POSTGAME: McCants leads all scorers with 24, but four Duke players finish in double figures. Jasmine Thomas paces the squad with 19 pints, Christmas comes in with 18, Gay finishes with 15 in her last gamein Cameron and Mitchell tallies 13. Gay also finishes with 12 rebounds as Duke outrebounds the Tar Heels 54-42. The Tar Heels finish with 33 turnovers--yes, that's 33 turnovers--on 23 (!) Duke steals. Plus, the Blue Devils picked up 32 (!) offensive rebounds. Waner's shooting line in her last game? 2-of-16 from the floor--but one of those two was the biggest shot of the night.
Anyone out there want to guess how many shots Duke took? Over/under 80? Take the over. The Blue Devils attempted 87 shots, making 30 of them for a 34.5 percent clip. But if Duke had taken 86 shots, it would have lost. It's a crazy game.
SENIOR DAY SPEECHES: Quote of the night, from Abby Waner: "What I'm learning is that it's completely about the process. It's about the four years I spent here.... I can only hope that I have given back to Cameron half of what Cameron has given to me."
DUKE 81-79, FINAL: Wow. I've seen plenty of great games inside Cameron, but this might go down as the best in the last few years, at least on the women's side. Christmas makes one free throw, McCants makes a three, but it doesn't matter. The Blue Devils take down the Tar Heels for the first time in five games, and now they're celebrating--and rightly so--on midcourt. Waner, Black and Gay leave Cameron with a win, and they're about to talk. But in the meantime, it bears repeating: Wow. What a game.
DUKE 80-76, 10.8: Lucas misses a three, Krystal Thomas grabs the rebound, Christmas is fouled with a chance to basically seal the game. Chants of "Our house" are already echoing through Cameron.
There was talk all week that this was the type of game Duke needed before the NCAA Tournament. If the Blue Devils had lost, it might have buried them, but you just got a feeling all night that Duke was going to find a way to send its seniors off in style. We're still a few seconds away from the ending, but it looks like the Blue Devils may have been capable of doing just that.
DUKE 80-76, 19.3: Finally, Duke is in control of this game. Krystal Thomas, who's been relatively quiet all night, stuffs Chegog under the basket and Jasmine Thomas comes out with the loose ball. After she and Waner play keepaway for a few seconds, Thomas is fouled and sent to the line, where she makes both. Two-possession game.
DUKE 78-76, 42.9: Shegog lowers her shoulder, banks in a layup and gets fouled. She makes the free pass, and on the other end, UNC switches defenders so McCants guards Thomas instead of DeGraffenreid. Duke can't get a basket, but makes a stop on the other end. In transition, Waner pulls up for a contested three in front of the bench and finally makes a basket after missing her last 13. Finally, we have a smile from the senior, who's just hit perhaps the biggest shot of her final season when Duke needed it most. Waner was about five feet behind the line--closer to the Duke bench than the arc--and when the ball swished through, the Cameron crowd exploded. The officials are checking how much time is on the clock now, but they're probably having trouble hearing.
DUKE 75-73, 1:58: Jasmine Thomas, say hello to the big-time. Duke has been looking for a clutch player all season, and it might have just found it in the form of the sophomore point guard, who has six of Duke's eight points in overtime by simply exploiting DeGraffenreid, who has been slacking on defense. Thomas has simply driven to the foul line and elevated over her Tar Heel counterpart. UNC took a lead at 73-71, but it was shortlived when Karima Christmas knocked down two free throws. On the ensuing possession, Lucas tries to force a pass to Breland in the paint, but Gay comes over to front the power forward and steals the pass. Thomas took over from there, fading away from DeGraffenreid for her third jumper of the extra session. UNC ball with the full court in front of tem.
DUKE 67-67, OVERTIME: DeGraffenreid winds the clock down at the top of the key and finally penetrates with about five seconds left. She gets a nice look at the basket from the right side, but misses the layup and Krystal Thomas grabs the rebound as the clock expires. Duke scores six unanswered points in the last two minutes to force overtime, and McCallie couldn't be more pleased. She's screaming with glee and giving her players high-fives as Waner raises her arms asking the crowd to get louder for the extra period.
