Duke's loss to Texas was a testament to the havoc that injuries have
wreaked on practice for the past few weeks. Having observed a couple of
practices against men, the team clearly struggled in getting the ball
inside against a big, quick team that knew what they were doing. The
most disappointing thing about the game was that Duke ultimately did not
learn from their mistakes in the first half. They adjusted to UT's
defense by putting on some defensive pressure of their own and lobbing the
ball over Texas' zone. When the Longhorns responded by rotating over
players to cut off the pass, the Devils tried to force the ball inside
with ill-advised passes instead of patiently working the ball around and
using screens. Once Duke got a second-half lead, they stopped playing
with the same sense of urgency that put them ahead in the first place.
The fact that Duke shot themselves in the foot by missing so many free
throws didn't help matters any, but it was ultimately a lack of execution
in the halfcourt that doomed the Devils. The good news for Duke is that
their flaws came down to execution rather than a flaw that can't be
corrected (like a lack of size or strength) and it came against a superb
team that is favored to return to the Final Four.
Texas had a superb game plan. Coach Jody Conradt knew that their top
priority was to stop Duke's penetration. With Beard, Harding and Currie,
that was a potent trio that could knife right through a defense. Texas
played a sagging defense that encouraged them to shoot from 15' and
beyond, and neither Beard nor Currie could get it done from that range.
At the same time, Texas put a blanket on shooters like Jess Foley and
Vicki Krapohl, making sure to jump both of them. That left the post
open, where Texas was at a size disadvantage, and Duke hurt them there.
Offensively, Texas wanted to run, get some shots for Heather Schreiber &
Jamie Carey, and pound it into Stacy Stephens & Tiffany Jackson.
Duke looked sloppiest in the early moments of the game, when Texas ran
out to a 7-0 lead thanks to a few turnovers and bad shots. Harding scored
on a drive to stop the bleeding, and then Duke brought in Brittany Hunter
off the bench. She immediately scored twice on post-ups as Duke went over
the zone and forced Texas to send players forward enough to give Hunter
the opening she needed. A Tillis steal on an inbounds play brought Duke
to within 9-8 with five minutes gone by. Four quick Texas points gave
them a little room, but a Beard free throw and a Currie tip-in of a Beard
free throw miss brought Duke to within 2. Once again, Texas scored 4 in a
row but couldn't shake Duke for long, as Mistie Bass scored on a post-up.
Another Tillis steal made it 20-16. Duke was staying in the game thanks
to their defense and rebounding. Unfortunately, Hunter picked up two
quick fouls and was unavailable for much of the second half, a factor that
really hurt Duke at both ends.
Duke continued to stick around, but Texas would never quite let them
climb back in it. Beard had three straight assists--to Foley in the
corner for a long two, to Bass in the post and to Tillis on a cut--and the
Devils only trailed 25-22 despite all of their mistakes. A 5-0 Texas run
gave them a cushion, but Duke's offensive rebounding prevented them from
being blown out, as both Tillis and Currie scored on stickbacks. With
Beard, Hunter and Foley all in foul trouble, the Devils struggled late in
the half as Texas went on a 7-0 run to take a 39-27 lead with under five
minutes to go. Beard finally hit a basket, nailing a 10' shot on the
baseline. Hunter came back in late in the half and scored on a stickback
and a gorgeous turnaround jumper in the lane, while Harding scored on
another drive. With about 30 seconds left, Vicki Krapohl hit a couple of
free throws, the first of which rattled around for awhile before dropping.
The Devils were down 46-39 at the half, but it could have been much worse.
Beard was 1-6 from the floor, Currie was 2-6, while Harding & Tillis
combined for 8 turnovers. Still, Texas was unable to put them away as
Duke was playing hard.
The Devils carried that attitude into the second half and blitzed the
Longhorns with full court pressure. Beard opened the proceedings with a
16' jumper, which loosened her up a bit. She then threw a perfect lob
pass to Tillis, who finished it cleanly. Beard then missed 2 free throws,
but Tillis was there to get the rebound and was fouled, making both.
Beard tied the game on a pass from Tillis, and Iciss gave Duke its first
lead with a 15' jumper off a steal. Texas responded after Duke's 8-1 run,
but Currie was fouled driving to the basket and hit both. Texas regained
the lead and even ran it up to 57-52 with about four minutes gone by.
Currie brought Duke closer with a drive, and then Hunter started having
her way down low, scoring on a high-low pass from Tillis and a feed from
Foley. That put Duke up at 58-57.
