The early going was tough for Duke against Clemson, and that's not a huge
surprise. Coming off the emotional win against Tennessee, the team was a bit
flat at first against the Tigers, who had absolutely nothing to lose. Even
though this edition of the Tigers is nothing like the glory days from the Jim
Davis era, new coach Cristy McKinney has already improved this team. Just by
winning 2 of their first five games in ACC play, the Tigers have already
exceeded expectations. Also, none of the Duke underclassmen had ever played in
Littlejohn, so that would also require a period of adjustment.
Duke's starting lineup underwent another revision, with Chante Black
deservedly stepping back into that role in place of Alison Bales. Ali has been
playing reasonably well (though not scoring much) of late, but Chante has been
truly outstanding. The reality is that Duke really has eight players capable
of starting and getting extended minutes, and you may see the Bales/Black
switch-off along with the Wanisha Smith/Abby Waner exchange depending on their
current level of play. Happily, these demotions have served to motivate those
players to get better, inspiring some healthy competition. The other player
who could step in at any time is Jess Foley, who has played better and better
as she's recovered from her offseason surgery.
Against Clemson, Black got into early foul trouble and as a result played just
14 minutes. Bales and Carrem Gay stepped in ably, with Bales scoring 7 points
and grabbing 7 rebounds while blocking 4 shots; while Gay had 9 points, 3
rebounds, a block and 2 steals.
Duke missed 4 of their first 5 shots but strong offensive rebound kept them
ahead by a slim margin. Eventually, the misses started to add up as Duke shot
just 2-10 in the first five minutes of the game (and 2-4 from the line) and
trailed 10-7. Smith scored 7 straight points after a Bales basket to put Duke
back on top 16-10, but the Devils went through a long scoring drought. They
went nearly four minutes without a field goal, hitting a few free throws along
the way to stay ahead. Finally, Foley nailed a three but Clemson responded
with a 7-0 run to pull within a single point. Lindsey Harding and Monique
Currie couldn't get any shots to fall as Clemson battled valiantly. However,
it was their turn to go through a slump, as Duke went on an 8-0 run over three
minutes. Mistie Williams was finally getting some good looks at the basket,
while her teammates kept attacking the rim. With about five minutes to go in
the half, Duke led 30-21.
After 2 Clemson free throws, Duke threw a knockout punch, going on a 14-0 run.
It was spearheaded by Harding, who scored 7 points and completed a three point
play. The Tigers got a couple of late threes, but Gay scored inside on a pass
from Waner to make it 46-29. Clemson stayed relatively close thanks to
shooting 44% from the field, and holding Duke to 45%. Duke turned Clemson over
14 times and dominated the offensive glass, which was the key to their lead. In
particular, Clemson really fell apart during Duke's runs and helped the Devils
get some easy baskets.
Clemson managed to cut the lead to 14 early in the second half, but an 11-0
Duke run ended any thoughts of them winning the game. Duke's threes started
dropping and they pushed their lead up to 37, before Clemson scored some late
baskets. Duke shot 61% in the second half and no one wound up playing more
than 25 minutes for the Devils. While this one wasn't exactly one for the
highlight reels, Duke got the job done and every player got double-digit
minutes. Duke's schedule was front-loaded and this game turned out to be the
halfway point in the ACC for them, as the team is now 7-0. The good news is
that the back end of the schedule features 4 home games. The tough news is
that Duke still must play UNC twice, Virginia Tech twice, Maryland, and
improved Miami & Virginia squads. The ACC will certainly test this team for
tournament play.
Some statistical notes: four players are averaging double figures, with Currie
leading the way with 15.3, Harding 11.7, Williams with 10.9 and Abby Waner 10.
Right behind them are Black, Bales and Smith, with 8.8, 8.6 and 8. The battle
for assists leader is neck-and-neck at this point, with Smith leading Harding
84-82. A.Waner and Currie aren't far behind with 77 and 67. Bales is leading
the team in rebounds at 6.6; Black has 6.1, Williams 5.8 and Currie 5.4. Bales
already has 60 blocked shots and will likely have another 100 block season.
Nine more blocks and she'll occupy the #1 and #2 slots for single-season blocks
at Duke.
Career-wise, Currie is currently at 1855 points, 20th all-time in ACC history.
She needs 64 more points to pass Wendy Palmer at #19. If Duke plays a maximum
number of games and Mo scores her average, she'll finish with around 2100
points, just ahead of Charlotte Smith and just behind Dawn Staley. Meanwhile,
Bales is at 223 career blocks, good for fifth in ACC history. If Duke plays
its maximum number of games, she'll move ahead of Dolores Bootz' 245 blocks.
Back to Currie, assuming maximum games, she'll finish #4 in rebounding for
Duke, #4 in assists, #10 in blocks, #4 in steals, #11 in threes and #3 in free
throws made. Currently, she's battling Ivory Latta and Tamara James for ACC
player of the year. After a relatively quiet pre-ACC start, her league numbers
have been outstanding, and she still stands a good chance at both league and
national honors.
14 times and dominated the offensive glass, which was the key to their lead. In
particular, Clemson really fell apart during Duke's runs and helped the Devils
get some easy baskets.
Clemson managed to cut the lead to 14 early in the second half, but an 11-0
Duke run ended any thoughts of them winning the game. Duke's threes started
dropping and they pushed their lead up to 37, before Clemson scored some late
baskets. Duke shot 61% in the second half and no one wound up playing more
than 25 minutes for the Devils. While this one wasn't exactly one for the
highlight reels, Duke got the job done and every player got double-digit
minutes. Duke's schedule was front-loaded and this game turned out to be the
halfway point in the ACC for them, as the team is now 7-0. The good news is
that the back end of the schedule features 4 home games. The tough news is
that Duke still must play UNC twice, Virginia Tech twice, Maryland, and
improved Miami & Virginia squads. The ACC will certainly test this team for
tournament play.
Some statistical notes: four players are averaging double figures, with Currie
leading the way with 15.3, Harding 11.7, Williams with 10.9 and Abby Waner 10.
Right behind them are Black, Bales and Smith, with 8.8, 8.6 and 8. The battle
for assists leader is neck-and-neck at this point, with Smith leading Harding
84-82. A.Waner and Currie aren't far behind with 77 and 67. Bales is leading
the team in rebounds at 6.6; Black has 6.1, Williams 5.8 and Currie 5.4. Bales
already has 60 blocked shots and will likely have another 100 block season.
Nine more blocks and she'll occupy the #1 and #2 slots for single-season blocks
at Duke.
Career-wise, Currie is currently at 1855 points, 20th all-time in ACC history.
She needs 64 more points to pass Wendy Palmer at #19. If Duke plays a maximum
number of games and Mo scores her average, she'll finish with around 2100
points, just ahead of Charlotte Smith and just behind Dawn Staley. Meanwhile,
Bales is at 223 career blocks, good for fifth in ACC history. If Duke plays
its maximum number of games, she'll move ahead of Dolores Bootz' 245 blocks.
Back to Currie, assuming maximum games, she'll finish #4 in rebounding for
Duke, #4 in assists, #10 in blocks, #4 in steals, #11 in threes and #3 in free
throws made. Currently, she's battling Ivory Latta and Tamara James for ACC
player of the year. After a relatively quiet pre-ACC start, her league numbers
have been outstanding, and she still stands a good chance at both league and
national honors.