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THE OPENING COUNCIL
With the non-conference slate in the rear view mirror, Duke turns his attention to the ACC game as the Blue Devils prepare to host Virginia in the conference opener on Wednesday, December 21 at 7 p.m. Dean Linke and Debbie Taylor will call the action on ACCNX as Chris Edwards announces the game on the radio on Learfield’s Blue Devil Sports Network. Duke is 32-14 all-time in his first ACC games and 19-6 when playing at Cameron. Defense has been the calling card of the Blue Devils this season, as the team won each of its games by an average of 28.6 points, held each of its opponents below its league scoring average, season, including eight of the 11 on 50 points or less. Duke has held foes to 48.5 points per game on 31.9 percent shooting from the ground, marks that currently rank third and fourth in the NCAA, respectively, as well as first in the ACC (a as of 12/19/22). The Blue Devils also rank 14th and 18th, respectively, in the NCAA in scoring margin (+23.5) and rebounding margin (+11.3). Duke is currently ranked #10 in the 2022-23 NCAA NET Rankings. Junior red t-shirt jordyn oliver he is No. 4 nationally and first in the ACC with a 5.00 assist-to-turnover ratio (as of 12.19.22). He has totaled 45 assists with just nine turnovers and leads the team with 4.1 assists per game. With his jumper at 2:27 of the fourth quarter in Duke’s 71-48 win at FGCU, celeste taylor he reached 1,000 career points, becoming the second Blue Devil in as many seasons to achieve the benchmark. Duke has gotten a big boost from their reserves, averaging 32.9 points off the bench. In 75 all-time meetings between the two schools, Duke holds a 40-35 lead over Virginia. The teams split their two matchups during the 2021-22 campaign, with the Blue Devils and Cavaliers posting victories on their respective home courts.
SHARING THE WEALTH
The duke senior quintet Isabel Balogunjunior kennedy brownsophomores Shayeann Day-Wilson Y reigan richardson and older celeste taylor have provided a steady hand for the Blue Devils this season, combining for 61.9 percent (44.6 points) of the team’s 72.0 points per game. Taylor has reached double digits in seven of 11 games this season, followed by Balogun’s six, with Brown and Richardson each adding five double-digit games. Day-Wilson has posted three double-digit scoring efforts. Taylor leads Duke’s offensive charge, averaging 11.2 points per game with Balogun (10.6) and Brown (8.9) just behind in second and third. Richardson and Day-Wilson round out the group with 7.6 and 6.8 points per game, respectively. Duke’s depth has been on full display as the Blue Devils have fielded seven different leading scorers in 11 games this season, with Balogun (4) and Taylor (2) finishing team-high on multiple occasions. Compared to teams ranked in the top 25 of the NET rankings, the top seven different leading scorers are tied for second with Stanford; only NC State has filed more (8). The team has 11 players averaging at least 13 minutes per game, three of them averaging more than 20 minutes per contest: celeste taylor (25.0 mpg), kennedy brown (21.7 mpg) and Shayeann Day-Wilson (21.7 mpg). As a team, Duke ranks fourth in the ACC in field goal percentage (.461) and has assisted on 190 of their 311 field goals (.612) for an average of 17.3 dimes per game, No. 3 in the ACC. Junior red t-shirt jordyn oliver checks in at No. 4 nationally and first in the ACC (as of 12/19/22) with a 5.00 assist-to-turnover ratio. He leads the team with 4.0 assists per game.
BREAK THE PEACE – ELITE BLUE DEVIL DEFENSE
Disruptive defense has been the calling card of the Blue Devils earlier in the season, as the team ranks among the nation’s elite, having held opponents to 48.5 points per game on a 31.9-percent clip since field. Those marks register third and fourth in the NCAA, respectively, while they rank first in the ACC (as of 12/19/22). Duke also ranks ninth in defensive rating, allowing opponents just 0.626 points per possession. Through 11 games this season, Duke held the opposing team to 50 points or fewer eight times. The Blue Devils rank second in the ACC in team rebound defense (30.18) and defensive rebounding percentage, grabbing 319 defensive boards and allowing just 95 offensive rebounds. Duke is tied for second in the league in turnover margin (+4.73) and also ranks fourth in steals (10.2).
LAST TIME
Duke closed out the non-conference portion of their schedule in style as the Blue Devils assembled a strong defense and three double-figure scorers for a 71-48 win over Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday afternoon at Alico Arena.
Isabel Balogun he led the offense with 16 points, four rebounds and three assists.
celeste taylor he filled the stat sheet, adding 14 points, four boards, three blocks and a team-high five steals.
Shayeann Day-Wilson contributed 12 points and three rebounds. Duke shot over 50 percent for the third straight game and fifth time overall, taking 51.8 percent of his shots. The team also dished out 15 assists on 29 field goals and committed a season-low 12 turnovers. graduate student taya corosdalejunior vanessa de jesus and junior red shirt jordyn oliver he provided a huge boost off the bench for Duke as the trio combined for 21 of the Blue Devils’ 23 bench points. See the full summary here.
EXPLORING THE KNIGHTS
Virginia enters Wednesday’s tilt with an overall record of 12-0 following an 84-28 win over Morgan State on Sunday. The 12-0 start is the Cavaliers’ first since 1991, while the 12-game winning streak is their longest since 1995. Mir McLean leads the team in both points and rebounds, averaging a double-double of 13.0 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per game. play. Taylor Valladay is averaging 4.0 assists per game with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.61. The Cavaliers already have one ACC game under their belt, having opened the conference on November 13 with a 72-52 win over Wake Forest. Head coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton is in her first season at Virginia and fourth overall, having previously served as head coach for three seasons at Missouri State.
UNTIL NEXT TIME
The Blue Devils make the short trip to Raleigh for a date with NC State. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 pm, live on ACC Network.
To keep up with Duke women’s basketball, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching for “DukeWBB.”
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Source: news.google.com