2024-25 DWBB Season

Stats v. Belmont, 11/21

Here are the numbers from last Thursday's game against the Belmont University Bruins at Cameron:


OFFENSE
Possessions: 73.0 (back to the faster pace we seem to have adopted this year)
oRtg: 1.083 (very good; 1.145 adj., 3rd per Torvik)
eFG%: 60.3% (outstanding, best of the season to date)
3pt%: 42.9% (very good)
2pt%: 59.1% (excellent)
%three: 24.1% (low, but we were scoring from everywhere)
FT rate: 20.7% (very badl)
OR%: 50.0% (outstanding)
TO%: 32.9% (terrible, terrible, terrible)
a/to: 0.708 (bad - worst of the young season)
%assisted: 53.1% (decent)
fast break pts: 15 (19.0%) (good)

DEFENSE
dRtg: 0.644 (not so hot; 0.860 adj., 59th per Torvik)
deFG%: 37.5% (very good)
3pt%: 31.3% (too high)
2pt%: 34.1% (excellent)
%threes: 26.7% (good)
FT rate: 10.0% (outstanding)
DR%: 76.2% (good)
TO%: 27.4% (good)
a/to: 0.400 (excellent)
%assisted: 40.0% (good)
stl%: 11.0% (bad)
blk%: 18.2% (excellent)
fast break pts: 6 (12.8%) (pretty good)


Again, I'll refrain from further comment until I see how things shake out with Duke.
 
Duke WBB faces Kansas State on Monday 11/25 at 3pm ET on FloHoops (sign up link, listen, live stats)

The #14 Blue Devils play the #10 Kansas State Wildcats on Monday, just outside of Las Vegas, in Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada, at noon local time (3pm ET). This game is part of a 4-team event called the Ball Dawgs Classic; #9 Oklahoma takes on DePaul in the second game of the doubleheader. The teams that win will play a championship game on Wednesday, while the teams that don't win will play a consolation game.

Normally I don't say much about the viewing experience until game day, but the Ball Dawgs Classic will be broadcast exclusively by FloHoops, a streaming service that requires a subscription of $30 per month or $150 per year. (I'm vaguely familiar with FloHoops because they covered various overseas exhibitions in the summer, especially in the Caribbean.)

I'm not sure if those prices are still correct, or possibly higher, because FloHoops is not upfront about their cost, despite an otherwise thorough Support section. As I understand it, there is no free trial, and the user experience is not very positive. They say you can cancel anytime, but keep in mind that the subscription keeps renewing if you don't cancel, and there are no refunds. More than a few people will choose the yearly rate because they think that it's less per month, and that they can just cancel after a month and pay the reduced rate. This is NOT the case. They are billed the full $150, or whatever the yearly amount is, and the only advantage to cancelling is that they won't be charged again for a second year.

These two games in the Ball Dawgs Classic are the only two on Duke's schedule that will air on FloHoops. I'm not sure if you'll find much other content on their service that would be of interest -- maybe some other holiday tournaments. They contract with many Division II and Division III conferences, and might handle a few Division I non-revenue sports like wrestling, maybe. Connecticut fan board The Boneyard has an Official FloHoops Thread with some specific complaints from its members, and not the standard "my team keeps winning championships but I've chosen to continue being miserable" kind of complaints. Virginia's The Sabre has a post from last year that sums up the frustration:

I hate FloSports. They have no PPV option or even a day pass or weekend pass, although sometimes participating schools will arrange something cheaper, like $10 for single game. Othewise, at a minimum, it's $30 for a month or $150 for a year, i.e., $12.50/month, which of course, is the price they highlight, tricking you into going that route with the idea of canceling "at any time", but with no mention of any refund, just no auto renewal. It's simply not worth the aggravation for 1 or 2 games, especially given often the poor quality of some of their streams. For example, I did it for one of our non-rev games at GWU or GU, I forget which, and either the audio or video or both were out for about half the game. When I complained to FloSports and requested a refund, the basically said tough noogies. I ultimately shamed them down to about half price after having to endure such arguments from them as, well you got to see half the game, and you still got a month of subscription. Schools/conferences that have elected to go the FloSports route should be ashamed of themselves and in my estimation, it should be boycotted. It's simply a terrible rip-off for visiting OOC opponents.

So even the quality of the broadcast may not be all that great. I recall seeing some of an exhibition game of the Arkansas men's team, maybe two summers ago, and the production value was very basic. Maybe a single camera in the stands and an announcer who was watching it remotely?

Caveat emptor: you can choose to subscribe, or not. I will listen to the game and follow live stats, but I will not be watching.

I'll provide a game preview later this weekend.
 
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These two games in the Ball Dawgs Classic are the only two on Duke's schedule that will air on FloHoops.

