DURHAM – Duke took a step forward defensively and did just enough everywhere else to cruise back into the victory column.

The Blue Devils sailed past California 78-57 Wednesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, leading from start to finish in a blowout that never felt particularly close.

Cooper Flagg scored 27 points, Tyrese Proctor added 18 and Khaman Maluach had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds as Duke put Saturday’s defeat at Clemson – its first ACC shortcoming – in the rearview mirror.

The Blue Devils can take plenty of positives from this one.

The win was never in doubt — Duke (21-3, 13-1 ACC) raced to a 7-0 lead and was in front by as many as 26. The defense was better than Saturday, limiting Cal to 28% shooting from the field in the first half and 35% overall. Mason Gillis returned after missing two games with an illness to play 13 minutes.

But also …

Duke committed 10 turnovers and struggled on the glass at points. The Blue Devils shot 47%, marginally better than the Clemson game. The defense did lag in the second half, though long after the game was in hand.

Nevertheless, it was enough to get what the doctor ordered – a dominant win over an inferior opponent.

“We followed our game plan, impacted the ball and did what we do on defense,” Flagg said. “(Saturday) we didn’t have our same pop and energy. We gave them too much credit, sagging off some guys and not impacting the ball enough. We’re trying to have more energy, have more impact and force them into taking the things we want and not letting them get the shots we want.”

Added Sion James: “We have to be tougher. That was the biggest thing we learned.”

The Blue Devils held their opponent under 60 points for the 12th time this season. Jeremiah Wilkinson had 21 points and Rytis Petraitis added 11 for Cal (12-13, 5-9), but Andrej Stojakovic was 4 of 14 from the field with 10 points.

Interior defense, with Maluach at the forefront, played a big role in that. After allowing 40 points in the paint to Clemson, Duke held Cal to 20.

“Our frontline wasn’t very good overall Saturday,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “They’ve really been the backbone of our defense. They’ve been the ones that have carried us in a lot of respects without even necessarily scoring.

“I thought Khaman and Coop, coming out right away, was trying to challenge them to rebound, just to be more assertive. Those guys have such special character, they’re always going to respond.”

The first half wasn’t always pretty – Duke let Cal take four shots on one possession, struggling to get a rebound, and the teams combined for 17 turnovers and 10 fouls.

But what was exciting was the 3-pointer Maluach buried midway through the first half.

The 7-footer had a wide-open look as the Crazies egged him on to shoot, but passed to Flagg. A few seconds later, though, he got the ball back and pulled the trigger.

A swish, a roar from the crowd and a 25-13 Duke lead.

“It was just like every other shot I take,” said Maluach, who also hit a 3 in the Arizona win. “I always have confidence. As a shooter, you always expect every shot you take to go in.”

Duke used a 10-2 run early in the second half to grow its lead.

Later, Flagg supplied the most exciting moment of this blowout – a breakaway reverse dunk midway through the second half that left him smiling, extended Duke’s lead to 58-32 and had Cal calling for a timeout.

In the end, it was the get-right game Duke needed, but yet another learning opportunity.

“I’m still not pleased,” Scheyer said. “I still feel we can be better, bottom line. I thought they missed some open looks, they were in our paint way too easily. I thought the effort and the readiness was there, but the attention to detail wasn’t. You can’t foul three times a jump shooter. That’s not Duke basketball. It doesn’t come from lack of effort or anything like that. But it’s just that attention to detail, we have to have.

“It was a good step, but not where we need to be.”

TIP-INS: This was the teams’ first matchup as ACC opponents. … Next up is a home date Saturday with Stanford. … It’s the 16th time this year Duke has held an opponent under 40% shooting, but just the second time in the last five games. … Maluach had eight field goal attempts, the most this season. “His aggressiveness and the way he played tonight is what we need from him,” Scheyer said.