McCallie picks up 400th win

Despite boasting an arsenal of sharpshooters on the perimeter, Duke used its size and strength to completely overpower Southern California down low Monday night. The No. 6 Blue Devils (2-0) came out with intensity, grabbed an early lead and never looked back en route to a 75-50 win over the Trojans (1-1) in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The game marked the 400th win of head coach Joanne P. McCallie’s career.

Freshman Chloe Wells sparked the Duke offense with a smooth 3-pointer from the corner that gave the team an early lead, and the Blue Devils proceeded to take over from inside the paint. Krystal Thomas, Allison Vernerey and Haley Peters were dominant on the boards, using their size and quickness to help Duke grab 50 rebounds compared to Southern Cal’s 37.

“Duke has definitely reestablished itself as an elite team,” Southern Cal head coach Michael Cooper said. “We had a good game plan, but again, it’s tough to deal with size. I mean, they had the size on us, and they really utilized it.... If you get beat like that you’re not going to win many games.”

On the offensive side of the ball, Thomas and Vernerey were a force down low as they tallied 11 and nine points, respectively. Duke’s offensive rebounding played a huge role in its win, leading to 26 second-chance points. It wasn’t just the post players that dominated in the paint. Senior Jasmine Thomas was slicing to the basket all night, making only one 3-pointer but finishing with 14 points.

“I mean, we knew they played behind the post on their defense and we did a great job,” Peters said. “The first play of the game Jaz [Jasmine Thomas] got it in to KT [Krystal Thomas] and we established the inside presence right away.”

Along with Peters, the other four Duke freshmen cycled onto the floor all night. Richa Jackson made her presence felt early in the game with a fastbreak layup and followed with a 3-pointer one possession later. Chelsea Gray played point guard toward the end of the game, offering fans a glimpse of her immense talent. She knocked down a 3-pointer with 6:28 remaining to push the Blue Devils’ lead to 20 points and then made a quick move to the hoop for a bucket soon after.

Although Southern Cal guards Ashley Corral and Briana Gilbreath fought hard to keep the Trojans in the game, the Blue Devils were always in control. Given last year’s close 78-72 win over the Trojans, McCallie was happy to see her team jump out to an early lead and stay aggressive for 40 minutes. After her milestone victory, McCallie reflected on some of the high points of her career.

“I have been blessed with a lot of great people to work with,” she said. “In 19 years of coaching, there’s been a lot of great staff members and a lot of great players. It makes it fun.”