WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Interstat) — In a game ultimately decided at the free-throw line, Juke Harris scored 25 points and Wake Forest overcame a halftime deficit to edge Stanford 68-63 in an Atlantic Coast Conference men’s basketball game Saturday at Joel Memorial Coliseum.

The Demon Deacons, who shot just 18 of 43 from the field and 4 of 17 from three-point range, found their salvation at the charity stripe, converting 28 of 32 attempts. Stanford, by contrast, made just 9 of 14 free throws. That 19-point disparity proved decisive in a contest where the teams were otherwise closely matched, with each committing 10 turnovers and the Cardinal holding slight edges in rebounds and assists.

Harris, a 6-foot-7 guard from Salisbury, North Carolina, was the engine for Wake Forest. He played 40 minutes, adding seven rebounds, and was relentless in attacking the basket, drawing fouls and capitalizing. He went 11 for 12 from the free-throw line, including six crucial makes in the final 25 seconds to seal the victory after Stanford had closed to within a single possession.

The most important sequence of the game unfolded in the final minute. After Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie drove for a layup to cut the Wake Forest lead to 63-61 with 48 seconds remaining, Harris answered immediately with a driving layup of his own to push the margin back to four. Following a Stanford turnover, Harris was fouled and sank both free throws with 25 seconds left for a 66-61 advantage. Okorie scored again to make it 66-63 with 10 seconds on the clock, but Harris was fouled again on the inbound and calmly sank two more free throws to effectively end the game.

Stanford, the visiting team, controlled the first half behind the hot shooting of Okorie. The 6-foot-2 guard from Nashua, New Hampshire, scored 15 of his game-high 26 points before halftime, helping the Cardinal build a 39-30 lead at the break. The Cardinal shot efficiently early, connecting on 10 three-pointers in the game, but their offense stagnated in the second half, managing only 24 points on 8-of-29 shooting from the field.

Wake Forest chipped away at the deficit with a more aggressive offensive approach after halftime, outscoring Stanford 38-24 in the final period. While their outside shooting remained cold, they consistently worked the ball inside and drew contact. Beyond Harris, Mekhi Mason added 10 points and Tre’Von Spillers contributed nine points and six rebounds for the Demon Deacons.

Stanford’s Aidan Cammann, a 6-foot-10 forward from Andover, Massachusetts, recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Benny Gealer added 11 points for the Cardinal, but the team’s offensive rating of 102.2 points per 100 possessions paled in comparison to Wake Forest’s 105.9, largely due to the free-throw differential.

The game was a defensive struggle for long stretches, with both teams combining for just 11 total assists. Stanford had a slight 22-20 edge in points in the paint and outscored Wake Forest 11-0 in fastbreak points, but could not overcome its struggles at the line and from the field in the second half.

With the win, Wake Forest improves to 13-12 overall. The Demon Deacons, who were installed as a 4-point pregame favorite, next host Clemson on Wednesday. Stanford falls to 16-10 and will look to rebound on the road at California next Saturday. The total score of 131 fell well under the over/under line of 150.5, reflecting the game’s grinding, physical nature.