WBB: Duke 117, NC Central 28 (!)

[dukelifer]

Duke up by 56 at the half. Central has 9 points. If duke does not score another point-Central will still probably lose by double digits.

[uh_no]

they only won by 89.....couldn't push it up to 100

[Gargoyle]

Alexis Rogers had 11 points, 3 rebounds and 4 steals in eight minutes. If she could be a little more efficient, I bet she would get some playing time.

[roywhite]

they only won by 89.....couldn't push it up to 100

117 to 28....yikes!

[jimsumner]

45 NCCU turnovers, a Duke school-record 31 steals, a school-record 89-point margin of victory, 35 assists, 51 points off the bench, 60 points off turnovers, a 47-2 advantage in fast-break points.

Duke had nine players in double figures, while Central's leading scorers (2) had six points apiece.

Stat lines from Alice in Wonderland.

[dukelifer]

117 to 28....yikes!

And it wasn't even that close. Duke missed a few easy shots down the stretch - it could have been 100 points.

[BlueDevilBaby]

I am suddenly reliving my first two seasons of hs basketball during which we did not win ONE game! Honestly. We lost a game 100 something to 18 to one of the best teams in the state at the time. Although I'm happy for the Duke women, I sure do feel for NCCU. Been there.

[miramar]

45 NCCU turnovers, a Duke school-record 31 steals, a school-record 89-point margin of victory, 35 assists, 51 points off the bench, 60 points off turnovers, a 47-2 advantage in fast-break points.


I don't know what's more incredible, the 35 assists or the 60-1 on points off turnovers. That hurts just to read.

The starters only averaged 22 minutes so it's not like Coach P was piling on. I know that Central's leading scorer was serving a one-game suspension, but maybe this rivalry needs to be put on hold for a couple of years. They have only been in Division I and they need a little more time.

[uh_no]

but maybe this rivalry needs to be put on hold for a couple of years. They have only been in Division I and they need a little more time.

I'm sure NCCU is getting a big fat check for playing duke at CIS....they'll take the beating and get $$....

[Kedsy]

I'm sure NCCU is getting a big fat check for playing duke at CIS....they'll take the beating and get $$....

You think they'll really get that big a check for this game? I don't think the game was on TV, and it was during break so it's hard to imagine too much of a gate. This is not intended as a slight, but I highly doubt the women's games make anywhere near the money that the men's games do, for either team.

[Lid]

You think they'll really get that big a check for this game? I don't think the game was on TV, and it was during break so it's hard to imagine too much of a gate. This is not intended as a slight, but I highly doubt the women's games make anywhere near the money that the men's games do, for either team.
Definitely, it's nothing like a men's game, but there was actually a good-size crowd there last night. Very few students typically come to the women's games, it's mostly Durhamites, so having a break game doesn't seem to affect attendance negatively much (if at all). In fact, the fact that it wasn't a school night probably helped, since so many families come.

That said, more people doesn't necessarily = lots of money, since women's tickets are so cheap.

[CameronBornAndBred]

That must have been some amazing defense. I hate reading comments like Dukelifer's about the missed easy shots, that will always drive me batty and it kills us in the close games, but as long as they keep playing great D they give themselves a chance in the tougher games.

[Indoor66]

That must have been some amazing defense. I hate reading comments like Dukelifer's about the missed easy shots, that will always drive me batty and it kills us in the close games, but as long as they keep playing great D they give themselves a chance in the tougher games.

One thing I have noticed after watching a lot of basketball games - both the men and women - is that shots are a lot easier when viewed from the stands than they are when attempted on the court.

[jimsumner]

FWIW, following the game, Coach Robinson was gently lobbying for Duke to play Central at Central.

Duke DID miss a number of pretty easy shots in the second half and did miss 10 of 23 foul shots, so it actually could have been worse.

Then again, how much experience do you have maintaining intensity and focus with an eighty-point lead?

[uh_no]

You think they'll really get that big a check for this game? I don't think the game was on TV, and it was during break so it's hard to imagine too much of a gate. This is not intended as a slight, but I highly doubt the women's games make anywhere near the money that the men's games do, for either team.

the money is arranged well beforehand....a couple of grand is likely for playing a top team like duke....

[MHTorringjan]

Last night's game was something surreal to watch, with us up 22-0 five minutes in. I hope that we can keep that offensive focus against UConn (doubtful, but a guy can hope, right?) What helped was that the outside shots were falling better than any other night I've seen this season. NCCU is less athletic and smaller, so the outcome isn't particularly surprising, but our score was incredibly satisfying after some 60 and 70-point outings.

Individual performances: As mentioned, Alexis was everywhere in her limited time on the court, making heads up plays and getting easy points off of turnovers that she created. Allison played very strongly in the post with some very smooth moves and nice baskets. Karima had some very heads-up plays, and contributed strongly on offense and defense both while she was on the court.

