All five Duke starters scored in double figures, with the four freshmen and senior guard Grayson Allen steamrolling through the Rhode Island defense.

Gary Trent Jr. poured in 18 points, Wendell Carter Jr. tallied 13 points, Trevon Duval had 11 points and Allen added 10.

Second-seeded Duke (28-7) meets Sunday's Michigan State-Syracuse winner Friday night in the Midwest Regional at Omaha, Neb. Duke has defeated both of those teams once this season.

Eleven of Duke's last 12 victories have come by double-digit margins, and the Blue Devils are now headed to the Sweet 16 for the 26th time.

Rhode Island (26-8), which features four senior starters, lost four of its last seven games. E.C. Matthews led the Rams with 20 points, while Jeff Dowtin and Jared Terrell each scored 10.

The Rams eliminated high-scoring freshman Trae Young and Oklahoma two days earlier, but they didn't have the means to match up with Duke's perimeter touch or lane presence.

Duke took a 45-28 lead to the halftime break, with Duval scoring the team's final five points. His baskets on the last two possessions marked Duke's only field goals in the final five minutes.

Still, the Blue Devils' point total matched the most allowed in a first half by the Rams this season.

The Blue Devils got flowing after the opening five minutes, racking up a 33-16 lead.

Matthews scored 10 of Rhode Island's first 14 points.

Duke built a 19-11 edge on Allen's four-point play with 10:19 left in the half. It was a 26-14 after Trent's 3-pointer and Bagley's post move for a basket.

Rhode Island was knocked out of the tournament in the second round for the second year in a row.

--Field Level Media