The Blue Devils will have their hands full with an undefeated Kentucky team when the two take the hardwood Thursday at 6 p.m. in Lexington, Ky.
Although the Wildcats will be playing at home, the game will not be on their usual floor at Memorial Coliseum. This will be Kentucky’s first time this season playing at Rupp Arena, the home court of the men’s basketball program. Head coach Joanne P. McCallie, though, does not believe the location of the game will make a difference for Duke.
“What we have to do is focus on what we do,” McCallie said. “It’s important that we play at the same high level against any team anywhere…. We need to be able to execute and attack in any environment and this is a great opportunity to work on that.”
McCallie is also excited about the opportunity to take on tough competition away from Cameron Indoor Stadium, as she believes playing in a hostile environment will help her young team adjust to dealing with adverse playing conditions.
“This is an opportunity to work our team away from Cameron,” McCallie said. “We love Cameron and the Crazies, but we’ve also got to be able to dictate on the road.”
Both teams are coming off important weekend wins, as the No. 10 Wildcats (8-0) beat in-state rival Louisville last Sunday. and the No. 6 Blue Devils (6-1) dominated Pittsburgh by nearly 50 points.
Kentucky will be led by point guard A’dia Mathies, who averages a team-high 16 points per game. The junior was named to the Naismith Award watch list during the preseason. Duke sports a talented backcourt as well, featuring Chelsea Gray, the reigning ACC player of the week. Gray recorded a triple-double against the Panthers, breaking the single-game program record for assists with 13.
Another key matchup will be in the paint, where Blue Devil freshman Elizabeth Williams will likely face Samantha Drake, Kentucky’s rebounding specialist. Williams leads Duke in both points and rebounds per game, with 11.9 and 9.4, respectively. The 6-foot-3 Drake averages 7.8 boards and 7.4 points for the Wildcats.
Both teams will also look to play a high-pressure style on defense. Kentucky ranks atop all Division I programs with a turnover margin of 15.4 per game, nearly four more than its nearest competitor. The Blue Devils forced 25 Pittsburgh turnovers last weekend, and created 33 in a pair of games earlier in the season against top-10 opponents.
Although McCallie is pleased with her team’s balance on both ends of the court, she knows that it must stay focused and perform at a high level in order to perform on the road.
“We have to focus on what we do.” McCallie said, “We get many contributions from everybody, there is a lot of balance, a lot of attack mode on offense. We want to bring that on the road and be able to deal with any adversity that comes our way and be able to execute and play our game regardless of the circumstances.”
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