It was the year that Duke was supposed to win its first national championship.
All the pieces were in place. Monique Currie had returned for a fifth year, the Blue Devils finished the regular season ranked No. 1, and with 15 minutes remaining in the National Championship game against Maryland, Duke was in control with a confident 13-point lead. Not only could the Blue Devils have won the game, they should have won.
But over the next 14 minutes the Terrapins crept back into contention before 5-foot-7 freshman Kristi Toliver hit a fade-away three-point shot over 6-foot-7 Alison Bales to tie the game with six seconds remaining. After five minutes of overtime, the Terps defeated Duke, 78-75, and left the court with their first NCAA title. The game that Duke was supposed to win went instead to the young and fearless Terrapins.
"I just feel utter disappointment right now for my players," head coach Gail Goestenkors said after the game that night in Boston. "It's killing me right now. Not for myself, but for my players."
But that was then, and this is now. Now is a new season, and the Blue Devils' first chance since last April to avenge the devastating loss. Now is a match that features two undefeated teams battling for the top spot in the national rankings: the third-ranked Blue Devils (17-0, 3-0 in the ACC) against No. 1 Maryland (18-0, 2-0) 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
"Now we can finally say we're excited to play Maryland," Abby Waner said. "Because before it was like 'we can't look ahead and we can't think about it too much.'"
Waner leads a new-look Duke squad that lost three seniors after last season. Team leader Currie, power forward Mistie Williams and sharp-shooting guard Jessica Foley-a trio that accounted for an average 33.2 points per game-all were drafted to the WNBA.
Waner and her teammates Lindsey Harding and Alison Bales have all increased their output, but the team's scoring is eight points below its average last season as it has taken on a new, defensive identity.
Maryland returns all but one player from its championship team and appears to have picked up right where it left off. After posting 111 points against Miami Jan. 10, the Terps are averaging 88.8 points per game and outscoring their opponents by an average of 33 points.
"I don't know that they have a weakness," Goestenkors said. "They have such a good inside-outside attack."
Four of Maryland's starters-Crystal Langhorne, Shay Doron, Marissa Coleman and Toliver-were named to the preseason "Wade Watch" list for the State Farm Wade Trophy, awarded to the nation's top women's player. It is the first time in the history of the award that four teammates have made the list.
Although the Blue Devils have not produced as much offense as Maryland this year, they are holding their opponents to a paltry 45.9 points per game and have a scoring margin nearly equal to Maryland's.
"We're preparing like it's a normal game," Harding said. "But, on the court, I know I want to set the tone offensively and defensively."
Also in Duke's favor, it has played a harder schedule to date than its ACC foe. The Blue Devils have faced five ranked teams prior to conference play while Maryland has played just two, with then-No. 18 Michigan State being the highest ranked opponent it has seen.
"We've seen a lot of great teams and done extremely well against them," Goestenkors said. "I think we have a lot of confidence against very good teams, and Maryland is one of the best."
Duke will be helped by a sellout crowd in Cameron Saturday-a sign of the increasing rivalry between the two schools. Similarly, Maryland has already sold out its match up with Duke Feb. 18 in College Park.
"We're going to come out and approach the game the same we always do," Waner said. "But there'll be a little bit more adrenaline and intensity."
While a lack of parity in women's basketball relative to the men's game magnifies the importance of Saturday's game for rankings and for preparing for a tough ACC schedule, the Blue Devils have more on their minds than just a win. They want revenge.
"You don't ever forget it," Goestenkors said. "I don't think that shot or the image of that shot will ever leave our minds completely."
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