A 7-0 Duke run after a Texas hoop gave them control of the game at 65-59
with about seven minutes left. The highlight came when Hunter blocked a
shot, Currie saved it and tipped it to Harding, who then found Hunter in
the post. Everything else came on hard-fought foul shots. Duke had a
real chance to put Texas away during this period, but they frittered away
chance after chance. This came after Duke played some great defense, too.
Missed free throws, turnovers, ill-advised jumpers and too much one-on-one
play let Texas finally got the score they needed to pull within 65-63 with
six minutes left. An amazing Hunter drive rocked the Longhorns a bit,
but a banked-in three by Jamie Carey pulled Texas to within 67-66 and
fired up her team. It didn't help that a potential three point play by
Tillis was ruled a travel on the other end. Texas took back the lead at
68-67, but Foley cut through the defense to give Duke their final lead at
69-68. A 7-0 Texas run put them in control, and though a Beard rebound
made it 75-71 with 1:22 to go, Texas made their free throws down the
stretch and Duke couldn't get any open looks. Only 6 late points by
Currie brought the final margin under 10.
It's important to remember that outside of UConn, Duke is unlikely to
play a team as good as Texas all season. This is a tough squad with
shooters, ballhandlers and powerful posts. Duke got out-toughed and
out-smarted down the stretch, and must learn from their mistakes, because
there are plenty of teams on their schedule that can beat them. At the
same time, this is not a time for blame or self-doubt, because it's only
one game and there were a number of positives to be found, even in defeat.
As long as Duke learns from the loss, plays better as a team, and gets
healthy again, they're still in excellent shape.
** Negatives:
1. Valuing the ball. Lots of lazy passes into the post,
lots of mishandled dribbles. The stat of the game was this: Texas had 28
points off turnovers and Duke had 16.
2. Foul shooting. For a team that usually shoots in the 70's, 58% for the
game was truly shocking. In general, the team did not play with the kind
of focus necessary to win.
3. Transition defense. Texas burned them 8-2 in transition, an area where
Duke dominates most teams. This is certainly a Longhorn strength, but
Duke did a poor job in getting back. This especially hurt because Duke
was generally so effective on defense.
** Positives:
1. Rebounding. Duke had a 44-37 edge and it really should have been even
bigger. Tillis and Beard were relentless on the offensive boards, Currie
used her speed and strength to grab 8 rebounds, and Hunter had 5 and could
have had more. Still, Duke tipped too many loose balls instead of just
grabbing them, and were outhustled on others. Despite that, it was nice
to see Duke pushing Texas around inside; the days of undersized forwards
having to play in the post at Duke are over.
2. Halfcourt defense. Other than Schreiber getting too many open looks,
Duke forced Texas to take tough shots, and forced 19 turnovers of their
own (with 13 steals).
3. Post play. When Duke got the ball inside, they were devastating.
Tillis, Bass and Hunter combined to go 17-27 from the floor, thanks to
strong post-ups and good passes.
Player-by-Player:
** Bass: Mistie scored on two post-ups in the first half, but Texas did a
nice job of keeping the ball out of her hands. Duke had a difficult time
getting her the ball over Tiffany Jackson and Stacy Stephens, and so she
was pretty much neutralized. Duke went to the taller Hunter instead.
Mistie was also not as active on the boards as was needed.
** Tillis: The game was filled with all sorts of classic Iciss moments,
good and bad. The best thing to take from the game was that Tillis was
aggressive the entire game and wasn't afraid to mix it up inside. Her
rebounding has become really aggressive, leading everyone with 12. Much
of her scoring came in the post, not taking a single three. Her height
and quickness made her a pest when Texas was trying to inbound the ball,
and Iciss got a couple of her 4 steals simply by using her long wingspan.
In the first half, she scored on 2 steals, a cut, a stickback and a
post-up. In the second half, she scored on a lob finish and a 15' jumper
after a steal, and also converted from the line. She also hit Beard on a
cut and Hunter in a high-low. The bad news was that she had 8 turnovers
(and it could have been called 9), either on passes slipping through her
hands or lazy passes into the post. She certainly wasn't the only player
making this kind of mistake, but it seemed to happen over and over. The
other problem was that she didn't score in the last eleven minutes of the
game, something that really hurt Duke. All in all, a game to build on.
