Duke tops Sun Devils to reach Sweet 16
67 DUKE - ASU 59
By: Madeline Perez
Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: News
Last update: 3/26/08 at 6:08 AM EST
Last update: 3/26/08 at 6:08 AM EST
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Third-seeded Duke (25-9) defeated No. 6 Arizona State (22-11) 67-59 Tuesday at the Comcast Center to survive the first weekend of the Tournament for the 11th straight season.
With less than two minutes remaining in the second half, the Sun Devils pulled to within two after two free throws by Briann January. The crowd roared, as the Maryland fans and anti-Duke spectators awaiting the next matchup sensed a comeback by the underdogs.
But even after the Blue Devils failed to score a field goal in the last four minutes, their free throws proved enough to spoil the Sun Devils' quest for an upset. Duke went 12-for-15 from the line, putting the game well out of reach.
"It just came down to us focusing," freshman Jasmine Thomas said. "We knew we had to hit free throws because we've been working on it all year. We finally hit them in a key game that actually won it for us."
After the Blue Devils raced past Arizona State for a blistering 8-0 start, a Duke blowout seemed imminent. The Sun Devils were flustered by the Blue Devils' balanced attack, as four different Duke players scored in the first two-and-a-half minutes.
"I loved how our team started out initially," head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "We had a terrific start moving the ball and just playing tough. Obviously, it was just a game of runs."
But the Blue Devils could not keep up the frantic tempo, allowing Arizona State to come back with a 6-0 run of its own to cut the Sun Devils' deficit to 18-16 . Neither team was able to pull away in the closing minutes of the first half, as the period ended with a 27-24 Duke advantage.
Although Arizona State features six players over six feet on its roster, the Blue Devils' post players dominated the paint for the majority of the game. Senior Chante Black anchored the Duke offense, scoring a career-high 26 points. The center also pulled down 13 rebounds, including five offensive boards.
Despite numerous defensive substitutions the Sun Devils made to contain Black, the center never seemed challenged and maintained an offensive rhythm for the entire game.
"They sub a lot, so its kind of hard to maintain control of what you want to do," Black said. "Because they sub I just had to keep playing my game and hopefully [my shots] would fall. But I wanted the ball more. Definitely from the start of the game, I wanted the ball more."
Thanks to Duke's post-centered offensive attack, the team only attempted four shots from behind the 3-point line. With Arizona State playing man-to-man defense for the entire contest, the Blue Devils fed the ball to the high post as the guards cut through the lane.
While Duke switched between man-to-man and a matchup zone on defense, the Sun Devils never bothered to double Black, allowing the Blue Devils to score 28 of their points down low.
Duke not only controlled the paint, but dominated the glass, as well. The Blue Devils outrebounded Arizona State 42-31, 19 of which came on the offensive end. In addition to Black, the Duke guards crashed the boards, with junior Abby Waner grabbing seven rebounds and senior Wanisha Smith recording four.
Rebounds continue to play a vital role for the Blue Devils, as they have only suffered one loss when they have the edge on the boards.
Duke will next face No. 2 Texas A&M Sunday in the semifinal of the Oklahoma City Regional. After the hard-fought victory, the Blue Devils insisted on keeping the close-game mindset with them for rest of the Tournament.
"I just feel like every team has that one-and-done mentality," Thomas said. "It isn't like, OK, we can learn something from this game and carry it over to the next game. You have to play your hardest and give everything you have in the game, in the moment. You feel that from each team and it makes it even harder."
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