Two teams, both battling injuries, square off tonight at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill with their sights set on a trip to Chatanooga, Tenn. and a spot in the Sweet 16.
Second-seeded Duke (29-4) is looking for its eighth straight trip to the NCAA Tournament regionals, but future ACC member and seventh seeded Boston College (20-9) stand in the Blue Devils’ way. The game is set to tip off at 9:30 p.m.
“I think the teams are kind of similar in that we’ve both undergone some adversity with injuries,” Duke head coach Gail Goestenkors said. “I think they’ve really pulled together and are playing excellent basketball right now.”
The Eagles have gone just 5-5 since leading scorer Jessalyn Deveny was forced to the sidelines when she ruptured her right Achilles’ tendon Feb. 2. She had been averaging more than 17 points per contest.
In her absence, Brooke Queenan and Clare Droesch have increased their production to make up for the scoring deficiency. In Boston College’s 65-43 first round win over Houston, Droesch scored a season-high 23 points. It marked the fifth time in the last eight games she had scored in double figures.
“I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that they are mostly team players and they aren’t selfish and work very hard,” Eagles head coach Cathy Inglese said of her team’s adjustments in Deveny’s absence. “I think over the last month or so we’ve become a better defensive team. They know they need to focus in on some of the little things.”
Droesch sat out of Monday’s practice with a sore heel but said she does not expect it to affect her play tonight.
Meanwhile, the already short-handed Duke team is dealing with an injury to its three-point leader, Jessica Foley. The junior snapped a streak of 98 consecutive games played when she sat out the Blue Devils’ 80-48 victory over Canisius Sunday.
“I think she’s still questionable—I’d say day-to-day,” Goestenkors said. “She shot around today. She’s feeling better today than she did yesterday, so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
In Boston College’s defeat of Houston Sunday, the Eagles held the Cougars to just 21.2 percent shooting for the game, while connecting on half of their own shots. They have run an efficient offense all year long, ranking third in the nation in field goal percentage.
“Obviously they’re a good team,” Inglese said of Duke. “We hope that we can do some of the same things as far as our movement on offense is concerned, taking great shots and getting our defense down.”
The task will not be easy considering the Blue Devils are now the single season NCAA record holders for most blocks with 251. Sophomore Alison Bales has led the team with 124 of those rejections, which is 22 more than Duke’s opponents have recorded against the Blue Devils this year.
Her ability to protect the basket has allowed the team to change the way it defends, Goestenkors said. The Blue Devils have been able to take more chances around the perimeter since the players are confident that Bales and forward Mistie Williams are prepared to help.
“She’s certainly a presence,” Inglese said of Bales on the defensive end. “She’s hovering around the key and forces you to do a few things you don’t want to do. But we have a few things that we want to do to try to take her out of that situation.”
Tuesday’s winner will meet sixth-seeded Georgia Mar. 26. The Bulldogs slid past the third-seeded Texas Monday, 70-68.
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