MEMPHIS, Tenn. — As senior Krystal Thomas left Sunday’s noontime press conference, she hummed a song while the rest of her teammates, and even her coach, laughed on the sidelines.
The team’s carefree mood held throughout the conference, an indication of how poised it was for tonight’s game against Baylor at FedEx Forum for a chance at the Final Four.
Despite projecting a casual demeanor, however, the players are prepared to employ stronger defense against No. 4 Baylor (26-9) and its 6-foot-8 star, freshman Brittney Griner.
“She’s a tall post, and she’s a great shot-blocker, so this will be our biggest challenge, but we’ve been there, we’ve succeeded and we just need to do that again,” senior Joy Cheek said. “Defense is a big part of our offense, and we’ll have to play like we did in the Tournament... and get those steals and points.”
And though the Lady Bears have a young team—two freshmen are in the starting lineup—the No. 2 Blue Devils (30-5) say age is not a factor in the Tournament since players mature so quickly in just a couple of weeks.
“I always think about this as, ‘It’s Tournament time,’ and at this time, a lot of unexpected things happen,” Cheek said. “Freshmen become seniors, seniors can become freshmen, and hopefully as upperclassmen, we’ll perform like upperclassmen, but you never know. And [today], one of their freshmen can become a senior.”
Tonight will be Duke’s eighth time advancing this far in the Tournament in the past 13 years and the first under head coach Joanne P. McCallie.
Though the Blue Devils have never faced the Lady Bears, McCallie, while coaching Michigan State, lost to Baylor 84-62 in 2005 in the NCAA National Championship game.
“That was obviously a national championship opportunity, and I’ll never forget that 3-point shooter,” McCallie said of former Baylor guard Emily Niemann, who hit five threes in that title game. “[Lady Bears head coach Kim Mulkey] does a great job and heads an excellent program. What I remember that year was that we were both kind of up-and-coming, and it was really great to see the parity in women’s basketball at that time.”
This time around, however, McCallie hopes to come away with a bid to the Final Four in San Antonio, and she expects the Blue Devils to earn it by playing their trademark tenacious defense.
“Team defense is what we have in mind, and there are some very good players on [their] team that you cannot let get active offensively,” she said. “You never know what you’re going to face and how things will go and how the ball will bounce and break. It’ll be a matter of figuring out which can be more effective in terms of pressure, and we saw a lot of kids taking wide-open shots last game, and that’s something we’re trying to prevent.”
Collecting 23 steals Saturday afternoon against San Diego State, Duke was led by senior Bridgette Mitchell and junior Jasmine Thomas, who became the eighth player in Blue Devil history to reach 1,000 points, 300 rebounds, 300 assists and 200 steals. Thomas’s teammates highlighted her ferocity and determination on the court as well as her friendliness off the court.
“When she’s playing well defensively as well as offensively, you want to be able to contribute, and it shows great leadership when she goes out and scores shots like she does,” Cheek said. “Off the court, she’s focused and intense academically and she’s silly like the rest of us and outgoing, but you won’t see that same tenacity you see on the court.”
“When she’s in the zone, you can see it in her eyes, and she’s always... defending, always rebounding,” senior Keturah Jackson added. “She’s just tenacious offensively and defensively, and being on a team with her makes you want to up your game so much more and you just feed off that vibe. She’s very affectionate, sweet and caring. I’ve never seen a player give out so many hugs in practice!”
Thomas might have a ton of hugs to give out Monday night—if the Blue Devils can reach their first Final Four since 2006.
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