After a lackluster performance on the glass against Brigham Young in its season opener, Duke responded strongly Friday against Auburn in its first home game.
The No. 8 Blue Devils outrebounded the Tigers 52-35 to give Duke a 73-50 win over Auburn (2-1) and a school-record 26th straight home victory.
“I love that we outrebounded [Auburn] by that margin,” Duke head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “We understood that this would be the first team we played that really would be physical on the boards.”
Elizabeth Williams was the key to Duke’s dominance on the boards. The highly touted freshman made the most of her home debut, registering her first career double-double and leading the Blue Devils with 18 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots.
“Elizabeth Williams is something else,” Auburn head coach Nell Fortner said. “[Williams] pretty much had her way with us.”
Even though Duke led almost the entire first half, the Blue Devils fell back to within one point at halftime. Auburn’s full-court pressure forced nine first-half Duke turnovers, which allowed the Tigers to stay within striking distance. A 17-5 Auburn run late in the first half, led by Hasina Muhammad and Camille Glymph, cut the Duke lead to just one point at halftime.
Auburn’s hopes of an upset were quickly laid to rest as Duke went on an 8-0 run to start the second half and never looked back. The Blue Devils’ length and relentless defensive pressure forced eleven Tiger second-half turnovers, allowing Duke to extend its lead.
“If it was a twenty-minute ball game, I’d probably feel pretty good about it,” Fortner said. “[Duke was] sharper in the second half and their defensive intensity created panic on our part.”
After a quiet first half, sophomore forward Haley Peters helped spark Duke’s run offensively. Peters scored all ten of her points in the second half after missing all three of her first-half attempts.
“Coming out of halftime, I just wanted to be aggressive, attack the basket and look to make plays,” Peters said.
Fellow sophomore Chloe Wells registered her second straight double-figure scoring output, finishing with a career-high 14 points. Defensively, Wells also slowed down Auburn’s best shooter, Glymph, in the second half.
Duke’s bench was also crucial, as Allison Vernerey and Richa Jackson each chipped in eight points to help secure the Blue Devils’ 13th straight victory in its home openers.
“We were very pleased with our second half,” McCallie said. “To hold any team to 19 second-half points I think is a remarkable accomplishment, especially Auburn, a very physical team with a lot of talent and a lot of shooters.”
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