Blue Devils look to expand conference lead

Two of the ACC’s top teams are set to collide in the conference’s marquee early season matchup.

No. 8 Maryland (17-1, 4-1 in the ACC) will square off with No. 5 Duke (15-2, 6-0) at Cameron Indoor Stadium Sunday afternoon. The Blue Devils are winners of their past nine contests—they have not dropped a game since Dec. 8 at Kentucky. Meanwhile, the Terrapins were undefeated in their first 16 contests this season before suffering their first loss of the year on the road to No. 11 Miami by a score of 75-63. Maryland was able to rebound and get back to its winning ways, defeating Virginia 68-61 in College Park last Monday.

Duke defeated Georgia Tech 79-62 in Atlanta in its last outing. Head coach Joanne P. McCallie was impressed with her team’s performance against Georgia Tech, but said what her team really needed right now was some time to rest after playing three games in six days.

“We are going to take a day off tomorrow. We take it pretty much one day at a time,” McCallie said Wednesday night. “I know that people like to get excited about games but for us every ACC game is a challenge. We need to come back with a clear head on Friday and get ready to practice for Sunday. Maryland is a great team.”

This game features a matchup between the top offense and top defense in the ACC. The Terrapins rank second in the nation in scoring, led by the ACC’s top scorer, sophomore forward Alyssa Thomas, who averages 16.8 points per game. Duke has relied on its pressure defense all year, and it has paid significant dividends. The Blue Devils are allowing an ACC-best 52.5 points per game. Freshman Elizabeth Williams has controlled the paint for Duke on the defensive end all year, leading the ACC in blocked shots. Her 3.9 blocks per game are the third most by any player in the nation, and she sits two blocks away from the Duke freshman record of 68. Sophomore Chelsea Gray has also been a key contributor on defense for the Blue Devils, averaging 2.5 steals per game.

The most crucial battle in this game will be fought on the glass, as the two top rebounders in the conference square off in the post. Maryland’s Tianna Hawkins is the ACC’s leading rebounder this season at 9.6 per game, with Duke’s Williams close behind at 9.0 per contest. Hawkins, a 6-foot-3 junior from Clinton, Md., has recorded eight double-doubles for the Terrapins this season. Maryland has held an edge over its opponents on the glass by an average of 16.3 boards per game this year, while Duke pulls down 9.8 more rebounds per game than its opponents.