-backup this season who was held out with a bruised right forearm.
But with Smith making his sixth straight start at the point, Duke went back to its familiar formula of hot shooting and high-pressure defense to fuel the game-breaking 30-9 first-half run that carried the team to its NCAA-best 63rd straight non-conf. victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
"I just want him to keep developing," Coach K said. "He's got a tough position, and it wears on you mentally, not just physically, when you're responsible for running the team. ... Last year, he didn't have to do this as the primary guy, and all of a sudden, this is the fourth game in a week.
Jordan Hasquet scored 15 points to lead the Grizzlies (2-2), who averaged 78.5 points in winning their last two before Duke pressured them into a season-high 20 turnovers and turned them into 31 points.
"We let their intensity speed us up," Montana coach Wayne Tinkle said. "That was a big key going into the game, not to settle for mediocre (looks) because they trick you, they trick you into thinking you've got something, and you put it on the floor and they fly at you. We settled for mediocre and we also dribbled into some trouble, and they had layups and dunks and that certainly took some of our spirit from us."
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