Duke basketball's Tyrese Proctor, Jared McCain the closers in Blue Devils' win vs. Clemson

DURHAM — In each of its four losses this season, Duke basketball had a chance to close but couldn’t find a closer.

The 12th-ranked Blue Devils found two in Saturday’s 72-71 win against Clemson at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Freshman guard Jared McCain kept making plays on both ends in the final two minutes and Tyrese Proctor made the play to get Duke (15-4, 6-2 ACC) over the hump against the Tigers (13-6, 3-5).

“I’m just really proud of our guys,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “Their will, their competitive spirit.”

McCain and Proctor combined for 39 points to lead the Blue Devils, and their play in the closing minutes prevented Clemson from earning its first win at Cameron since 1995.

McCain had a game-high 21 points, including 11 points in the final 12 minutes, and three steals in the final three minutes. The Tigers didn’t make a shot in the final three minutes.

Proctor had 18 points, including the go-ahead free throws with 1 second left to get Duke to the finish line.

“We’ve had a chance to win every game we’ve played this year,” Scheyer said. “Some of those early losses, even the one last week (against Pitt) – even though it was different – you gotta get stops. No matter what you do on the offensive end, you’re not gonna win if you don’t get stops.”

Here’s a look at the roles McCain and Proctor played down the stretch in the victory.

Jon Scheyer, Tyrese Proctor praise Jared McCain’s ‘fight,’ ‘belief’

Down four points with two minutes left, things were looking bleak for Duke. That’s when McCain turned the tide with three steals and a layup in a minute.

“Jared just has this special belief about him. When things get tough, you just feel like Jared’s gonna make a play,” Scheyer said. “It doesn’t matter that he’s a freshman; it doesn’t matter that he’s never been in a situation like this before. He just has a belief his team’s just supposed to win.”

CONTROVERSIAL ENDING?: Duke basketball’s Jon Scheyer, Clemson’s Brad Brownell talk Tyrese Proctor foul

HOW DUKE WON: Tyrese Proctor’s free throws lift Duke basketball to win vs. Clemson

Proctor pointed to that same belief and McCain's “fight” to do whatever it takes when provided with an opportunity to make a game-changing play.

“Every game, he just gives us a boost of energy,” Proctor said of McCain.

For the third time this season, McCain had three steals in a game. He’s reached 20 or more points in two of the last three games.

Duke basketball's Tyrese Proctor embraces moment, makes a play

It took some time for Proctor to find his groove after his return from an ankle injury that caused him to miss three games. In the last two games, Proctor's found it, averaging 21 points on 53% shooting.

The sophomore had a career-high 24 points at Louisville, but logged his worst performance of the season at the free-throw line, missing three of his five freebies.

But when Duke called a timeout with 7.4 seconds left, the Blue Devils called Proctor's number and went to a play they rehearsed in preparation ahead of the game.

“We actually worked on it in shoot-around,” Proctor said. “Get it to me on the run and just make a play. … That’s what I did.”

In the timeout huddle, Scheyer told Proctor to “get downhill and make a play,” so the sophomore guard attacked. He drove into the paint and into his defender, creating contact that led to a foul call with 1 second left.

“I’ve got confidence in myself,” Proctor said. “Scheyer’s got full confidence in me. All my teammates do, so I don’t really have anything to be worried about or nervous about.”

At that point, the Blue Devils had missed 12 free throws against Clemson. Proctor made all four of his, including the go-ahead points.

“For Tyrese, that’s a tough moment to be in,” Scheyer said.

“It’s a moment you dream about being in. You get a chance to win the game, you’re down one with a second to go. But he was cool as could be. I just believed those were going in with everything that I had.”

McCain had a similar feeling.

“I knew once he got fouled, like LeBron (James) would say, I knew he would make those free throws,” McCain said with a smile. “I’m just happy he made ‘em.”

As for Proctor's take on his mindset at that moment, one word came to his mind in the locker room.

“Relief,” he said. “It was a battle all night.”

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Duke basketball's Tyrese Proctor, Jared McCain close vs. Clemson