Given that Duke had been stripping the nets when opponents went zone on them,
there had to be a game where the shots didn't fall. Happily, this was against
a Georgia Tech team that was scrappy but undertalented. The Jackets are one of
the best defensive teams in the ACC and some of the finest rebounders as well.
A lack of balance on the offensive end has hurt them the last few years, as
they've had decent guards but no posts who could score. That pattern remained
the same in this game, as the Jackets had 11 steals and 8 blocks, but shot
under 40%. Georgia Tech had trouble scoring in their set offense against Duke,
but exploited poor transition defense for a 12-0 edge against Duke in fast break
points.
Tech led for most of the first half, holding Duke's post players in check with
shifting defenses and forcing Duke to shoot contested jumpers. The Devils simply
couldn't hit anything or get any easy points. Even though Duke forced 21
turnovers, they earned just 21 points off of them. The Devils had 23 offensive
rebounds but just 19 second-chance points. Thanks to threes from Jessica Foley
and Laura Kurz, Duke took the lead and built it to 7 late in the half, but
missed the opportunity to extended it after Wanisha Smith and Lindsey Harding
both missed breakaway layups. Tech pulled within 32-29 at the half and was
making Duke sweat.
The Jackets tied the score early in the second half, blocked 2 Duke attempts
and then stole the ball for a score to take the lead. A couple of hoops by
Mistie Williams, a three by Abby Waner and a three point play from Monique
Currie put Duke back on top at 42-36, but they could never quite shake the
Jackets. Chante Black and Wanisha Smith both came off the bench to score 16 of
Duke's last 25 points, including some clutch free throws down the stretch.
Tech's Stephanie Higgs was doing all she could to keep Tech in the game,
including scoring 21 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. The win marked Duke's
26th consecutive win against the Jackets, dating back to 1994 (Coach G's second
season).
The Devils shot an abysmal 33% from the field but still managed to score 67
points, thanks to 26 free throw attempts. The Jackets used their quickness to
bother Duke, using a rugged man defense that had some zone principles. Alison
Bales, Abby Waner and Laura Kurz all really struggled, while Currie didn't do
well shooting the ball. The play of Black and Smith, along with the overall
steadiness of Lindsey Harding, helped win the game for Duke. Not every game
will be a blowout, and it's important that Duke found a way to win even though
they couldn't shoot and struggled on every possession. Duke's depth, defense
and rebounding carried them through the rough patches, and that's something
that should be at the core of every performance.
By the way, you should check out mo25.com, a site the Duke SID folks cooked up
to promote Monique as national player of the year. Pretty nice site!