** Currie: This was Monique's first "real" game in over 19 months. As
such, she had a lot of rusty moments and made a number of mistakes. At
the same time, her rebuilt knee held up fine as she had a number of strong
drives to the basket. It's clear that she's not yet the same player from
before the injury, as evidenced by a lack of breathtaking athletic moves,
but her speed and strength are still there. However, it's clear that Mo
still doesn't have complete faith in her jumper. One example came when
she had a wide-open shot on the baseline from about 15' away and instead
of taking it, paused and drove into traffic, missing a tough shot. Texas
played her for the drive and she struggled as a result. Currie is so
tough-minded that she can always manufacture points. Her 6 first half
points came on 2 stickbacks and a couple of free throws. Mo did have a
nice drive in the second half and had a 6-point flurry late in the game
(with a three and 3 foul shots). She also passed well, hitting Beard,
Hunter and Bass for baskets. The biggest mistake she made was stepping
into the lane when Beard was about to take free throws, at a time late in
the game when Duke needed any kind of points to stay ahead. Like everyone
else on the team, she had ups and downs in this game and finished on a
strong note.
** Beard: Alana did not shoot well against a Texas team that forced her to
become a jump shooter. Beard also did not do a great job handling the
ball, with 3 careless turnovers and several bad passes that were counted
as turnovers for others. As always, however, Alana found other ways to
contribute. She did create a number of scores for others, finding Hunter,
Tillis (3 times), Foley and Bass for scores. Beard also hit the boards
hard, getting a late tip-in that cut the score to 75-71. Alana did a
reasonable job defensively on Jamie Carey and forced her into 4 turnovers,
but Carey wound up hitting the biggest shot of the game. The bottom line
was that Texas' Kala Bowers did a good job on her and bothered Alana a bit
with her length, and Beard could not hit a lot of contested jumpers.
Throw in the fact that Alana missed 5 free throws (including the front end
of a one-and-one), and she was pretty much neutralized, as much as that is
possible with her.
** Harding: Lindsey struggled more than just about anyone at both ends.
She scored on two aggressive drives but badly missed when she tried the
same thing 3 more times, getting called for a charge on one of them.
Harding didn't attempt a single jumper, which could have opened things up
for her and the rest of the team. She also did a poor job of feeding the
post, simply throwing the ball too high or too low. Inexplicably, the
normally sure-shooting Harding missed all 4 of her free throws; I suspect
that hand injury may have had something to do with it. Nina Norman pretty
much dominated her at both ends, however, picking her pocket a couple of
times and driving past her. Lindsey did play hard (getting a held ball)
but not smart. Things don't get any easier, because Purdue's Erika Valek
is lurking next week. Harding has to get back into the groove very
quickly, because her team needs her.
** Krapohl: Texas did a good job of keeping an eye on her, and Krapohl was
just hesitant enough to shoot to make this strategy effective. Krapohl
also had a lot of trouble dealing with Norman & Carey. She needs to use
screens a bit more to get open and get herself on a roll. Duke is looking
to her for leadership and shooting, and it's clear that other teams are no
longer letting her have a free pass. Vicki needs to adjust and either hit
those shots or set someone else up.
** Foley: Jess had a really tough game as Texas made sure to shut down her
open looks at the basket. She did hit a long jumper in the first half and
had a big-time drive to give Duke its last lead at 69-68, and also took a
charge when she had 4 fouls. But in general, she was a step slow on
defense the entire day and simply didn't match up well with either Norman
or Carey. Duke needed more out of Jess than it got offensively, but her
foul trouble hampered her ability to compete. Jess needs to get more
aggressive and look to make something happen on the offensive end, and
simply needs to move her feet a bit better on defense.
** Hunter: The brightest spot of the game for Duke, Brittany had a coolly
efficient day. Her instructions were simple: be physical, post up hard,
rebound and finish. Hunter did all of that and much more. I had already
seen her score against top-notch post players thanks to her size, agility
and long arms. Her positioning has also been top-notch, timing her cuts
to the basket perfectly. What I didn't expect were plays like her
astonishing dribble-drive to the basket, her sweet turn-around jumper, and
the work she did on defense. She used her superior height to dominate
Stephens down low and certainly held her own with Jackson. Still, five
blocks and 3 steals against players of this quality was remarkable. I
love the fact that she was looking to score and then put up some quality
attempts. Brit clearly has all of the tools, and the progress she has
made in just three weeks has been amazing. Initially, she looked lost in
the offense and didn't move well on defense. But in her last couple of
appearances, Brittany has grown more consistent and more confident.
