Check back here after every Duke men’s basketball game this season for the player of the game and more. duke narrowly lost to Kansas in Vegas Showdown Tuesday, and the Blue Zone is here to break down the game:

One player: Tyrese Proctor

The heavyweight showdown between the Bluebloods was pitched as a contest between an experienced, top-ranked Kansas group and a No. 11 Duke team led by freshmen, but junior Tyrese Proctor undoubtedly proved to be the Blue Devils’ most effective and experienced player of the season Loss. He led Duke with 15 points, with all seven of his attempts coming from behind the arc, matching his career-high five three-pointers. The highlight of the season for Proctor came at the end of the first half when he hit a buzzer-beating shot over Kansas’ Dajuan Harris Jr., cutting the Jayhawks’ lead to two players entering the locker room. Proctor’s impact wasn’t just limited to scoring, as the Sydney native added six rebounds, two assists and two steals. While the Blue Devils took a close hit on the neutral side, head coach Jon Scheyer should definitely be pleased with the development of his veteran guard, who has gone 20-for-40 from deep in six games this season.

One word: mistake

For Blue Devil fans, the final stretch of Tuesday’s contest looked eerily similar to Duke’s loss to then-No. 19 Kentucky two weeks earlier. With 48 seconds left and the Blue Devils trailing, freshman Cooper Flagg drove to the post and attempted a spin move. However, Kansas forward Flory Bidunga was there to steal the ball out of Flagg’s hands. After a defensive stop and a timeout, fellow freshman Kon Knueppel reached the post and attempted to kick the ball to an open man, but the Jayhawks stuffed the pass and guard Rylan Griffen scooped it up. With three seconds left, the Blue Devils were forced into a foul and two free throws made made Duke’s comeback difficult.

A statistic: eight missed shots

However, the Blue Devils still had a chance. Knueppel got a good, deep look off the ball screen from center Khaman Maluach, but his desperate push faded as time expired. The miss was indicative of Knueppel’s entire evening, as the generally excellent shooter went 0-for-8 from 3-point range, his worst performance of the season. However, instead of shooting efficiently, the Milwaukee native showed excellent facilitation skills. The freshman finished the game with eight assists, the most of any Duke player this season. Even better, six of his dimes came in the second half, including two on back-to-back triples to start the quarter. Knueppel will only need a single three-pointer in the Blue Devils’ next game against Seattle to improve on his subpar shooting performance against Kansas, but his playmaking ability will be important for Duke going forward.