Duke women's basketball picked fourth in ACC preseason poll

Conference expansion has made winning the ACC much more difficult.

The Blue Devils were picked to finish fourth by members of the conference media at ACC media day Wednesday. Notre Dame and Louisville—entering their third and second years as league members, respectively—claimed two of the top three spots, with Florida State—a No. 2 seed in last year's NCAA tournament—pegged to finish second. The Fighting Irish have won the regular-season title in each of their two years in the ACC, and garnered 41 of 51 first-place votes.

Without four-time ACC Defensive Player of the Year Elizabeth Williams to clog up the paint, Duke will look to sophomore Azura Stevens and redshirt sophomore Rebecca Greenwell—who landed on the panel's preseason All-ACC team—for much of its scoring in 2015-16. Head coach Joanne P. McCallie's squad also figures to get a boost from the nation's top-ranked recruiting class. A guard-heavy group of five perimeter players will provided added depth in the backcourt, which the Blue Devils lacked last season. Two of those freshmen—Blue Devil freshmen Angela Salvadores and Kyra Lambert were named to the Newcomer Watch List.

Duke did not receive a first-place vote from the media panel. ACC coaches also predicted the order of finish, selecting the same top four as the media.