The end of an era is near.
This era is not the millennium, but the reign of women's basketball seniors Tye Hall, Kira Orr and Windsor Coggeshall on the floor of Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Tonight at 7 p.m., No. 22 Duke (17-7, 9-5 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) will engage in a rematch with 11th-ranked Virginia (19-5, 11-3).
When the Blue Devils traveled to Charlottesville in January, they built an early lead, only to end up falling to the Cavaliers, 62-55. UVa forward Monick Foote scorched the Blue Devils for 21 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
But Foote constitutes just one half of Virginia's deadly duo in the paint. The other piece of the puzzle is sophomore DeMya Walker. The 6-foot-2 center has accumulated a field goal percentage of .602, the highest in the ACC, and is fifth in the conference in rebounds, with 7.7 boards per game.
Walker and Foote both average 14 points per game, and they are 1-2 in the ACC in blocks, with 3.2 and 1.7 blocks per game, respectively. Together, they form a lethal combination in the frontcourt.
While Foote and Walker loom large in the paint, Tora Suber presents the Wahoos' most formidable outside threat. The 1996 first-team All-ACC pick is ninth in the conference in both scoring, with 14.7 points per game, and in three-point field goal percentage. When Suber can't get an open look, she knows how to make sure her teammates can. The senior point guard averages 3.5 assists per game, good for eighth in the ACC.
"Virginia has a very balanced team," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "It's going to take a great effort defensively to try and contain [Suber, Walker and Foote]. We have to work on the basics, take care of the basketball and play good defense. We're not going to win if we don't."
Recently, the Blue Devils have taken to rallying from behind in close games. While Duke came through in the clutch in victories over Maryland and N.C. State, its last upset bid failed in a 72-69 loss to Clemson on Sunday. Tonight, the Blue Devils intend to prevent a repeat of Sunday by building-and maintaining-an early lead.
"We've got to get better," Goestenkors said. "I thought we played well in the last five minutes of the Clemson game, but we need to play well for 40 minutes, not just five. We'd like to score early all the time instead of leaving everything hanging until the last minute."
One crucial element that has been off-kilter recently is the play of sophomore Payton Black. The sophomore center is fourth in the ACC in field goal percentage, shooting .538 from the field, but her shots have not been falling of late. In Sunday's matchup with Clemson, Black was 0-for-3 from the field, and last Wednesday against N.C. State, she produced a lackluster 5-for-18 shooting effort in 33 minutes of play.
Black is also the fourth-leading blocker in the ACC, with 1.1 blocks per game, but she has collected only one block in the last two contests. Her presence in the paint will be needed in order to control Walker and Foote.
Sharpshooters Kira Orr and Hilary Howard, on the other hand, have been lethal on the perimeter lately. The two guards possess the ability to both sink three-point bombs-Orr's three-point field goal percentage is .394, the third-highest in the ACC-and drive through opponents defenses for shorter layups and jump shots.
Wednesday's matchup is the final home game of the 1996-1997 season. It perhaps will be the last time Orr, Hall and Coggeshall play under the lights of Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils hope that the Cameron Crazies will show up in full force to give them a proper sendoff and propel them to victory in their final farewell to Duke basketball.
"'This is definitely a very important game for us," Goestenkors said. "We want to win every home game, but Wednesday we especially want our seniors to have a good final game in Cameron.... I hope we have a good crowd. This could be the last chance for people to see Kira, Ty and Windsor play in Cameron. If a lot of people came to watch, it would be a great show of support for them."
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