Duke's failure to get her a look in the last six minutes of the game was
another big reason why they wound up losing. Hunter's future is extremely
bright, and should get brighter as she continues to learn.
much dominated her at both ends, however, picking her pocket a couple of
times and driving past her. Lindsey did play hard (getting a held ball)
but not smart. Things don't get any easier, because Purdue's Erika Valek
is lurking next week. Harding has to get back into the groove very
quickly, because her team needs her.
** Krapohl: Texas did a good job of keeping an eye on her, and Krapohl was
just hesitant enough to shoot to make this strategy effective. Krapohl
also had a lot of trouble dealing with Norman & Carey. She needs to use
screens a bit more to get open and get herself on a roll. Duke is looking
to her for leadership and shooting, and it's clear that other teams are no
longer letting her have a free pass. Vicki needs to adjust and either hit
those shots or set someone else up.
** Foley: Jess had a really tough game as Texas made sure to shut down her
open looks at the basket. She did hit a long jumper in the first half and
had a big-time drive to give Duke its last lead at 69-68, and also took a
charge when she had 4 fouls. But in general, she was a step slow on
defense the entire day and simply didn't match up well with either Norman
or Carey. Duke needed more out of Jess than it got offensively, but her
foul trouble hampered her ability to compete. Jess needs to get more
aggressive and look to make something happen on the offensive end, and
simply needs to move her feet a bit better on defense.
** Hunter: The brightest spot of the game for Duke, Brittany had a coolly
efficient day. Her instructions were simple: be physical, post up hard,
rebound and finish. Hunter did all of that and much more. I had already
seen her score against top-notch post players thanks to her size, agility
and long arms. Her positioning has also been top-notch, timing her cuts
to the basket perfectly. What I didn't expect were plays like her
astonishing dribble-drive to the basket, her sweet turn-around jumper, and
the work she did on defense. She used her superior height to dominate
Stephens down low and certainly held her own with Jackson. Still, five
blocks and 3 steals against players of this quality was remarkable. I
love the fact that she was looking to score and then put up some quality
attempts. Brit clearly has all of the tools, and the progress she has
made in just three weeks has been amazing. Initially, she looked lost in
the offense and didn't move well on defense. But in her last couple of
appearances, Brittany has grown more consistent and more confident.
Duke's failure to get her a look in the last six minutes of the game was
another big reason why they wound up losing. Hunter's future is extremely
bright, and should get brighter as she continues to learn.
much dominated her at both ends, however, picking her pocket a couple of
times and driving past her. Lindsey did play hard (getting a held ball)
but not smart. Things don't get any easier, because Purdue's Erika Valek
is lurking next week. Harding has to get back into the groove very
quickly, because her team needs her.
** Krapohl: Texas did a good job of keeping an eye on her, and Krapohl was
just hesitant enough to shoot to make this strategy effective. Krapohl
also had a lot of trouble dealing with Norman & Carey. She needs to use
screens a bit more to get open and get herself on a roll. Duke is looking
to her for leadership and shooting, and it's clear that other teams are no
longer letting her have a free pass. Vicki needs to adjust and either hit
those shots or set someone else up.
** Foley: Jess had a really tough game as Texas made sure to shut down her
open looks at the basket. She did hit a long jumper in the first half and
had a big-time drive to give Duke its last lead at 69-68, and also took a
charge when she had 4 fouls. But in general, she was a step slow on
defense the entire day and simply didn't match up well with either Norman
or Carey. Duke needed more out of Jess than it got offensively, but her
foul trouble hampered her ability to compete. Jess needs to get more
aggressive and look to make something happen on the offensive end, and
simply needs to move her feet a bit better on defense.
** Hunter: The brightest spot of the game for Duke, Brittany had a coolly
efficient day. Her instructions were simple: be physical, post up hard,
rebound and finish. Hunter did all of that and much more. I had already
seen her score against top-notch post players thanks to her size, agility
and long arms. Her positioning has also been top-notch, timing her cuts
to the basket perfectly. What I didn't expect were plays like her
astonishing dribble-drive to the basket, her sweet turn-around jumper, and
the work she did on defense. She used her superior height to dominate
Stephens down low and certainly held her own with Jackson. Still, five
blocks and 3 steals against players of this quality was remarkable. I
love the fact that she was looking to score and then put up some quality
attempts. Brit clearly has all of the tools, and the progress she has
made in just three weeks has been amazing. Initially, she looked lost in
the offense and didn't move well on defense. But in her last couple of
appearances, Brittany has grown more consistent and more confident.
Duke's failure to get her a look in the last six minutes of the game was
another big reason why they wound up losing. Hunter's future is extremely
bright, and should get brighter as she continues to learn.