Caveat emptor: you can choose to subscribe, or not. I will listen to the game and follow live stats, but I will not be watching.
Even just the Wikipedia entry makes the company look pretty sketchy. They've also been part of at least one pretty weird lawsuit. Do what you want, but I'm not touching that company with a ten foot pole.
 
Even just the Wikipedia entry makes the company look pretty sketchy. They've also been part of at least one pretty weird lawsuit. Do what you want, but I'm not touching that company with a ten foot pole.
A while back I subscribed to FloSports to watch a Duke Softball game and soon regretted it. I only did the monthly subscription but soon realized that it was continuing without notice and it was not so easy to cancel, but I did. I agree FloSports are shady and not worth the aggravation for an early season non-conference game.
 
A better option would be to check with your local sports bars to see if any carry it. Won't be much competition for TVs at 3:00 EST on a Monday afternoon.
 
Duke WBB faces Kansas State on Monday 11/25 at 3pm ET on FloHoops (sign up link, listen, live stats)

...I'll provide a game preview later this weekend.

At least a couple of people in this thread have expressed concerns about Duke's size this season, and their ability to handle opponents who are strong in the post, now that Kennedy Brown and Camilla Emsbo have graduated, and 6-4 freshman Arianna Roberson has a season-ending injury. I've replied by providing a breakdown of the frontcourts on each ACC roster to show that Duke has no great disadvantage.

Well, that's conference play. The Ball Dawgs Classic presents a unique challenge because it will feature two of the nation's best centers: Ayoka Lee of Kansas State and Raegan Beers of Oklahoma. Depending on Monday's outcomes, Duke may or may not play Beers and Oklahoma on Wednesday, so let's focus on Lee and KSU.

In 2022, Ayoka Lee scored 61 points in a single game, which is an NCAA Division I record (tracking games since 1982). To put that in context, here are some recognizable names on the all-time list: Kelsey Plum had 57, Jackie Stiles had 56, Elena Delle Donne had 54, and Sheryl Swoopes had 53. Brittney Griner previously held the Big 12 record with 50. (That slacker Caitlin Clark never scored more than 49.) And Lee wasn't tormenting some overmatched opponent; it was a Big 12 matchup against, of all teams, Oklahoma, which was ranked 14th at the time. Swish has her highlights from that game:


The final score was 94-65, and looking at the play-by-play, Lee herself was outscoring the entire Sooners team late into the third quarter (43-42) and last tied them with 6:49 left in the fourth quarter (53-53). ESPN's Charlie Creme said, "Ayoka Lee probably can't outscore Oklahoma by herself, but the fact that she is close this deep in the game is incredible. What a performance in Manhattan."

The Wildcats had 28 assists for 33 made field goals in that game, and 8 of those assists came from point guard Serena Sundell, now a fifth-year senior. Hoops HD spoke with Sundell to preview KSU's season:

"We are not shying away from anything: we want to win a Big 12 title. The rankings do not matter right now so we just block it out. We have a lot of experience/talent, so it is up to us as to what we want to do with it. We are continuing to push each other: when Ayoka Lee decided to return, that is what she texted all of us. It would be great to host a game in March Madness or make the Final 4 so we will set our goals high. I do not have any specific personal goals but will just try to make the right plays/reads. I want to limit my turnovers and make more free throws but mostly just win as a unit."

Jeff Mittie is in his 11th season as head coach of Kansas State. Last year his team finished 3rd in the Big 12, behind Oklahoma and Texas. Those two teams are now in the SEC, so it's not surprising to see KSU picked 1st in the Big 12 preseason poll. Meanwhile, Lee was named the league's preseason Player of the Year, and both she and Sundell made the 10-player All-Conference Team. When previewing the Big 12, The Next pointed out that "the Wildcats return over 85% of their scoring and 87% of their rebounding from a team that was a No. 4 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament."

During the Big 12's Media Day, ESPN interviewed Coach Mittie and Ayoka Lee:


KSU is 5-0 so far, playing all 5 games on their home floor, so Monday's game is their first away from friendly confines. Their best win is probably against Creighton, a team that ranked #21 in the preseason (86-68: recap, box score, highlights). There's also a common opponent; they played Belmont before Duke did, and beat them without Lee in their lineup (82-56: recap, box score, highlights).

Here's a breakdown of their roster.

