Jon Scheyer gives his take on Cam Boozer's debut performance at Duke amid shooting struggles

Cam Boozer scored all of his 15 points in the second half as No. 6 Duke defeated Texas 75-60 during the Blue Devils’ season opener on Tuesday. The freshman star helped Duke outscore the Longhorns 43-27 in the second half en-route to victory.

After the game, Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacted to Boozer’s collegiate debut. He showered the five-star recruit with praise, explaining how his presence goes beyond the stat sheet.

“I was proud of him,” Scheyer said postgame. “That’s not an easy first game. That’s not an easy situation to be in. He’s just a competitor, and he’s a winner. The ability to flip that switch during a game, I think that’s what a lot of guys have struggled with, that’s that’s not an easy thing.

“And his impact for us is more than just the scoring and the rebounding. He helped get us into the bonus and we hit a lot of free throws. It’s the defense — he’s switching everywhere on the floor. So for me, just his attitude, his maturity to handle that situation, I think that says a lot about who he is as a competitor.”

Boozer said after the game that Scheyer called him “soft” for going scoreless in the first half. However, he used his coaches criticism as motivation and turned a one-point lead for Texas at halftime into a 15-point victory in the second half.

He ultimately finished the game doing a little bit of everything. Boozer had 15 points, 13 rebounds, three steals, two assists and a block during the win. While he went 3-of-12 shooting from the floor, Boozer cashed in nine of his 12 attempts from the charity stripe.

Elsewhere on the court, sophomore guard Isaiah Evans scored a game-high 23 points having made 50% (4-8) oh his 3-point attempts during the contest. Sophomore big man Patrick Ngongba II rounded out the double-figure scoring effort with 10 points, four rebounds and an assist. Cam Boozer’s brother, Cayden Boozer, recorded two points, two assists and three rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench in his first college game.

Duke will take on Western Carolina in its next matchup on Saturday. However, many fans already have the Nov. 18 meeting against Kansas in the Champions Classic circled on the calendar. The Blue Devils have three games on their schedule to play before they can get there, however.