WASHINGTON, D.C. – Caleb Foster arrived at Capital One Arena on Friday on a scooter. He left the postgame news conference on a scooter. In between, he was the catalyst for Duke‘s comeback win over St. John‘s to advance to its third straight Elite Eight.
Foster, who suffered a fracture in his right foot 20 days ago and underwent surgery one day later, came off the bench to score 11 second-half points and lead the overall No. 1 seed Blue Devils to an 80-75 victory over 5-seed St. John’s.
It was a performance that left coach Jon Scheyer emotional.
“Still a little stunned with what happened, to be honest with you guys,” Scheyer said. “He had no business playing tonight. Ninety-nine percent of guys do not come back to play under the circumstances of what’s happened to him. It was incredible the way he willed us. There’s no analytics. There’s no stats that can measure how big this dude’s heart is for what he did.”
Foster suffered the injury in the second half of the regular-season finale against North Carolina and missed the past five games entering Friday. He practiced a “little bit” Wednesday, practiced again Thursday, but Friday was the first time he played 5-on-5 since the injury. Scheyer said he was hoping to get 8 to 10 minutes from Foster to give Cayden Boozer a break.
Duke ended up needing much more.
St. John’s started shooting the way it left off against Kansas last weekend. The Red Storm made nine first-half 3-pointers, 13 for the game, their third straight game making double-digit 3s — something they hadn’t done in more than two months before the NCAA tournament. Reserve big man Ruben Prey, who made 14 career 3s in 69 games entering Friday night, hit three first-half 3s.
The Red Storm turned up the defensive pressure early in the second half, forcing three turnovers in a four-possession span and converting each one into points. An Ian Jackson jump shot with 15:01 left gave St. John’s a 10-point lead.
Scheyer made two significant changes. One, he went to the same matchup zone that sparked Duke’s comeback against Siena in the first round. Second, Scheyer brought in Foster after he played seven scoreless minutes in the first half.
Both decisions brought immediate results.
The zone defense took St. John’s out of its offensive rhythm. After a first half featuring plenty of open 3-point attempts from the Red Storm, Duke contested on the perimeter more effectively.
“We didn’t run what we were supposed to run,” St. John’s forward Dillon Mitchell said. “We were messed up, not getting to our spots.”
What also contributed was Duke stopped committing turnovers. The Blue Devils’ final live-ball miscue came with 16:57 remaining, and they turned it over just one time the rest of the game. The Red Storm were no longer getting transition opportunities, forced to play almost exclusively in the half court.
Foster finished without a turnover.
“He completely surpassed my expectations of what I expected, what I was hoping for, and obviously you guys saw it, we needed every last shot, basket, poise,” Scheyer said. “He was also the guy — he’s our most experienced guy in these moments. So I thought his voice in the huddle, the look he had was completely determined to win, and I thought that really helped us, especially when we got down in the second half.”
Isaiah Evans was Duke’s most consistent source of offense, finishing with 25 points, including a step-back 3-pointer with 3:54 left to give Duke a 70-69 lead it wouldn’t relinquish. Cameron Boozer shook off a slow start to post 22 points and 10 rebounds.
But it was Foster who scored seven straight points during a 9-2 run after St. John’s took its 10-point lead, and it was Foster who scored two consecutive baskets in the final 2:15 to keep the Red Storm at an arm’s length.
“As soon as the doctor told me that it’s a chance, I just took it and ran with it,” Foster said on his rapid return to the court. “That’s where my mindset has been from here on out. I wanted to come out and provide anything possible, experience, whatever the team needed. I didn’t know what we needed or what to expect but just providing a boost out there any way I can.”
Foster, a 6-foot-5 junior, has had a solid campaign as Duke’s starting point guard. He’s averaging 8.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists, shooting better than 40% from 3-point range. He was thrust into a key role as a freshman, but took a step back last season, playing just 14 minutes per game and seeing his minutes dramatically decrease over the second half of the season.
His journey back to being a game-changing point guard on the NCAA tournament’s overall No. 1 seed is part of why Scheyer was so emotional after Friday’s game.
“His commitment to Duke, his commitment to me and this program has been unmatched,” Scheyer said. “And then for today, most guys wouldn’t come back, just that’s the reality. … This decision had to come from him, and I want to support him in that decision.
“And what he did, it was a surreal thing to coach. I really felt like he was going to will us to victory, and that’s what he did.”
