Isaiah Evans’ go-ahead 3 lifts Duke basketball ahead of Florida in ACC/SEC challenge

Isaiah Evans’ go-ahead 3 lifts Duke basketball ahead of Florida in ACC/SEC challengeStory byThe Fayetteville ObserverAnna Snyder, Fayetteville ObserverWed, December 3, 2025 at 4:57 AM UTC·3 min read

It was exactly as Duke basketball coach Jon Scheyer drew it up.

Trailing 66-64 after a Boogie Fland 3-pointer put Florida ahead with 35 seconds left, Scheyer called a timeout as the Gators took their first lead since the 12-minute mark in the first half.

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The Blue Devils’ ensuing play found Cameron Boozer near top of the key with Isaiah Evans coming around to set the screen. Boozer's defender, Rueben Chinyelu, and Evans', Urban Klavzar, went with Boozer, likely assuming he was going to take the shot for the win. Instead, Boozer found an open Evans, who nailed the go-ahead 3-pointer to put Duke ahead 67-66.

"That's exactly (what was drawn up)," Scheyer said following No. 4 Duke's 67-66 win over the No. 14 Gators. "You practice end of game situations. We practiced it a lot last year. And for me, this offseason, you're trying to figure out what's the best way of how to get your team in a winning position. And those guys are the ones that have to execute it. ... Isaiah to step up, says a lot about him."

It marked Evans' first trey of the night after an 0-for-7 start from deep. He finished the night with 13 points and a career-high five blocks.

"Coach told me to keep shooting," Evans said following the game. "... I've been trying to find other ways to impact the game other than shooting for night's like this, I had to prepare for games when the defense is blocking in on my shooting and I'm not knocking any of them down. It just means a lot to me that I can contribute in other ways."

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Florida still had 20 seconds remaining on its ensuing possession, but Caleb Foster came up with a steal after Fland dribbled it off his foot and was fouled by Florida big man Alex Condon. The foul put Duke in the bonus, but Foster was unable to convert his free throw as Chinyelu came down with the rebound and coach Todd Golden called a timeout with just under 2 seconds remaining.

Duke Blue Devils guard Caleb Foster (1) reacts after a turnover against the Florida Gators during the second half at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, NC on Tuesday, December 2, 2025. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]

The Florida inbound that followed was deflected by Maliq Brown, as the Blue Devils held on to take down the No. 14 Gators, 67-66, in the ACC/SEC challenge on Tuesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

"I thought our guys just battled, I'm really proud of them," Scheyer said. "It's a great win. I think I can help them way more. I think there's things for us we're still figuring out with our group, but end of the day they're competitors and you got to find a way to make key stops in those moments."

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Duke built a 36-24 halftime lead by holding Florida to 29% shooting in the first half, but the Gators responded with a strong second half, outscoring Duke 42-31 the rest of the way. Florida dominated the glass, 44-33, behind its physical frontcourt, the toughest Duke has faced this season, but Duke still outscored the Gators in the paint, 34-32.

That was largely due to Cameron Boozer's 29 points, a game-high, on 10-of-21 shooting. Patrick Ngongba II finished with 11 points and logged five blocks to tie Evans.

Duke finished the game 44.6% from the field and Florida 37.3%.

"Great collective team win," Boozer said. "We showed a lot of toughness. They went on a run, we responded, we stayed calm, cool and collected. Proud of my guys. 9-0."

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Duke now turns its attention to its road trip at East Lansing, Michigan to take on coach Tom Izzo and the Spartans on Saturday, Dec. 6.

Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected] or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Duke basketball survives Florida with Isaiah Evans’ go-ahead 3-pointer

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