RICHMOND, Va. - Two things about this season's edition of the Duke women's basketball team were evident during its two games at the Central Fidelity Women's Invitational Tournament: the team is missing the inside presence of senior Tye Hall, and sophomore Payton Black is playing some outstanding basketball.
Hall's absence was painfully obvious during the Blue Devils' 89-77 loss to Old Dominion in their first game. Old Dominion post players Clarisse Machanguana and Nyree Roberts were perfect from the floor, combining to hit all 18 of the shots they took. With Hall still out of the lineup due to injury, the Lady Monarchs were able to exploit Black, who was hampered by early foul trouble, and inexperienced freshman center Jennifer Forte.
"Our post defense, obviously, was not good," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "We got into foul trouble with Payton, and then I think she became very tentative defensively. She's our best post defensive player, so when we had freshmen in there, and with Payton being tentative, it wasn't a pretty sight."
Goestenkors tried to shore up the interior by starting the 6-foot-3 Forte in place of 5-foot-10 freshman Missy West. It was a move that caught Old Dominion coach Wendy Larry off guard.
"We were really surprised that Jennifer started this game," Larry said. "She really hadn't started... some of the other games that we had watched, and West had played significant minutes."
But Forte also fell victim to early foul trouble, and the result was that the Blue Devils were victimized down low. Machanguana scored three consecutive baskets early in the second half to erase a small Duke lead, and Roberts was responsible for seven unanswered points to help put the game out of reach.
Fortunately for Duke, Hall may soon be on hand to fill the middle of the Duke defense. Goestenkors hinted that she'd try to get the senior forward back on the court as soon as possible.
"They told me to shoot for the Manhattan game," Goestenkors said. "Of course, I'm going to try to do what's best for Tye, but we'd like to get her a couple of minutes in the Georgia Tech game if she's at all ready to play."
Black was an offensive force in both games for the Blue Devils. The foul situation limited her to just four points on four shots in the first half against Old Dominion, but she stepped up her game in the second half to finish with 20 points and six rebounds. Especially impressive was a 10 minute span in the second half where she carried Duke almost singlehandedly, scoring 12 of the team's 15 points during that time.
Duke's 89-60 victory over Richmond in the consolation game of the tournament was also due in large part to Black's offensive prowess. The 6-foot-4 forward poured in a career-high 31 points, and was equally effective in the paint and running the floor.
"Payton Black certainly runs the floor as well as any post player I've seen in the United States," Larry said.
Richmond coach Bob Foley was also quick with praise following Black's effort against his team.
"I've watched Payton Black since she was a sophomore in high school, but she's just playing the best basketball of her life," Foley said. "She's just gone to another level."
The Blue Devils kick off their conference schedule on Thursday when they host Georgia Tech. With Black hitting her stride and Hall's return apparently right around the corner, there's a feeling of optimism surrounding the team.
"I think as our young players gain more experience... we're going to be a quality team," Goestenkors said. "I think that we saw that we can bounce back from a tough loss, and showed that... we've got a lot of heart. And we've got some good leadership out there, both inside and outside."
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