After the Blue Devils’ game Sunday against Boston College, head coach Kara Lawson noted how it is hard to turn the ball over at a high level and still win. Duke had 28 turnovers in the victory, largely in part due to 63.8% shooting. When the shooting falters, though, the same mistakes cannot occur.
That was the case as the Blue Devils fell Thursday night to No. 17 Louisville 61-44. Twenty-seven turnovers was the final number, which paired with 33.3% shooting to make it a rough night all around for Duke. Although it wasn’t all bad, the team’s performance in the KFC Yum! Center was hardly digestible and will be quickly forgotten.
Let’s start with the good.
The Blue Devils started the game fairly well, shooting just slightly worse than Louisville in the first quarter, and were only down by six after the first 10 minutes. Freshman guard Oluchi Okananwa led this performance, with seven out of Duke’s 15 points in the first frame, also knocking down a three and had zero turnovers. The freshman added to a growing list of team-leading performances, ending the game with a team-high 14 points.
Blocks continued for the Blue Devils, with seven on the night, keeping them atop the conference and third nationally. Even while down, that area of play has remained one of Duke’s strengths. The visitors also out-rebounded the Cardinals 36-33. This was largely in part due to 17 offensive rebounds, an area the team is showing improvement on.
Finally, the team closed the game well, going on a 6-0 run to end things, and had a game-low four turnovers in that final frame. Perhaps it was due to Louisville taking its foot off the gas, but Duke did not give up completely and continued to get shots up and look to score. It showed its mentality and grit, something that will be very valuable down the stretch.
However, for the good, there was just as much bad.
Fouling was an issue from the start, and the Cardinals got to the free-throw line often. Seventeen of Louisville’s points were from free throws, a number that is simply too high for the Blue Devils to be giving up. In contrast, Duke only had nine attempts from the charity stripe all game and made just four of them, something largely due to not getting enough shots off inside — a problem created by the high turnover margin.
Finally, the ugly.
As the second quarter began, any momentum and edge Duke had generated from a solid start to the game had vanished. The Blue Devils were held scoreless in the quarter until just over 90 seconds remained, where Duke got two buckets. But when scoring falls, a team still has to keep the ball, have quality possessions and get shots up. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, as the offense went silent, turnovers rose instead.
“That [turnover] differential for us is really problematic at this juncture,” Lawson said. “[We] need to take care of the ball better.”
Bad passes, shot clock violations and travels drained the energy completely from the Blue Devils. Louisville, in response, ran the ball well on offense, especially on fast breaks where Duke’s failure to get back led to easy buckets. The Cardinals were not shooting particularly well (only 30.8% in the second quarter) and had four turnovers of their own, but some of their shots were falling, and combined with the Blue Devils’ inability to rack up points meant the discrepancy grew quickly.
The turnover trouble continued for the visitors, who opened the second half with four more in the first four minutes. The shooting in the third quarter was better than the second, but Duke still went just 5-of-14 and 2-of-14 in the third and second frames, respectively, as the lackluster offense carried on.
This was especially true for shots behind the arc. The Blue Devils finished the game a jarring 2-for-19 from three — a sole make in each half. But for Lawson, the failure to connect comes back to the turnovers.
“It's not because we missed shots, why we lost," she said. “It wasn't just if we'd have made a couple more threes.”
Not giving up the ball leads to more quality possessions on offense, something Duke had very few of Thursday. The shooting certainly needs to improve, but one of the best ways that can happen, according to Lawson, is if “you don’t throw it to the other team.”
Overall, though, there is no need for Lawson and her squad to panic just yet. The Blue Devils have proven themselves capable of winning games and shooting the ball well, and it is still early in the conference schedule. The team didn’t throw in the towel Thursday on the road against a ranked and experienced Louisville team which has eight juniors or older.
The Cardinals were not lights-out offensively by any means, but they didn’t need to be. Their stout defensive pressure throughout the game got them the ball early and often. That pressure seemed to shock Duke and force turnovers.
“We saw it on film too,” Lawson said, “and tried to prepare for it.”
But the level of play seemed to be a big step up, one the Blue Devils weren’t ready for at this stage of the season.
“In some ways, that's a good thing,” Lawson said. “Because that means we're going to be challenged in an area that's a weakness of ours. And we're not going to overcome that challenge until we get better at it.”
However, 25-plus turnovers in successive games cannot become a habit. This will likely be the forefront of Lawson’s plan of attack, along with handling tough defense, as the team travels to Virginia this weekend.
“On Sunday, we've got to be able to handle pressure much better than we did the last couple games,” Lawson said.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.