When the NCAA tournament draw was announced, fifth-seeded Southwest Missouri State struck fear into the hearts of few teams. However, the little-hyped program has begun a course of systematically breaking those once-intrepid hearts.
The Blue Devils (30-3) could be next, if they follow in Rutgers' footsteps and look past tomorrow night's West Regional semifinal against the Bears (27-5). Duke's players insist they will not make the same mistake as the ousted Scarlet Knights, who let it be known that they considered the West Region an easy draw.
"I just keep telling [the underclassmen] not to look ahead and to just worry about who we play next," said senior Georgia Schweitzer, who was named a first-team All-American by Basketball Times this week. "It's so easy to get caught up in [everything]. This time of the year, it's all over the TV; you turn on the TV and they're talking about this team and that team. You really have to ignore all that and concentrate on yourself and the team that you're going to play."
Tomorrow night at 10:07 p.m. (EST), Schweitzer will lead Duke into Spokane, Wash., where the Blue Devils' point guard showcased herself as a premier high school recruit at a national tournament four years ago. Schweitzer's appearance in Spokane then caught Duke's attention; a similarly dazzling performance this weekend could help the Blue Devils successfully move past their fourth consecutive Sweet 16.
Gail Goestenkors had her motivational material-primarily newspaper clippings of overly confident Scarlet Knights-assembled for tomorrow night's game even before her team defeated Arkansas last Monday, but then Rutgers' loss to Southwest Missouri State forced the coach to scrap her collection. Instead of taping her clippings to the walls of Duke's locker room, Goestenkors found herself readying her players for a team that not only boasts the nation's leading scorer, but also has nothing to lose and everything to gain against Duke.
And like the Blue Devils, who have had the legitimacy of their No. 1 seed questioned, the Bears are out to prove a point.
"We definitely heard how easy Rutgers thought the bracket was," said Bears shooting guard Jackie Stiles, the NCAA's career leader in points. "I don't personally look at the papers so I didn't read a lot of that, but definitely one of our missions this year is gaining respect."
Much of the last few days of preparation have focused around limiting the damage done by Stiles, who has recently put up several 40-point performances. Like she has done against every opponent's most dangerous ball-handler, Goestenkors will stick superstar freshman Alana Beard on Stiles. Beard, the single-season Duke record-holder for steals, will have her quick feet and long arms tested by the most prolific scorer in college basketball.
"Alana loves a challenge and she is excited about the opportunity to defend Jackie," Goestenkors said. "She likes to challenge herself.... At the same time, I think she needs to stay very smart and not get into foul trouble because we need her on the floor."
Duke also needs senior Rochelle Parent on the floor. Parent, the Blue Devils' best post defender, has picked up fouls rather quickly at times this season, but she will be relied upon both for her defensive stops and her leadership presence. Although Schweitzer has been Duke's media darling and most acclaimed player this season, Parent has filled in much of the dirty work that has brought the Blue Devils within two games of the Final Four.
"Rochelle, more than any other player in the history of our program, understands her role and accepts it," Goestenkors said. "She doesn't care if she scores points and she knows that is not her role. Her role is to take charges, play good defense and rebound."
If the Blue Devils advance past Southwest Missouri State, they will face the winner of the other regional semifinal between second-seeded Oklahoma and sixth-seeded Washington. After winning the Big 12 regular-season title and nearly winning the conference tournament, Oklahoma was favored by many analysts to reach the Final Four. The Sooners, however, will have a clear disadvantage against an expectedly biased crowd not far from the Huskies' home city of Seattle.
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