WBB - Duke vs. USC (the better Carolina) 12/4 14:00 EST

[DU82]

The women tip off against the South Carolina Gamecocks (hens?) who come into Cameron number three in the polls.

They beat us at the buzzer two years after a steal near the sideline. Our guard play is much better (we actually have guards) but the inside game isn't as strong. We'all see what they can do against Wilson in the middle.

Decent number of 'Cock fans here, but not as many as I thought. (They are loud, though.)

[uh_no]

on watchESPN for those interested.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Wow, great end to the 1st quarter after a disastrous looking start.
16-14 USC lead. (We had been down double digits.)

[CameronBornAndBred]

And we now have a 10 point lead. Cameron is electric. :)

[DU82]

3:21 left in the second. 32-22 DUKE!

Since going down 14-4, the duke team has pushed tempo, driving and dishing efficiently, and playing much better D.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Very impressed with Mathias, she is making the most of her first start.

[burnspbesq]

Duke leads by seven at the half. Hands in passing lanes leading to ten steals.

[DU82]

At the half, 36-29. They got an open three (after good ball reversal) and two inside shots, but our defense is still playing tough. USC seems rattled, especially after the run to a ten point lead, but after the TO, has settled down a bit.

We need to come out at the start of the second half with energy, keep pushing on O and D.

[DU82]

Very impressed with Mathias, she is making the most of her first start.

She didn't start. She started a few at the start of the season, but after a couple ineffective games was replaced by Kendall. Erin knows what to do out there, it's been a matter of experience and confidence. She has confidence today.

[CameronBornAndBred]

She didn't start. She started a few at the start of the season, but after a couple ineffective games was replaced by Kendall. Erin knows what to do out there, it's been a matter of experience and confidence. She has confidence today.

Ahhh..gotcha. I misheard announcer, then. Either way, she is impressing me. I like the look of her shot, and of course you can't teach size, but you can teach how to use it.

I was worried when I tuned in and saw were were down 10 (14-4), but have enjoyed watching us stand up in the face of adversity. The crowd has sounded really into the game as well. Keep it up, Blue Devils!

[uh_no]

Duke leads by seven at the half. Hands in passing lanes leading to ten steals.

they're making USC look really bad. generating a ton of points off the defense as well

[CameronBornAndBred]

The crowd has sounded really into the game as well.

Camera showed a shot of the Crusties section, all "Gamecock Nation". The announcer said they brought in three buses of fans, and regularly have over 11K in attendance at home games. A lot of men's teams would be happy to have those numbers.

[CameronBornAndBred]

12 point lead at end of 3rd quarter. Until today, South Carolina had only "lost" three quarters.

Side note, I heart Odom. She is going to be amazing to watch.

[DU82]

Camera showed a shot of the Crusties section, all "Gamecock Nation". The announcer said they brought in three buses of fans, and regularly have over 11K in attendance at home games. A lot of men's teams would be happy to have those numbers.

They're all in the corner behind the USC bench. The crowd is still majority blue.

[CameronBornAndBred]

They're all in the corner behind the USC bench. The crowd is still majority blue.

Yay! I have been at too many Duke-(Evil)Carolina games where it felt like we were drowned out by baby blue.

The women have held strong all game, still enjoying a lead late in the 4th and feeling a major upset.

[OldPhiKap]

Camera showed a shot of the Crusties section, all "Gamecock Nation". The announcer said they brought in three buses of fans, and regularly have over 11K in attendance at home games. A lot of men's teams would be happy to have those numbers.

No doubt. The best we ever do is 9,314 give or take.

[burnspbesq]

Huge.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Our House!!!!

[fisheyes]

Great win for the women today!
In years past they would find a way to lose this one but today they looked great!
A new beginning?
Too soon to say?

[DukieInKansas]

I take it we won.
Way to go!

[SCMatt33]

Great job closing that out in the last few minutes. They had a couple of really bad possessions to let the, close to within 5, but really buckled down on D and handed the full court press very well. Congrats ladies!