I felt kind of bad for NCCU, but they played their hearts out and just ran into a much more athletic team who was coached to not let up until the final buzzer. They had streaks where they handled the press pretty well and stretches where they couldn't get the ball in bounds. They came out much stronger in the second half, but wilted under the pressure after a while. FWIW, I think it'd be nice to play a game at NCCU. It's still in the home-town, which means not much of a bus-ride, and it'd be a nice gesture to a school that we respect and have such a long history with.

The crowd was pretty good last night, which was surprising for the holiday game against NCCU. Hopefully, that'll continue for the next game.

[roywhite]

I'm all for a good neighbor policy with regards to a cross-town institution, but is a total mismatch a good thing?

[jimsumner]

"I'm all for a good neighbor policy with regards to a cross-town institution, but is a total mismatch a good thing? "

That's a good question and I'm pretty sure the "rivalry" can't stand too many 89-point differentials.

I don't think Central is likely to be at Duke's level in this reality but I think last night was an outlier. Central still is transitioning to D-1 and it ain't pretty. They've only won once this year. They have a very young team, a very small team and their best player was suspended. Coach Robinson is finding out the hard way that recruiting for D-1 is a different can of worms.

But give her a few more years. This year's freshmen will be juniors, Central will be stabilized in the MEAC, their home/road schedule will become more balanced and the program as a whole will be more attractive to recruits.

[SupaDave]

I'm all for a good neighbor policy with regards to a cross-town institution, but is a total mismatch a good thing?

NCCU has had it's ups and downs with some great years inbetween. I wouldn't be surprised to see them get stronger soon.

I had the priviledge of being in high school when NCCU won the DII National Championship in 1989 and Duke won the DI in the following years. Many folks don't recall the gloriousness of Durham basketball in that time. One of the reasons I'm still an addict this very day.

[UrinalCake]

I'm sure NCCU is getting a big fat check for playing duke at CIS....they'll take the beating and get $$....

More specifically, the PLAYERS will take the beating while the SCHOOL gets the $$.

Games like this serve as a reminder that the depth in the women's game just isn't there. You could take the worst men's team in all of Division I and have them play Kansas or Texas and the margin of victory wouldn't be nearly this big.

[Greg_Newton]

I felt kind of bad for NCCU, but they played their hearts out and just ran into a much more athletic team who was coached to not let up until the final buzzer. They had streaks where they handled the press pretty well and stretches where they couldn't get the ball in bounds. They came out much stronger in the second half, but wilted under the pressure after a while. FWIW, I think it'd be nice to play a game at NCCU. It's still in the home-town, which means not much of a bus-ride, and it'd be a nice gesture to a school that we respect and have such a long history with.

I think I must be interpreting this incorrectly - Duke wasn't pressing full-court in the second half, were they?

[SupaDave]

More specifically, the PLAYERS will take the beating while the SCHOOL gets the $$.

Games like this serve as a reminder that the depth in the women's game just isn't there. You could take the worst men's team in all of Division I and have them play Kansas or Texas and the margin of victory wouldn't be nearly this big.

I wouldn't say all that. Some teams have gotten absolutely stomped this year...

[DU82]

More specifically, the PLAYERS will take the beating while the SCHOOL gets the $$.


Getting a scholarship to college isn't chump change. Witness the young lady during one of the timeouts at the Long Beach State men's game tonight being awarded a full Army ROTC scholarship to Duke in the neighborhood of $170K. Obviously, in-state tuition/room/fees for NC Central isn't as much, but it's still pretty good for playing a game.

And for the NCCU women, I'm sure whatever they got from Duke for the game is a small fraction of the costs of the program. At least they got to bank most of it, since expenses were minimal. (I'm sure that's a reason why they're happy to schedule Duke and the evil smurfs next door these first years in D1.)

[MHTorringjan]

I think I must be interpreting this incorrectly - Duke wasn't pressing full-court in the second half, were they?

Well, I thought I remembered that they used the press sparingly throughout the game, and when NCCU inbounded the ball off of dead-balls or fast-breaks, we were there to press. And while I thought I remembered them using the press sparingly in the second half, I may be mistaken. Anyway, that statement in bold was meant to reference general defensive pressure, not the specific back-court press. Either way, I could be wrong, whole games tend to mash up in my memory, making it difficult to remember when individual plays happened. :confused: My apologies for the lack of clarity.

[MHTorringjan]

I wouldn't say all that. Some teams have gotten absolutely stomped this year...

Yeah, remember NJIT and the Savannah State of a couple of years ago? Sure, 89 points is a *teensy* bit larger, but they still got pretty trounced.

[Greg_Newton]

Well, I thought I remembered that they used the press sparingly throughout the game, and when NCCU inbounded the ball off of dead-balls or fast-breaks, we were there to press. And while I thought I remembered them using the press sparingly in the second half, I may be mistaken. Anyway, that statement in bold was meant to reference general defensive pressure, not the specific back-court press. Either way, I could be wrong, whole games tend to mash up in my memory, making it difficult to remember when individual plays happened. :confused: My apologies for the lack of clarity.

Oh, no worries - I just asked because I would hate to hear we were full-court pressing after being up 58-9 at halftime. Thanks for the clarification!