The overtime has to favor Duke, which has all the momentum right now. The Cameron crowd has come alive with Duke's stunning comeback, but remember, Black has been on the bench for more than four minutes. In terms of foul trouble, DeGraffenreid still has four for North Carolina, and Duke should try to exploit that weakness right away. A few Blue Devils have three fouls, but none of the key cogs have four.
Scoring update: McCants leads all scorers with 19--why she didn't get a crack at the game-winner, we're not sure--while Breland has 14. Gay and Mitchell have 15, Christmas has 13 and Thomas has 11 for Duke.
TIE 67-67, 11.2: Thomas penetrates with 10 seconds on the shot clock, finds herself trapped about 10 feet from the basket, ducks under, leans in and banks a shot in for the tie. Couldn't have been what McCallie wanted, but hey, whatever works? UNC calls a timeout with just more than 10 seconds. McCants should get the ball here. What a finish so far, and we're just getting started.
UNC 67-65, 35.5: Duke has given itself a chance. The Tar Heels break the full-court pressure, but almost 30 seconds later, McCants barely misses a tough layup in the lane, and Christmas grabs the rebound. Duke calls a timeout in the halfcourt, and the Blue Devils will get a chance to tie or take the lead after mounting an improbable 4-0 run. Who gets the shot here? Again, we think Duke has to pound the ball inside, which is where it's been most productive tonight. Let Thomas penetrate, perhaps, but find a way to get Gay, Mitchell or Christmas a shot from within 10 feet.
UNC 67-65, 1:08: Is that what McCallie drew up in the timeout? Three Blue Devils surround DeGraffenreid on the inbound and Gay forces a tieup, which gives Duke the ball on the possession arrow. On the inbound, Thomas finds Mitchell on the block, and she lowers her shoulder for a contested layup to give her 13 points. Mitchell, Gay and Christmas have combined for 43 of Duke's 65 points. UNC calls a full timeout, and it will be inbounding under the Duke basket again with its lead dwindling by the possession.
UNC 67-63, 1:18: DeGraffenreid misses badly on a circus layup and Gay grabs the rebound. On the other end, Thomas finds Mitchell covered in the corner. Mitchell passes to Gay at the top of the key, where she's lived all night, and the senior makes a short jumper to give her 15 points. Quick timeout for McCallie to set up the defense with just more than a minute to play.
UNC 67-61, 1:47: Jasmine Thomas is stripped on a dribble drive, and there is a scrum for the loose ball. Tie-up, UNC ball with the possession arrow.
UNC 67-61, 1:57: Shegog misses the first, makes the second. McCallie takes a 30-second timeout with her team down six. Who gets the shot here? We say find Christmas or Gay on the block, which is where Duke has been at its best all night. Don't settle for anything long; Duke is just 3-of-14 from beyond the arc.
UNC 66-61, 2:01: McCants misses an open layup, but Breland is there for the offensive rebound and putback. On the other end, Waner misses an open 25-footer with the shot clock winding down, Chay Shegog grabs the rebound and is fouled in the process. She's on the line shooting two with a five-point lead.
UNC 64-61, 3:48: How to wrap up the last four minutes in just a few paragraphs? First, it must be noted that this is the best installment of the Tobacco Road rivalry since Joanne P. McCallie has been on the Duke sideline. UNC has won four in a row, and none of them have been close. Tonight's game is certainly a classic, if only because the second half has been completely back-and-forth. Karima Christmas and Bridgette Mitchell have been Duke's two best players, scrapping down low for rebounds and putbacks, and the two helped the Blue Devils close a four-point deficit and tie the game at 61 with 4:30 left. But just 17 seconds later, Chante Black was whistled for an over-the-back call, sending her to the bench with her fifth foul. She ends her career in Cameron with a seven-point performance in what might be one of her worst games of the season. Waner just tried to tie the game with a stepback 3-pointer but missed, and the Tar Heels have the ball up three with just under four minutes left. More frequent updates from here on out.
