Blue Devils bonding to get better

Second-year coach Joanne P. McCallie says organizing the team was easier this season

DURHAM -- Away from the spotlight of the NCAA Tournament and expectations of fans, the Duke’s women’s basketball team has taken time to adjust to life in the Joanne P. McCallie era.

As McCallie enters her second season at Duke, , both the coach and players say time — on campus and away — has helped them build stronger relationships.

“We all have another level of trust,” Duke sophomore guard Keturah Jackson said. “We have another level of connectedness. And that’s going to make us that much better.”

The No. 8-ranked Blue Devils had their first chance to show how much better as they hosted No. 14 Oklahoma State at Cameron Indoor Stadium Friday night.

Seniors Chante Black, Abby Waner and Carrem Gay, plus junior Joy Cheek and sophomore Jasmine Thomas make up the starting five of one of the deepest teams in the nation.

“It’s nothing I’ll try ... and downplay, we are a very exciting team,” Waner said.

Last season marked McCallie’s first at Duke after she was hired to replace Gail Goestenkors, who left to take the head job at Texas. McCallie left Michigan State after seven seasons and brought her reputation as a program builder, having taken the Spartans to the national championship finals in 2005.

In her first season at Duke, she and her players struggled early to adjust to the transition and the Devils finished the season 25-10 overall, advancing to the NCAA Tournament round of 16 before losing, 77-63, to Texas A&M.

The Devils lost more games last season than they had since the 1996-97 season, when they finished 19-11 overall.

A lack of chemistry seemed to be the culprit.

“It’s night and day,” McCallie said. “Some things take time. You can’t force things to happen when there is change and transition. I’m very, very proud of what our team did last year under the circumstances of having to deal with change.”

McCallie said organizing the program is a lot easier this season. Communication is smoother. Everyone — including the coach — is listening better.

Time away from basketball during the spring and summer created an environment where they could enjoy each other’s company, break down barriers and experience what McCallie calls “bonding moments.”

Some of those moments came when members of the sophomore and junior classes worked at camp with McCallie. They instructed children and ate lunch together in the cafeteria. Other opportunities came during player-only group workouts. In down time, they shopped and watched movies. “You learn different things about different people’s personalities every day,” Cheek said.

In August, McCallie announced that every player would accompany her on a 30-minute walk near her house. They would talk while walking her dog.

Sophomore Krystal Thomas, who spent the summer rehabilitating a knee injury, said she didn’t know what to think about the idea.

“I was kind of, whoa, what is this,” she said. “But it turned out I really enjoyed it.”

The walks were breezy. The conversation easy.

“You don’t just want to talk about basketball all the time with your coach,” Cheek said. “And you do want your coach to understand that this is how I am when I don’t play basketball.”

Waner said she was the second to walk with McCallie and thought it was an out-of-the-box idea. She had never walked a dog with a coach.

“Her house is very open to us,” Waner said. “It puts her in a light as a mother and wife and basketball coach and a friend. It’s not something that we get to see every day but it was nice to get a different feel.”

McCallie called the experience “amazing.”

“A lot of laughter, some tears,” she said. “Just talking, walking through the neighborhood. ... Just trying to see what they’re thinking and how I can help.”

Time has allowed the team to refocus on basketball. Four starters return from last year’s team.

Seniors Wanisha Smith and Emily Waner have graduated. Guard Brittany Mitch was the only player who did not return.

“They are all my players now,” McCallie said. “After the first year in the spring, people are given a chance to stay or go. ... We’re all on the same ship. You can’t argue anything anymore because they know our system, they’re growing in it.”

McCallie said this Duke team is faster, quicker and more versatile. She said they will run but must be smart about decision-making.

They will need to improve in rebounding, shooting and free throws. Defensively, they will use a variety of presses and alternate from primary man-to-man to zone.

Picked to finish third in the conference, the Devils are seemingly entering the season under the radar. But players understand the stakes.

“We almost felt like we let the program down a little bit and it was really upsetting for us,” Cheek said, “because you never want to be that group that did that. So I think that lit a fire under us.”