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My books lay scattered at the foot of the couch, my much-needed studying pushed aside for another time. A warm breeze floats in through the window, and the April afternoon is enticing.
Tuesday afternoon, less than an hour before the women's basketball team headed to Texas, coach Gail Goestenkors fielded questions from the media. On the table next to the tape recorders and microphones sat a stuffed gerbil named Homey--complete with a cowboy hat and boots--ready to blend with the locals in San Antonio.
While two of the most storied programs in women's basketball will duke it out in one Final Four matchup, the other game Friday night in San Antonio will feature two of the sport's fastest rising teams, Oklahoma and Duke.
On paper, Tennessee's chances at a national title are slim. This is mostly due to the fact that to even finish second, the Vols would have to knock off a team that hasn't even come close to being beaten.
RALEIGH -- How far they've come.
RALEIGH -- South Carolina's first ever third-round victory in the NCAA Tournament was sweet in more ways than one.
RALEIGH -- This time around, it was different.
Duke has a lot riding on Monday night's regional final against South Carolina.
They say not to mess with Texas, but the Duke women's basketball team isn't too worried about it.
The Duke women's basketball program and its fans have fond memories of the last time the Blue Devils played the regional round of the NCAA Tournament in the Tar Heel State.
This time, it was Duke's turn to be the host.
Last year's ACC Tournament began with a cloud of uncertainty hanging over Duke, but for the third consecutive year, ended with the Blue Devils cutting down the nets.
Both Duke and Maryland have true point guards, a dominating center, a transfer small forward, a power forward that creates match-up problems, and a star shooting guard. Talent-wise, the teams are almost even, and if not the slight edge goes to the Blue Devils. But Maryland and guard Juan Dixon finished 15-1 in the ACC; Duke and guard Jason Williams finished 13-3. What does this mean? Maybe not much, but it is a slight crack in the "Jason Williams for ACC Player of the Year, No Questions Asked" argument. Before I get run out of Durham for what I'm about to say, let me make clear what I'm not saying. I'm not claiming that Dixon should be picked higher in next year's draft, or that Dixon will be a better pro player, or that Dixon has more talent. So what am I saying? Based on his conference accomplishments this season, Juan Dixon deserves to be ACC Player of the Year. And that's what the award measures--conference success in a single year. Why else would Joseph Forte share the award with Duke deity Shane Battier last year? Not because sportswriters thought the Grizzlies should have taken Forte. First, some questions to warm up the audience. 1) With a chance to win the game, who do you want holding the ball? Juan Dixon, a 90 percent free-throw shooter (tops in the conference) who beat Wake Forest two weekends ago, or Jason Williams, whose well-publicized misses from the charity stripe cost Duke against Florida State and Virginia? 2) When the opposing guard has the ball with a chance to win the game, who do you want guarding him? Well, Jason Williams doesn't usually even guard the opponent's top backcourt scoring threat--that assignment normally falls to Dahntay Jones. But Juan Dixon plays the role of defensive stopper for Maryland, and plays it better than anyone. He leads the conference with 2.9 steals a game, and his 319 career steals are the third most in ACC history. Obviously free throws and defense are not enough to put Dixon over Williams in Player of the Year voting, but it certainly helps to even the playing field. It makes you realize points aren't all that matters. But since everyone gets infatuated with this category, I might as well address it. Sure Williams has more of them, but let's look at why. In the two head-to-head games that Duke and Maryland played, Williams outscored Dixon 51-27. But Williams shot 19-for-45 while Dixon was 10-for-23--Williams scored twice as many points by taking twice as many shots. Still, Dixon gets his points, and he gets them consistently. He is second in the conference with over 19 points per game, and he has scored in double figures in every game this season (and 46 straight games dating back to last year). Overall, Dixon's combination of scoring, defense, and long-distance shooting is unparalleled--no other college player in history has over 2,000 points, 300 steals, and 200 three-point baskets. Subtract his three-pointers and add 500 rebounds, and Dixon is in a group of only four players that have ever reached those milestones. Is there a more complete player in the conference, both on offense and defense, than Juan Dixon? Don't worry, the athletic department won't hunt you down and take back your admittance letter if you admit that there's not. People outside of Durham recognize what Dixon has done. He has been named ACC player of the week three times this season, seven times in his career. Jason Williams' totals are three and five, respectively. Finally, there's leadership. I know this is hard to measure, but one way I know how is by asking the question, "Can this person take a group somewhere they have never been before?" Now, I recognize this question is slanted against Jason Williams, since whatever goals Duke realizes with Williams as captain it will already have accomplished in the past and will most likely accomplish again in the very near future. But that is not Dixon's fault. So without further ado, where has Dixon led Maryland? The Terrapins won the conference title for the first time since 1980 by winning a school-record 12 straight ACC games to end the season. Last year, with Dixon as the leader (news flash: it wasn't seniors Terence Morris or Mike Mardesich), the Terps made the Final Four for the first time in school history. Dixon's 103 wins are a school record--the Terps have won 25 games in each of his four years--and Dixon has been on the court to finish off every opponent; the guard has played in all 133 games and never fouled out. Based on his leadership, offensive and defensive ability, and on the success of both himself and the team, Juan Dixon deserves to be ACC Player of the Year. Now here's hoping Jason Williams wins the award that matters--tournament MVP.
For an aspiring novel and movie script writer, Nick Horvath hardly seems headed toward a Hollywood ending in his basketball career.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- There's just something about University Hall.
If Duke was rusty after a week--long absence from the court, it didn't show Monday night in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
WINSTON-SALEM One of the fixtures of Alana Beard's sophomore season has been her ability to not just score on her own, but to help her teammates find easy shot attempts.
Georgia Tech came into Cameron Thursday night boasting a six-game winning streak, with five of the victories coming against ACC foes. In that stretch, which moved the Yellow Jackets into second place in the conference, Tech averaged 77 points per game, and failed to score over 70 points just once. However, the winning streak and the string of offensively productive outings came to a screeching halt at the hands of the Duke defense.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The women's basketball team stepped closer to conference perfection Sunday afternoon, shooting 57 percent and drilling 11 three-pointers en route to a 102-80 victory over Florida State.
TALLAHASSEEE, Fla. -- Sheana Mosch's best career performance against Florida State came during her freshman season, when she grabbed 11 rebounds to compliment 12 points. Although she was shy of another double-double Sunday afternoon, Mosch surpassed her previous scoring mark in the first half alone with 15 points, and led Duke to a victory with another nine points in the second half.