UNC 56-54, 7:51: If Abby Waner can't make a shot, then UNC's Italee Lucas can't miss. Lucas just hit two huge 3-pointers, one to bring her team within one point and the other to give the Tar Heels a two-point lead. After the second one, a pull-up in front of the Tar Heel bench, Lucas ran back to halfcourt with her arms up to signify that she had, indeed, just canned perhaps the biggest shot of the night. Meanwhile, on the other end of the floor, Waner is really struggling. She's now 1-for-13 from the floor, and she's missed 13 straight shots. Black is on the bench with four fouls, too, so Duke's two rocks are having off nights in their last games in Cameron. Carrem Gay, though, is headed to the line for two shots to tie the game. Karima Christmas has hit double digits after making a layup and swishing a 3-pointer from the top of the key, too. It's shaping up to be an exciting finish, and we wouldn't want it any other way.
DUKE 48-45, 11:56: The decibel level inside Cameron has increased in the last four minutes, and I'm fairly certain it's not just the twerps screaming (and now coughing) in my ear. The Tar Heels have a nice fan base behind enemy lines--or, more aptly, behind North Carolina's bench--and the UNC fans are ready to scream their light blue faces off whenever UNC cuts into Duke's lead. But the Blue Devil fans are right there to respond, and as the teams trade baskets, the chants emanate from both sides of the arena. Bridgette Mitchell's offense has come alive in the last few minutes, and she's up to nine points, tied for second on the team with Jasmine Thomas. But Rashanda McCants has been the best player on the floor. She's up to 17 points--including a huge 3-pointer that drew the biggest shouts of the night from the Tar Heel faithful--to cut the Duke lead to three.
Another important note: While Chante Black is out with four fouls, Cetera DeGraffenreid, North Carolina's floor general, is now sidelined with four fouls. Doesn't look like she'll return soon.
DUKE 44-36, 15:51: It's been a frenetic few minutes here in Cameron, and it seems that the entire stadium is heating up. Or maybe that's just because I was foolish enough to wear a sweater into this boiler room. To be fair, it is really miserable out. In an interesting twist, the senior that has been most impressive tonight for Duke has been Carrem Gay, easily the least-heralded of the class. Waner can't buy a basket--she's still stuck at three points after making her first shot--and Black has been solid, but far from special. Gay, meanwhile, leads Duke with 12 points and seven rebounds, making a living off of elbow jumpers.
As I noted in the first half, though, it's going to be Duke's defense that either lifts the Blue Devils or buries them. Take one two-play example: Jasmine Thomas takes a charge off Cetera DeGraffenreid on a fast break, and then reaches in when Rashanda McCants has an easy transition layup. One results in a rare smile and fist-pump from McCallie, the other a groan.
To follow up for those interested, one of the five-year-olds has taken to sneaking in between reporters on press row during media timeouts asking for high-fives from the Blue Devil, even when he's on the other end of the court. Parenting 101, anyone?
DUKE 40-32, HALFTIME: Duke recovers to end the half up eight points. Some halftime stats, quickly: Gay leads Duke with 10 points, while McCants also has 10 for the Tar Heels. Gay also leads Duke with seven rebounds, and the Blue Devils are outrebounding UNC 24-20. Jessica Breland, who grabbed 23 last time, only has four tonight. Duke is shooting 40 percent from the floor, and the Tar Heels are shooting 44.8 percent, but one stat you might have missed is that Duke has assists on 10 of its 16 baskets. The Tar Heels already have 18 turnovers in the first half, thanks to 12 Duke steals.
DUKE 35-30, 1:19: There's the North Carolina run we were waiting for. Jasmine Thomas picks up her second foul on a ticky-tacky call, and Duke has the ball up five trying to stop the Tar Heels' momentum. Duke has to be careful here: Keep it at five, and it's considered a good half, but if it gets below that, a Tar Heel run could spell trouble.