PROBABLE STARTERS

6-6 grad center Ayoka Lee (19.0 pts, 6.3 reb, 0.3 ast, 1.5 blk)
6-2 senior forward Temira Poindexter (12.6 pts, 3.4 reb, 2.6 ast, 1.8 stl, 1.6 blk)
5-11 sophomore guard Zyanna Walker (11.2 pts, 5.2 reb, 6.2 ast, 1.6 stl)
6-1 senior guard Jaelyn Glenn (10.0 pts, 4.6 reb, 3.2 ast, 1.6 stl)
6-2 senior guard Serena Sundell (10.0 pts, 4.6 reb, 4.6 ast, 1.2 stl)

TOP RESERVES

6-2 senior forward Kennedy Taylor (10.6 pts, 6.2 reb, 0.2 ast)
5-7 sophomore guard Taryn Sides (9.3 pts, 4.5 reb, 2.3 ast, 1.0 stl)
6-4 junior forward Gisela Sanchez (6.4 pts, 4.4 reb, 2.4 ast)
6-3 junior forward Eliza Maupin (3.6 pts, 4.2 reb, 0.4 ast
6-4 sophomore forward Imani Lester (1.8 pts, 4.0 reb, 0.6 ast)

BENCH PLAYERS

5-11 senior guard Brylee Glenn
6-1 redshirt freshman forward Alexis Hess
6-1 freshman guard Finley Ohnstad
5-10 redshirt sophomore guard Mikayla Parks

That's a tall team. Four of the starters return from last season, and the fifth, small forward Temira Poindexter, averaged 21 points for Tulsa in 2023-2024 and was named AAC Player of the Year. Sundell, Poindexter, and Lee were all named to the Top 20 preseason watch lists of the Naismith Starting Five awards in their respective positions.

Now in her seventh year (!), Ayoka Lee is probably one of the most experienced collegians in the sport; she redshirted in 2018-2019 and 2022-2023 due to injuries, and will complete her eligibility in the spring.

Lee is usually a double-double machine, but this season the rebounding distribution is a bit more egalitarian. Nine of the ten players in their rotation average at least 4 rebounds a game, and the tenth one averages 3.4.

Minutes are also widespread, with 6 players averaging between 20-29 minutes per game, and none of them are Lee. She's getting her 19 point average at under 15 minutes per game.

Basketball Reference shows that the Wildcats shoot well from the field: 51.0 percent (7th nationally) and 35.4 percent from three (69th). Meanwhile, they are holding opponents to 31.4 percent overall (8th best) and 24.7 percent from outside (55th). They are 71.2 percent at the line, which is above average (137th). They are fairly elite at rebounds (4th), assists (5th), points and blocks (both 13th).

According to GoDuke, these two teams have played each other just once before, almost exactly 20 years ago, in a 2004 game in the Bahamas shortly after Thanksgiving 2004. Duke won that game 61-53.

Bart Torvik had KSU ranked #11 in the preseason, and they are #7 now. It's close, but he is predicting the Cats to win, 70-68. (Actually, he has them favored in every remaining game in their schedule, with the only closer margin in their game at West Virginia.)
 
Probably? 😆 She was in Onome Akinbode-James' class!
Maybe it’s a good thing that we can’t watch this game, it could get ugly. I imagine we will really need to pressure their guards and make entry passes as difficult as possible. Go Duke!
 
Duke WBB faces Kansas State on Monday 11/25 at 3pm ET on FloHoops (sign up link, listen, live stats)

It's game day. Here are Duke's preview and PDF game notes, and Kansas State's preview and PDF game notes.

A pair of Las Vegas announcers, radio/podcast host Tony Cordasco (profile) and TV reporter Kevaney Martin (bio), will call the game for FloHoops/FloCollege/FloSports, or whatever it's called.

Duke WBB did some nice work with the image below; let KSU think that Oluchi Okananwa is as tall as our frontcourt players. But how will they fit into the arena?

wbb20241125.jpg
(source)

Watching: I started a brief discussion of the perils of a FloHoops subscription here.

Listening: The Blue Devil Sports Network is free on the web or on the Varsity app. For Sirius XM subscribers, it should be on channel 208 or 193. In the alternative, the K-State Sports Network (also web/Varsity app) will broadcast the game.

Following: Keep track of live stats from StatBroadcast.
 
The South Carolina streak is over.

And it wasn't close.

Pun intended?

#5 UCLA 77, #1 South Carolina 62 (recap, box score, highlights, presser)



UCLA head coach Cori Close: "This game is about our program, and where we're going... Dawn Staley set the tone of what women's basketball excellence should be over the last several years, and I just have so much respect for her, for her staff, for the way they have a global view of the game, and so this obviously means a lot because of the respect we have. That being said, we expected to win..."
 
Pun intended?

#5 UCLA 77, #1 South Carolina 62 (recap, box score, highlights, presser)



UCLA head coach Cori Close: "This game is about our program, and where we're going... Dawn Staley set the tone of what women's basketball excellence should be over the last several years, and I just have so much respect for her, for her staff, for the way they have a global view of the game, and so this obviously means a lot because of the respect we have. That being said, we expected to win..."
As long as we don't tie in Glenn Close and start cooking up those bunny boiler puns.
 
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