GREENSBORO -- Sunday the Duke women’s basketball team tries for the third consecutive year to secure its first ACC Tournament title since 2004.
It’s hard for the top-seeded Blue Devils, 67-55 winners over fourth-seeded Georgia Tech on Saturday, to clearly explain what winning that championship would mean after losing in the final game to North Carolina in 2008 and Maryland in 2009. They have a chance against sixth-seeded N.C. State in the tournament championship game at 1 p.m.
“I think words can’t express that, I think only actions can,” Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said.
Actions such as prevailing 66-64 in a nail-biter against Maryland on Friday and then edging Georgia Tech, finding the toughness in each game to beat an opponent that showed it could rebound and score on the same level.
The Devils (26-5) held off a physical Yellow Jackets team that nearly pulled off an upset with their attack-the-post strategy. But the Devils over came their rebounding deficiencies and offensive woes with reliable defense, coming up with the steals, deflections and stops they needed over the final six minutes.
Creating turnovers, the Devils found it much easier to score down the stretch, opening a 14-point lead with 34 seconds left in the second half. They did so by attacking the basket and making free throws, though they only shot 53.8 percent from the line.
“You are going to have tough games all the way through and it’s expected,” Duke senior Joy Cheek said. “You have to make stops and you have to make scores. We were able to do that. We attacked more often at the free throw lines and we capitalized on it.”
Duke junior Karima Christmas scored a team-high 15 points, knocking down career-best 10 of 13 free throw attempts. She made seven free throws in the second half.
Christmas, who has scored in double-figures in six of the past seven games, also finished with six rebounds and four steals. Her defense was major part of how the Devils forced the Yellow Jackets into committing 26 turnovers.
“It’s five minutes left kick ahead,” Christmas said. “We’re trying to knock everybody out and set the tone for the tournament.”
Duke won it’s 31st consecutive game against Georgia Tech, despite being outrebounded 38-28. The Devils did so without a high scoring game from leading scorer Jasmine Thomas.
Thomas, named to the All-ACC first-team this week, finished with 10 points, three rebounds, three steals, two assists and five turnovers. She was held scoreless in the first half and attempted just one shot, going to the bench with two fouls.
She decided to attack the basket more in the second half, though she never forced her shot against a consistent double-team. The Devils turned in a season-low 11 turnovers.
“I’ve been seeing this box-and-one defense a lot this year,” Thomas said. “That’s just the understanding that when I have some one on me all the time, no matter where I go there’s help. I’ve got to get my teammates involved.
“I’ve got to make the easy pass. I’ve got to make the open pass. And trust my teammates are going to be ready for it and score.”
Duke sophomore Shay Selby has shown she’s ready to score, collecting eight points with two 3-pointers and two free throws.
McCallie Selby’s minutes have increased recently because of her commitment to defense. And sure enough she collected her team-high eighth charge. Over the past 20 games, the Devils have taken 23 charges, collecting two in the ACC Tournament.
Teammates feed of Selby’s willingness to absorb the contact.
“That’s excitement,” Christmas said. “She’s always at the same place at the right time. She’s always getting key charges that we need.”
It’s been defense that has helped Duke earn a co-share of the regular season conference title with Florida State. The Devils are holding teams to an average of 54.9 points per game.
As they did with the Yellow Jackets, the Devils are capable of frustrating teams with a whirlwind full-court press, led by senior Keturah Jackson, who was named this week to All-ACC defensive team.
The Devils scored 24 points off turnovers against the Yellow Jackets. They finished with 14 steals.
McCallie, who has harped on defense and rebounding this season, said she is not concerned by the offensive lapses the Devils have had in their past three games, including a 64-54 loss to North Carolina. She said her team performed up to par in what physically resembled an “NCAA Tournament” game on Saturday.
“Defenses lapses and rebounding lapses are always going to concern me more,” McCallie said. “Because if you’re defending and rebounding, you’re controlling the game. If you’re defending and rebounding, you can work on getting better shots.”
