Eric Atkins scored 19 points, Pat Connaughton had 16 and the Fighting Irish upset No. 7 Duke 79-77 on Saturday.
The victory comes in the wake of leading scorer Jerian Grant's dismissal from school two weeks ago for an academic violation and provides a much-needed confidence boost as the Irish begin play in their new league.
The Irish (10-4, 1-0) improved to 13-6 against top-10 teams at home under Mike Brey. It was the first loss in an ACC opener for the Blue Devils (11-3, 0-1) in seven seasons.