Richa Jackson knows what it’s like to have a season cut short by injury.
Last February, the guard tore the ACL in her left knee against Virginia Tech at home Feb. 15 and was forced to watch from the sidelines as her teammates finished the season and moved on to postseason play.
With 1000-point scorer and teammate Chelsea Gray out for the remainder of the year with a right kneecap dislocation, Jackson is on the other side of things now and will have to step up to help make up for the gap left by her teammate.
“Knowing that Chelsea’s been out, everybody has to grow and do more things,” Jackson said. “I just wanted to make sure that I was ready to help try to fill that void.”
Read more about Duke women's basketball in the 2013 NCAA tournament
Since Gray’s injury against Wake Forest Feb. 17 this season, Jackson has already taken on a larger role. The junior has started her first five games of the year in Duke’s seven contests since Gray went down, averaging 27.0 minutes in those seven games—13.0 more than before.
With more time on the court, Jackson has also improved her level of play. After shooting just .333 from the floor through the Wake Forest game, she has made 38.5 percent in her increased role.
“She’s a great shooter,” head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “She’s finding her place right now.”
As a sophomore, Jackson started 17 consecutive contests before tearing her ACL. For the season, she averaged 9.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
Coming back from the injury, however, has been a long process, and after only logging 20 minutes in a game once prior to Gray’s injury, Jackson seems to be nearing full recovery just in time for the postseason.
“It’s just taken her a while to get back to speed and want to be as aggressive as she can be, but I feel like she’s moving in that direction,” McCallie said. “This will be good for her, this new setting, new season thing.”
Against then-No. 8 Maryland Feb. 24, Jackson showed just how aggressive she could be, scoring six points in the first six minutes and eight in the first half to help Duke build an early 13-point advantage.
But her value to the Blue Devils goes beyond her scoring.
“Richa’s … a great rebounding guard,” sophomore guard Ka’lia Johnson said. “She’s a great penetrating guard, and I think she just lets the game come to her, and that’s where she gets most of her points and definitely getting in there and doing that spin move.”
Jackson’s continued improvement could be vital to Duke’s postseason success, but for the junior, playing in the postseason will be a bit of a novel experience.
As a freshman, Jackson saw limited action beyond the first round of both the ACC and NCAA tournaments. Having missed out on postseason play as a sophomore, the Duke guard is excited to get a full taste of tournament time.
“It’s a great opportunity for me to experience something I have yet to experience, and I think it’s going to be fun and exciting,” she said.
Although the Blue Devils will be shorthanded again heading into March, Jackson is confident in the ability of herself and others to step up.
“I don’t have to be perfect, but as long as I’m providing energy and being effective out there on the court, I feel like we can be in a good place,” she said.
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