[OldPhiKap]

Big congrats to the team!

[dudog84]

THIS...is what this team is capable of. Great job ladies!

[burnspbesq]

Duke's post players combined for 21 points and 16 rebounds while holding Wilson and Coates to a total of 26 and 11. Mathias had some huge defensive plays down the stretch.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I never felt today that South Carolina was having a bad game, so that bodes really well for us. This is only the second game I've been able to watch, but I got the sense that we are more of a team than we have been in a long while, which also bodes really well for us. Combine this team getting better (feel free to look back a few threads at the post-Vandy game) and us gelling; I like that recipe.

[CameronBornAndBred]

PS...welcome back to the polls.

[DukePA]

PS...welcome back to the polls.

Very well done, Duke!!! What a solid win!!!

[killerleft]

Great win! My WatchEspn feed was horrible. Hoping to see a nice quality replay. Greenwell must have been cooking, I could smell that Chicken Pie!:)

[burnspbesq]

http://www.thestate.com/sports/college/university-of-south-carolina/usc-womens-basketball/article118828813.html

[chrishoke]

South Carolina beat three top-15 teams in their first six games – all on the road. They are a legit top 3 team nationally. This is our best win in years.

[jimsumner]

This was a real good win, for a number of reasons.

The first is that South Carolina is pretty good. Their 6-0 record included a 12-point win over then sixth-ranked Ohio State, a nine-point win over then 15th-ranked Texas and perhaps most impressively, an 83-59 demolition of then fourth-ranked Louisville. The first two were on the road, while the Louisville game was in Springfield, Massachusetts.

South Carolina starts two former ACC stars, Kaela Davis (Georgia Tech) and Allisha Gray (UNC). They also have a top-notch twin towers, 6-5 junior A'Ja Wilson and 6-4 senior Alaina Coates.

Wilson is the likely top pick in the 2018 WNBA draft. She's that good.

But Duke exposed two flaws. South Carolina is replacing Tiffany Mitchell, an All-America point guard and its a work in progress. South Carolina tried two players at point and they combined for three assists and eight turnovers.

South Carolina also doesn't have much of a bench. Their reserves combined for three points, five rebounds, two assists and seven turnovers in 38 minutes.

And this wasn't one of those magical games where everything went right. Duke had to work through some adversity. Duke only had eight assists on 30 field goals and turned it over 16 times. South Carolina concentrated on taking Lexie Brown out of her game and was successfully, hounding Brown into 3-11 shooting and six turnovers.

But Duke found ways and did so in such a manner that they answered many of the questions that have plagued the program recently.

There were several here-we-go-again-moments. Duke was tight out of the gate and fell behind 16-5. Blow-out ahead?

No. McCallie called off the press and Duke's zone started making it difficult to pound the ball inside.

Duke ran off 13 straight points, including Oderah Chidom's first career 3-pointer, a buzzer-beater at the end of the first period.

And South Carolina's attention to Brown left other people open, most notably Rebecca Greenwell, who definitely shouldn't be left open.

Duke outscored South Carolina 22-13 in the second and went into the locker room up 36-29.

Everybody expected a South Carolina run or two and there were several. And Duke hasn't always been able to withstand pressure like this. They had South Carolina on the ropes in Cameron two seasons ago, Texas A&M last season and couldn't finish off either.

But this time was different. South Carolina got as close as five points on six different occasions in the second half. But showing poise, discipline and mental toughness not always evident in recent years, Duke never let the favorites come any closer.

And most of the big plays took place on defense. Chidom stuffed Wilson on the blocks, Erin Mathias had a huge steal on an entry lob to Wilson, Brown drew a charge and freshman Leaonna Odom came up with five steals.

Mathias and Odom made big contributions off the bench, in contrast to South Carolina. And Greenwell kept hitting, the biggest shots a 3-pointer that put Duke up 62-54, with about five minutes left and a two-pointer that put Duke up 64-57.

