The independent news organization of Duke University
After yet another taste of defeat in Thursday’s clash with Boston College, the Blue Devils return for one final regular-season outing at the Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill to take on North Carolina.
Allowing the Eagles to fly into their offensive zone however they pleased made defending them once they got there harder, and that difficulty resulted in more open looks for them and more fouls delivered by the Blue Devils.
A fourth-quarter comeback attempt brought Duke the closest it had been to overtaking Boston College since the game’s opening minutes, but it ultimately failed to do so despite its spirited efforts to give the seniors on the team a victorious last outing at home.
The catalyst this game was sophomore point guard Vanessa de Jesus, who tied her career-high of eight assists.
The optimism was unbridled after Duke upset No. 9 Iowa more than three months ago. After losing Thursday night to Virginia, the Blue Devils are 2-6 since Jan. 24.
The game was far more contentious for the Blue Devils than most would have expected prior to the whistle; struggles on rebounding, wastefulness on the shot and a concerning number of turnovers punctuated a difficult evening for Duke and blatantly illustrated what needs to change if it wants to rediscover its impressive early season form.
Duke will travel to Virginia’s home base at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va., with tip set for 7 p.m. Thursday.
Combo forward Lexi Gordon led the Blue Devils with 13 points on a 4-of-11 clip from the field and 3-of-8 from three without a turnover; point guard Shayeann Day-Wilson had 12 points on 5-of-16 shooting, two rebounds, three assists and three steals against two turnovers.
When point guard Shayeann Day-Wilson popped open in the corner and fired up a perfect rainbow to the rim, it looked like the Blue Devils had found a miracle.
With both Duke and Florida State entering Thursday’s contest at Cameron Indoor Stadium off the back of necessary wins, the stakes are high for whose momentum will continue and whose will falter once again this season.
Day-Wilson finished the game with 22 points, her third 20-point game this season...“I think she’s the best freshman in the conference,” said head coach Kara Lawson.
“I think it’s just who we are as a team, we are going to compete with you no matter what, no matter how much we’re up, we’re going to make sure you feel us,” said combo forward Lexi Gordon.
“Our goal is to get back onto a win streak. So our win streak now is one and our goal is to continue it and make it grow,” Gordon said.
After two consecutive wins against Miami and Virginia, the Blue Devils have endured a difficult three-game skid, losing by double digits to North Carolina, Louisville and Georgia Tech.
The gravity of Taylor’s absence is immediately apparent with one simple glance at the stat sheet.
Even Feb. 1 is Groundhog Day for these Blue Devils.
The Blue Devils have been running the same script on repeat for over three weeks. But unlike Bill Murray’s classic Groundhog Day, nobody’s laughing.
Duke's comeback attempt came up short during its visit to Louisville.
It’s clear from the numbers that the Blue Devils aren't favored, but despite that, the group has a chance for a big win and to achieve its goal of playing a solid game on both sides of the ball that head coach Kara Lawson spoke of earlier this week.
North Carolina hounded any attempt by Duke to find even the slightest sniff of offensive momentum, taking the ball 18 times, including 11 steals, and racking up 27 points off the turnovers.