The independent news organization of Duke University
Following Duke women's basketball's first back-to-back losses of the season, the Blue Zone is here with our thoughts on the latest rankings.
The Blue Devils started extremely slow in their 84-60 loss to N.C. State Sunday, taking almost two minutes before two free throws from Onome Akinbode-James handed Duke its first points.
The 16th-ranked Blue Devils fell 84-60 to No. 4 N.C. State on the road Sunday, falling behind early and trailing by around 20 points for most of the final three quarters.
Amid frigid air and snowy grounds, Kara Lawson will finally get her first Tobacco Road rivalry game.
The ACC is made of veteran teams with years of established chemistry. For Duke, being an exception is only an impediment.
The two teams picked up business exactly where they left off—with the Hokies overpowering the Blue Devils 65-54 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The Blue Devils will host Virginia Tech Thursday night in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Just two weeks before, the Blue Devils competed with the Hokies in Blacksburg, Va. where Virginia Tech managed to snag early baskets and ended the game with a hefty 22-point lead on the Blue Devils.
Akinbode-James stepped up in a big way, registering a career-high 16 points on 5-of-9 field goals along with six rebounds and a team-high two blocks, all in 18 minutes.
“They are very resilient,” said head coach Kara Lawson. “They believe they can find a way, believe they can figure out a way even if it’s not going their way in the beginning. It might be the thing I love the most about my team: they keep fighting.”
The Blue Devils will have to wait a little longer to establish an ACC winning streak.
The Blue Devils went into the game appearing to have a desire to leverage their ability to pass and use their speed and accuracy on the mid to long range shot against Notre Dame’s defense.
The 15th-ranked Blue Devils bounced back Sunday against No. 17 Notre Dame, defeating the Fighting Irish 72-70.
Duke came into the season with a versatile roster, capable of playing a variety of styles and stretching defenses in different ways.
The loss of Shayeann Day-Wilson, the team’s leader in 3-pointers this season, made a huge difference given that Duke ended the night with only a 3-of-18 clip from 3-point range to Virginia Tech’s 9-of-22.
Duke dominated the game throughout, but Tuesday’s matchup against Charleston Southern was nothing of the ordinary for the squad. For the first time this season, every member of the roster saw game time.
Even within the first few minutes, it was clear that Duke would be taking the win back to Durham. It posted 20 points to Charleston Southern’s 10 within the first quarter, led by 16 at half-time and surrendered only 35 points at the final whistle, its lowest all year.
With Duke women's basketball ranked once again in Monday's AP Poll, the Blue Zone is here with our thoughts on the latest rankings.
Duke will have to wait another game to actually play its first ACC contest.
Duke only notched seven points in the first quarter, with two of those from the line. The second quarter, while better, was still not enough for head coach Kara Lawson’s squad, as the team shot 29% from the field and trailed South Carolina by 16 at half-time.
Duke’s 55-46 loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium Wednesday was not the outcome the Blue Devil faithful wanted, but it’s clear that head coach Kara Lawson and her squad have started a new brand of Duke women’s basketball.
