Prior to Monday night's tipoff, fourth and fifth graders in a choir that sang the national anthem engaged in a heated debate.
"UNC is No.1," one child said.
Without any hesitation, another turned around and shouted, "No, Duke is No.1."
A week ago, given Duke's lackadaisical efforts against the likes of Florida State and Virginia, such a discussion could have seemed one-sided in North Carolina's favor despite Duke's No. 1 ranking.
Now, the debate can officially begin as to which unbeaten team should be No.1 following the Blue Devils' 105-53 trashing of Clemson (10-13, 2-6 in the ACC) in a showcase of what Duke (24-0, 9-0) can do when it does not play sluggishly.
"This was a big game for us," Duke head coach Gail Goestenkors said. "We really needed a game like this where we came on strong and did a better job on the glass and played with more freedom and fun."
The night belonged to Alison Bales, who was honored during a pre-game ceremony for setting the record for most blocks in ACC history.
Using her massive height advantage, the 6-foot-7 Bales continued to impress on the court, putting up some gaudy statistics in the first half. She scored 15 points in just 13 minutes, shot 9-of-9 from the foul line and forced four turnovers.
With Bales on the court, Duke outscored Clemson 37-19, but when she left to take a well-deserved seat on the bench, the two teams scored 13 points apiece.
Despite the senior's dominance, Clemson trailed by just six points at the 7:30 mark and looked to close the margin with a barrage of mid-range jumpers and slashes to the basket with Bales out of the game.
"I was just really frustrated, and I had had it," Goestenkors said of her team's play to that point. "I wasn't going to accept the way we were playing."
Suddenly, a Clemson player broke free on a fast break with only Harding standing in her path.
Then it all went Duke's way with the sound of hand smacking leather. Harding's block clearly got the Blue Devils going, as the team demonstrated more fire and passion on the court after that play.
What was a close six-point lead eventually swelled to a comfortable 22-point margin by halftime.
Once the second half came and went, the Blue Devils silenced some doubters by posting their third-largest margin of victory of the season.
Bales finished with a game-high 21 points, Carrem Gay notched 18 and Abby Waner chipped in 16 on 4-for-7 shooting from three-point range. Only two Clemson players-D'Lesha Lloyd and Christy Brown-reached double figures, as Duke's defense held the Tigers to 40 percent shooting on the game and just 33.3 percent in the second half.
"If you play a great basketball team, and you lay down and die, and don't play with any effort, you're going to get killed and embarrassed," Clemson head coach Cristy McKinney said. "And that's exactly what happened."
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