Less than a month ago, it seemed inevitable that two rivalry games between Duke and North Carolina would eventually determine the ACC champion. The Blue Devils had just defeated Maryland to remain undefeated in the league, while the Tar Heels were undefeated overall and ranked No. 2 in the country.
Things have certainly changed since then.
A week later, the Tar Heels were annihilated at home, losing by 30 to No. 1 Connecticut. They followed up that by losing their next two games to ACC opponents, dropping them to fourth place in the conference. Meanwhile, last week, Duke lost the momentum it had earned after a 15-game winning streak, conceding the ACC lead to Florida State after losing to the Seminoles on the road before gaining the top spot back with wins over Boston College and No. 17 Virginia.
But on Monday, when the No. 4 Blue Devils and the No. 8 Tar Heels renew their rivalry at 7:30 p.m. in the Dean E. Smith Center, any recent momentum will be rendered meaningless in comparison to the task at hand.
And in that sense, not much has changed at all.
"You can't ride emotion to victory," head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "You can have some emotional runs in the game, but you've got to stay composed and focused.... All that matters is the moment, which is preparation."
Indeed, despite seemingly having played better over the last month, Duke (19-2, 7-2 in the ACC) knows it is going to have its hands full with North Carolina, specifically its frontcourt depth. The Tar Heels (20-3, 5-2) have four players averaging more than 4.5 rebounds a game, led by 6-foot-3 junior center Jessica Breland, who averages 7.5 boards per contest. Breland is flanked by 6-foot-1 Rashanda McCants and 6-foot-3 senior Iman McFarland in the starting lineup, and the Tar Heels also have the luxury of bringing 6-foot-5 freshman Chey Shegog off the bench.
While the Blue Devils may lack the depth of North Carolina in the paint, they can counter with skilled rebounders of their own. 6-foot-5 senior center Chante Black is averaging eight boards a game, while junior Joy Cheek and senior Carrem Gay each contribute five rebounds of their own. And Duke knows the battles down low may determine the course of the game.
"I don't know many teams which have a McCants, a Breland and a McFarland. I mean, that's what you call depth," McCallie said. "I think that's a concern. You've really got to find a lot of people. Those three are some of the best rebounders out there in terms of getting to the glass really hard."
Senior Abby Waner, who leads the team in assists and steals this season, mirrored her coach's feelings about the importance of rebounding, but not necessarily about toning down the emotional aspect of the Tobacco Road showdown.
"Rebounding is a matter of pride, and when you talk about pride, you talk about the rivalry," Waner said. "I don't want to hear from people that live in this area about Carolina beating us. If it's going to signify anything, rebounding is going to signify the rivalry."
And Waner, of all people, would know how important a different type of rebounding is. The Tar Heels beat Duke three times last year, including an 82-51 shellacking in Chapel Hill to close the regular season. Waner has won at North Carolina once in three tries, and if the Blue Devils come out on top tonight, she might be able to cloud her memory of last season's trouncing.
"I never want to feel like that again," Waner said. "That bus ride home, I was livid.... We were embarrassed. In a Duke jersey, you don't go into any gym and play like that. We gave up."
Sophomore Jasmine Thomas, who led Duke with 22 points in its win over Virginia Thursday, also recalls the feeling, and, like her teammate, plans to use it as fuel tonight.
"I can still remember the game, but honestly, none of it's really with me any more," she said. "I think we are a different team, and in that game, we lost focus. Instead of buckling down, we fell apart. That's something we do not plan on doing again. We've worked on it, matured and we're better at staying together when times get tougher."
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