In a battle of undefeated top-tier national title contenders, it was Paolo Banchero and the Duke Blue Devils who came out on top in their matchup Friday night against Chet Holmgren and the Gonzaga Bulldogs, as they scored an 84-81 victory.

The game was played in a neutral location in Las Vegas, but the atmosphere was nonetheless electric, as expected, and the win is still categorized as a quadrant 1 for Duke. Banchero shined the most among all players from both sides, finishing with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field to go with five rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes.

The No. 4 Blue Devils were the underdogs going into the game against the No. 1 Gonzaga, but Banchero and his teammates had full belief in themselves heading into the contest.

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Per the Associated Press (via ESPN):

“We felt like if we played our best and did what we do best, we were going to have a real shot for the win,” Banchero said.

As for Gonzaga, the loss to the Blue Devils certainly stings, but it was not a debilitating setback for the Zags. Chances are, that's the lost loss the Bulldogs will suffer until the end of the regular season and beyond, as they have regularly dominated conference play and the WCC Tournament.