CLEMSON, S.C. - When Duke's Abby Waner drained a 3-pointer with just more than four minutes left in the first half, the shooting guard struggled to hold back a smile as the ball ripped through the net.
The make was her third from long range of the period, and it marked the first time since Dec. 21 that she had drained more than two treys in a contest.
Waner's confidence was shared by the rest of her team, as the No. 12 Blue Devils rolled to an 83-54 win over Clemson Wednesday night at Littlejohn Stadium. Duke (19-6, 8-2 in the ACC) has now taken down the Lady Tigers (10-15, 3-7) in 11 straight attempts.
Waner shined Wednesday, finishing the night with four threes and 15 points despite recent offensive woes. Also pacing the Blue Devils was sophomore Joy Cheek, who chipped in 15 points of her own, going 7-of-8 from the charity stripe in a solid performance off the bench.
Before either of these scorers found their rhythms, however, Duke opened the game cold, trailing 12-4 less than five minutes into the contest. Even before the first media timeout of the game, Coach Joanne P. McCallie had seen enough and called a timeout. She said her team needed to recollect itself.
"The team just needed to refocus," McCallie said. "I don't think I said anything special."
But whatever she said, she lit a fire under her team, particularly sophomore Bridgette Mitchell, who played a key role in turning the game around. Mitchell drove to the basket in the two scoring possessions after the stoppage, sparking a 16-0 Blue Devil run.
"[Mitchell] really had a very, very strong game," McCallie said. "We weren't very focused in the beginning and were able to refocus after the first four minutes and really get things going. We needed to do a better job on defense and attack more, and that is what they did."
Mitchell, who entered the game averaging only 2.9 points per contest, recorded nine points, four assists and three steals against Clemson.
The balanced Duke scoring attack-five players registered more than seven points-proved too much for the Lady Tigers.
With nine minutes to go in the first half and Duke in the midst of its game-changing 36-5 run, Clemson Coach Cristy McKinney yelled from her bench, "I want a layup!" But her squad managed only five more points, as the Blue Devils took a 40-17 lead into halftime.
Waner's four steals and junior Chante Black's three blocks in the first half helped limit the Lady Tigers offensively, who shot just 19.4 percent from the field in the period. On one of Waner's takeaways, the junior converted a steal from Kirstyn Wright into the first of back-to-back treys, scoring the second off a steal by Carrem Gay.
"[Waner] is a great shooter and I was glad to see her out there having fun and making shots," McCallie said.
With Black taking the bulk of Clemson's defensive pressure, Waner said she felt open for long-range shots.
"Because Chante is such a threat down low, there are going to be some kickouts to me to be ready to shoot," Waner said.
The Tigers pressured Black throughout the game, double-teaming her to force six turnovers. Black, though, converted this pressure into trips to the foul line, knocking down all four of her free throws on her way to 14 total points.
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