DUKE 30-23, 3:56: So far, so good for the Blue Devils in terms of holding the lead. McCants scored an and-one to cut the lead, but the good news for Duke is that it's now in the single bonus. Right after the last timeout, McCallie yelled to Waner that No. 20 on North Carolina, Chay Shegog, had two fouls. Naturally, on the next possession, Waner fed an entry pass into Black, who was guarded by Shegog. The freshman didn't pick up her third, but it's the thought that counts. Another heads-up play from Waner: About a minute ago, she saw a hole on the right side of North Carolina's defense in the halfcourt. She faded over to the right side to overload with Jasmine Thomas, essentially forcing the sophomore to cut for a backdoor. She did, Waner hit her with a bounce pass and Thomas finished with an acrobatic layup with her back to the basket. It's those types of plays that could change a game, and Waner seems to be the only one capable of making them for Duke, even if she hasn't made a shot since her initial 3-pointer.
DUKE 23-16, 7:56: That's a 9-1 run for the Blue Devils, and it's all come from defense. Duke has switched between its in-your-face man and a stifling 2-3 zone, and the Tar Heels haven't been able to adjust. Duke went on a quick 4-0 run, capped off by an over-the-top pass from Bridgette Mitchell to Karima Christmas in which Mitchell looked more like a fledgling quarterback than a forward. UNC head coach Sylvia Hatchell was forced to call timeout, but the damage wasn't done. Jasmine Thomas pulled up on a fast break to hit a jumper from the foul line, Waner picked up a steal on the other end of the floor, Gay hit a jumper from the top of the key and then took a charge to bring us into the media timeout. But before you get your hopes up, Duke fans, remember that the Blue Devils held a sizable lead over North Carolina late in the first half of the teams' first matchup before the Tar Heels closed the game before the half and ran away to start the second period. These next eight minutes will, of course, be crucial for the Blue Devils in trying to avoid that kind of run, and expect McCallie to coach against it.
On a side note, these kids behind me are absolutely brutal. When was the last time you sat two inches from a gaggle of shrieking toddlers ready to explode any time they hear noise? Let's just hope they're not spreading germs, either.
UNC 15-14, 11:37: Duke has centered its offense all season around the post--Waner said a few days ago that Black has to touch the ball for the Blue Devils to win--and tonight is no different. The only problem? The entry passes haven't been crisp, and the Tar Heels have stepped in front of the post players to grab easy steals. On the flip side, Waner has been begging for the ball on the perimeter after her first made 3-pointer, but she hasn't been able to get a clean look from anywhere on the floor. Duke has reverted back to a man-to-man defense after starting in a 2-3 zone, with Waner guarding Rashanda McCants and Black guarding Jessica Breland. A post player has come over to double Breland whenever she touches the ball, which has helped limit the Tar Heel star to zero points and two rebounds after her 23-board performance in Chapel Hill a few weeks ago.
DUKE 9-9, 14:54: There's always a different element to Duke-UNC games in Cameron, and that's not exclusive to the men's teams' matchups. Cameron is listed as a sellout, and while not every seat is packed, there are more people in here than there have been all season. Plus, it's loud--again, not men's loud, but loud enough for my ears to ring. But that might just be the five-year-olds sitting in the student section behind me. It seems I've found people I loathe more than some Cameron Crazies, and only because these tykes have voices that could pierce an ear from 100 yards away.
Anyway, on the court, the two teams have favored an up-and-down style of play--it is, after all, the ACC--and they've come to the first media timeout tied at nine. Something that could be a positive sign for the Blue Devils is that senior Abby Waner made her first 3-pointer of the night, a wide-open offering from above the elbow. On the next play, she, Carrem Gay and Chante Black combined for an easy layup. There's a reason why I included Waner on my All-ACC ballot (more on that tomorrow) even though her numbers haven't been stellar this year. As much as the offense flows through Black, Duke is much, much better when Waner plays well. She may not be the rock, but she is the catalyst, and she could, um, catalyze the Blue Devils to their biggest win of the season tonight.
PREGAME: Seniors Abby Waner, Carrem Gay and Chante Black are honored in a pre-game ceremony. We're about to get under way here at Cameron Indoor Stadium in the second matchup of the year between No. 9 North Carolina and No. 10 Duke. Starting lineups: Thomas, Waner, Black, Gay, Mitchell for Duke, and McFarland, DeGraffenreid, McCants, Lucas and Breland for the Tar Heels.
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