The women's basketball team went south this weekend, both in the geographical and metaphorical senses.
Duke, which fell to 16-10, 7-9 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, lost to Florida State, 78-73, in Tallahassee, Fla., Friday night and then dropped a 61-56 contest to Georgia Tech on Sunday afternoon in Atlanta.
The Blue Devils allowed the Seminoles to beat them on Friday largely because Duke's squad played uncharacteristically shaky defense. FSU got to the free throw line 34 times as Duke was unable to contain the Seminoles' penetration.
"Florida State just took it to us on offense," head coach Gail Goestenkors said. "They attacked the basket on every opportunity. We could not stop their drive."
Duke tried to compensate for these problems by switching to various different defensive styles. Goestenkors experimented with man-to-man, matchup zone and pressing defenses, but none of these were successful in stopping the athletic Seminoles, especially senior forward Christy Derlak who contributed a game-high 30 points in her final home game.
"We weren't playing together on defense," head coach Gail Goestenkors said. "One person would get beat on the drive and nobody would come to help out."
The Blue Devils were able to keep the game close thanks to their solid shooting and rebounding. Sophomore center Alison Day and senior forward Nicole Johnson led Duke with 16 points each. Johnson and Day were also the team's leaders on the boards grabbing, nine and six rebounds, respectively.
Although Johnson got into early foul trouble which limited her playing time to 24 minutes in the game, the Blue Devils trailed by just three points at halftime. FSU kept the margin around five points for most of the second half, but Duke lacked the toughness to pull away from the Seminoles.
"Everybody had their opportunities to step up on defense and nobody did," Goestenkors said. "We needed to play better team defense. There's no excuse for our lack of heart and desire."
After their debacle at Florida State, the Blue Devils travelled to Atlanta knowing that a win would be mandatory for their fleeting hope of acquiring a coveted NCAA Tournament bid. Once again, Duke fell short.
The Blue Devils darted to a 29-21 lead with 3:30 remaining in the first half, but then went dry on offense. The 8-0 Georgia Tech run which led up to intermission tied the game and gave the Yellow Jackets momentum and the confidence which they needed to come away with a victory.
"With 3:30 left in the first half, that is when we should have been strong," Goestenkors said. "We didn't put them away. You would expect us to be more mentally tough."
The game remained close in the second half, as the Blue Devils clung to a three-point lead at the 2:30 mark. Georgia Tech then fired up an airball which nobody bothered to rebound. After the ball bounced on the floor, a Yellow Jacket player saved it from going out of bounds and converted a layup. The Blue Devils missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity on their ensuing possession to set up Tech's final surge which gave the Yellow Jackets the lead for good.
Duke's lapses at the end of both halves showed the effect of the a difficult road trip, although Goestenkors said that fatigue should not have been an excuse for the Blue Devils' woes on Sunday.
"We shouldn't have been tired but that was the way we played," Goestenkors said. "We weren't sharp."
The Blue Devils looked particularly unsharp at the free throw line, where they made just 11-of-20, including several misses on the front ends of one-and-one opportunities. Poor foul shooting prevented Duke from pulling away from the Yellow Jackets.
Although the score was relatively low, the Blue Devils again struggled on defense in Atlanta. The Yellow Jackets, who are the ACC's worst-shooting team, sank 48.0 percent of their field goals in the game, as Duke repeatedly got caught playing in between Tech's perimeter and post players and, consequently, was burned on drives.
"I'm having trouble figuring out why we're not playing good defense," Goestenkors said. "We're trying to be aggressive, but we're getting beat to the basket. We're getting out-physicalled. When you're on the road, you have to step your defense up a notch, which we didn't do."
To prepare for a very physical Maryland team which will be Duke's first-round opponent in the ACC tournament next weekend, the team will practice against men this week, Goestenkors said.
This weekend's losses severely hurts the teams' chances of obtaining an NCAA bid. A victory over Maryland is now probably essential and even that may not be enough to secure the Blue Devils a spot in the field of 64.
"Our chances are very slim," Goestenkors said. "We need a strong showing in the [ACC] Tournament, but I'm not sure exactly what it would take."
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