Last season, the women's basketball team fell just once in conference play en route to a 15-1 record. That loss? An 80-75 decision at the hands of the Clemson Tigers in Littlejohn Coliseum.
Tonight, No. 14 Duke (21-4, 10-3 in the ACC) makes its return trip to Clemson to face a Tiger squad battling to make the NCAA tournament.
Last season, the circumstances were a little different. When Duke took on Clemson on the road, it had already clinched the ACC title and was in search of a perfect conference record. This time around, Duke is in a war with Virginia and N.C. State for the top spot.
Head coach Gail Goestenkors realizes the importance of every contest down the final stretch of the season-and that anything can happen.
"There are too many big games coming up to have an idea where everyone's going to finish [in the ACC]," she said.
Clemson (16-9, 7-6) currently holds the fourth spot in the ACC standings, and has yet to clinch at least a .500 record in conference. In addition to strengthening their case for the selection committee, the Tigers will be looking to avenge last month's 60-51 defeat in Durham.
With the all-important win Thursday night over N.C. State, Duke moved closer to the top of the standings. It stands one-and-a-half games back after first-place Virginia edged the Wolfpack yesterday, 60-51.
The Blue Devils and Tigers enter tonight's contest headed in opposite directions. Clemson has lost its last two games, but Duke comes in boasting a three-game win streak.
"Our goal was to win to win the rest of our games," Goestenkors said. "We decided that before the Georgia Tech game.... Every game's going to be tough.
"We're not really looking forward to going to Clemson," Goestenkors said. "We know that's a tough place to play."
Duke has lost three straight on the road to the Tigers; none of the current Blue Devils have won a game at Clemson. In addition, they have fallen by an average of 17.6 points in Littlejohn.
With all that in mind, Duke knows how important this game is in its effort to win the ACC. A victory keeps the pressure on the other teams atop the standings; a loss, on the other hand, will essentially end any chance of a title.
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