By BRYAN STRICKLAND

bstrickland@heraldsun.com; 419-6671

DURHAM -- The scoreboard displayed good news for Duke on Saturday, but Blue Devils coach David Cutcliffe got what he considered even better news when he took a look at his team's second-half showing on film.

"After looking at the tape, I was even more pleased with the second half. We improved as a team," Cutcliffe said Sunday, one day after Duke's 49-14 victory over N.C. Central. "I wasn't worried about the scoreboard; that handles itself. But I told them at halftime, 'I have not seen us outhit, outrun, outkick, outfight anyone for 30 minutes.'

"That second half, everybody did their job. We had big hits, we had nice hits. Everybody chased the ball. We ran. We threw and caught it well. We kicked it better."

It looked like Cutcliffe might feel the same way about the first 30 minutes, but after Duke scored touchdowns on its first three possessions, NCCU struck back with a touchdown drive and an interception return for a touchdown to make it 21-14.

It typified the off-and-on execution that Cutcliffe had seen from his team throughout the nonconference schedule. But for the entire second half -- save for perhaps a touchdown that was called back by a holding penalty -- the Blue Devils were on from kickoff to final whistle.

"The second half we were playing very close to how we envision ourselves playing," said Duke linebacker Vincent Rey, who returned a fumbled punt for a touchdown during Duke's second-half onslaught. "That's something we can build on."

NOTES: Cutcliffe also said that Saturday's historic first meeting with NCCU also met his expectations in terms of atmosphere, and that went for the opposition as well. "I was really impressed with the North Carolina Central following," Cutcliffe said. "Their students may have outnumbered our students at the game. Their band and the enthusiasm of their crowd, it was a great tribute to the North Carolina Central administration and Mose Rison and his staff. That was extremely impressive." ... Duke's 49 points was the most for the program since a 51-26 victory over Wake Forest on Oct. 22, 1994.