She ended with 29 points, 9-15 from the field (4-7 on 3s) and 7-8 from the line. And Duke had 14 steals, while holding South Carolina to 6-23 on 3s.

Dawn Staley admitted that Duke forced her team into losing its patience and making bad decisions.

I admit I was skeptical after the loss at Vanderbilt. The Commodores are 7-1 but Duke is their only P-5 victim. But this Duke team showed me a lot today and there's a lot to build on, especially when Haley Gorecki gets back to add some perimeter depth--neither Crystal Primm nor Faith Suggs got off the bench today.

It looks like Gorecki's arrival date will be early January.

Before then Duke will host both Kentucky and Louisville--Louisville beat Kentucky today in OT--and we will have a better idea whether this was a one-off or a sign that Duke is ready to return to the national elite. But right now this is one of Duke's best wins in years.

[Kedsy]

YES! Great win.

(no need for analysis after Jim Sumner's excellent post)

[CameronBornAndBred]

and freshman Leaonna Odom came up with five steals.


Two of which she turned into long running fast break layups. Emphasis on fast. :cool:

[Class of '94]

I admit that I haven't watched many of the games this year because of the reports that came out during the summer; but I want to give Coach McCallie and the team credit for a great win against USC. I hope this is a sign of great things to come for this team and the coach because I want the best for them. Everyone around the program deserves a streak of good fortune and great wins.

For people who have watched this team more this year than I have, does this team have a chance to compete with ND for the ACC; and get to a sweet 16 or further this year? I know its still early but was just curious to get feedback from those closer to the program.

[Kedsy]

does this team have a chance to compete with ND for the ACC

My guess is we'll play Notre Dame relatively close at home, but as for competing for the ACC title against the #1 team in the country? Probably not.


and get to a sweet 16 or further this year?

This in my opinion we have a really good chance to achieve.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I admit that I haven't watched many of the games this year because of the reports that came out during the summer; but I want to give Coach McCallie and the team credit for a great win against USC. I hope this is a sign of great things to come for this team and the coach because I want the best for them. Everyone around the program deserves a streak of good fortune and great wins.


Last year was the final straw for me as I went from Coach P supporter to detractor, and that was before the reports of the investigation came out. But, mine is a fan's perspective, not a player's, and the latter is more important. I enjoyed watching this video of Oderah talking about her coach after the game.


Chidom: It was emotionally overwhelming and to share that with my head coach was a great feeling



http://www.wralsportsfan.com/duke/video/16305827/

[burnspbesq]

Becca's 29-point Sunday gets her espnW's player of the week.

http://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/18208817/duke-blue-devils-rebecca-greenwell-espnw-player-week

Note the familiar name among the runners-up.

[bluedevilsince72]

Was it packed today? What was the attendance (from someone at the game)? Was the top mostly full? Im curious if the recent summer investigations and P's harsh comments on players that transferred have affected attendance.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Becca's 29-point Sunday gets her espnW's player of the week.

http://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/18208817/duke-blue-devils-rebecca-greenwell-espnw-player-week

Note the familiar name among the runners-up.

Very cool, and very cool. Would love to have Alexis still in a Duke uniform, but it's nice to see she is doing well at Baylor.

[Bike4Fun]

I just have not been happy the past few years about the progress of our teams throughout the season. I've been critical.
This was a really well coached game by Joanne, and I thought that well before the outcome was certain. Of course it helped that our girls delivered and knocked down some shots. Of course it helped that we got some great defensive stops. But, I felt our offensive scheme was really good. We went high-low post, drawing one of their tall defenders away from the basket. We actually set screens to get us open for shots. We had good help defense. We crashed the boards to rebound. Even our subs were timely, getting players a rest when they needed it and maximizing their rest just before the quarter. All the right strings were pulled. And, I honestly felt that way well before the win. Good job team!