Playing against its first challenging opponent of the season Saturday, Duke could have tumbled like it did in the final minutes of last April's title game.
Instead, the Blue Devils played nearly flawless team basketball as they rolled over Maryland with apparent ease, coasting to an easy 81-62 win.
A small core of talented players and little parity in women's basketball means that good teams are only truly challenged by an elite of basketball powerhouses like Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee and Connecticut.
So when Duke faced off against the Terrapins at Cameron Indoor Stadium Saturday, neither team had truly tested itself against the top tier of women's basketball, even if they had already taken on ranked teams.
After ending Maryland's 24-game winning streak-the longest in the nation-the Blue Devils proved they have what it takes to win big games. Not only that, they proved they have what it takes to possibly win their first national championship: great team defense and offensive leadership from senior stars.
Duke entered the game against the Terps ranked second nationally in scoring defense but showed that its rank might be an understatement. The Blue Devils held high-scoring Maryland to 28 points below its season average while forcing the Terrapins to shoot just 37.8 percent from the floor and 3-for-18 from beyond the arc. Maryland's previous low for the season was 68 points against Marshall Nov. 29.
"I thought this game we were outworked, out hustled, outplayed, out coached," Maryland head coach Brenda Frese said. "Duke was obviously the dominant team. They made a huge statement coming into this game and played hard and very aggressive for 40 minutes."
Employing a zone defense at times, an aggressive help-man at others and even a half-court trap on occasion, Duke kept the Terrapins from ever getting into a rhythm. The team that claims six players who average in double figures had just two-Crystal Langhorne and Shay Doron-score more than 10.
"I'm pleased with our defensive effort in particular," Duke head coach Gail Goestenkors said. "Maryland is such a tough team to defend because they score from every position, and off the bench as well. So I thought our team overall did a great job with the game plan."
Maryland had only half its average assists as a team, down to 11 from nearly 21-a good indicator of the Blue Devils' disruptive defense.
Duke, on the other hand, posted nearly twice as many assists as turnovers on its offensive end as it dismantled the Maryland defense with huge performances from veterans Lindsey Harding and Alison Bales.
The Terrapins played nearly the entire game in man-to-man defense, which allowed the lightning-quick Harding to drive to the basket at will and Bales to flourish without the usual entourage of defenders hanging on her. Playing the most aggressive basketball of her career, Harding scored 28 points and could have scored significantly more if she finished more of her layup attempts.
"I knew today that when I had my mind made up to get to the basket that I knew I could get there," Harding said. "I had a little trouble finishing at times, but I felt in the zone. I felt just take it and take it because they weren't stopping me, so I just kept attacking."
Bales put up 18 points on everything from powerful post moves to long jump-shots and grabbed 12 rebounds in the game.
Such offensive firepower from its stars was crucial for Duke against the Terrapins and will continue to be important as the team enters the heart of its schedule.
As last year proved, the early season is not always a good indicator for the way things end up in March. With how dominant Duke was Saturday, the team's matchups against No. 4 Tennessee Jan. 28 and No. 2 UNC Feb. 8 must now be anticipated even more.
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