Duke Women's Basketball 2023 (22-12)

[CameronBornAndBred]

I was slack getting this thread going. Duke has played two games so far, and has proven they have a few shooters. Even our tallest player, Kennedy Brown, was 2-2 from three land last night. In fact, last night DWBB set a school record for most number of threes in a game.

Granted, the competition so far has been weak, but it's a good sign. The team has more than a few faces, and so far every player has played and contributed to the box score.

This Sunday, we have the privilege of getting crushed by Team USA. They stomped Tennessee earlier in the week 90something to 50something. If Duke keeps it that close, I'll be impressed. It should be fun to watch, seeing the cream of the women's basketball crop against Duke in Cameron. It will be on ACCNx. (I think at noon.)

[CameronBornAndBred]

DWBB plays Davidson tonight at 7 on ACCNX. Davidson came damn near close to beating the Cheaterettes in Carmichael.

[Phredd3]

Davidson has two big scorers in Charlise Dunn (6'2") and Elle Sutphin (6'3"). Both are currently shooting 40%+ from three, but that's a) probably not sustainable, and b) mostly achieved against the Cheaters. Dunn has taken a TON of 3-point attempts - more than six per game. In contrast, Sutphin has taken half that, and that rate is roughly double what she took last year (and last year she was sub-30% on them). They've looked good so far this season, and they are well coached and play hard. Any team that can sink the three-ball can mount a lead and/or engineer a quick comeback. It took them literally 2:30 to turn a 10-point deficit against the Cheaters into a late lead.

Having said all that, our pressure defense could be a problem for them. We also have size inside, and Dunn and Sutphin, in addition to being their big shooters, are also their tallest players. I think we have a decent chance to bait them into foul trouble.

This isn't a gimme game, but we should win it, and I hope we can do so comfortably to let us get our mojo up heading into Stanford.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Ugh, that was an ugly loss tonight. The only time it was even close was in the first quarter. Duke "won" only the 3rd, the rest of the game it was all Davidson.

Good time of year to lose ugly, I suppose, but I don't expect to see us beating the good ACC teams until we grow up as a team; right now it's a lot of young parts without much cohesion.

[Phredd3]

Ugh, that was an ugly loss tonight. The only time it was even close was in the first quarter. Duke "won" only the 3rd, the rest of the game it was all Davidson.

I though we showed good effort in the fourth quarter, and we technically didn't lose that quarter, we tied it. But there were all kinds of problems at the beginning of this game. Our strategy appeared to be to use our smallest players to drive the paint so we could get blocked or turn the ball over. By midway into the second quarter, the deficit was double-digits, and we never really closed it to a distance that put them under game pressure. They are a good team, and we didn't get our heads in the game quickly enough. That was a very sloppy game against a very disciplined opponent, and we get to do all again on Sunday, only this time our opponent will be disciplined AND athletic. We're going to have to play a hell of lot better from the opening tip in that one, or we're going to lose by 30+.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Clemson played against reality last night, losing by just under 60 to South Carolina.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Duke is likely to get stomped by Stanford today, but it will be worth watching. Awhom will be there, lucky bastard!

[CameronBornAndBred]

100% amazing game by our women today. Three point loss in overtime, after having come back from down 17 in the 1st quarter.

[Phredd3]

100% amazing game by our women today. Three point loss in overtime, after having come back from down 17 in the 1st quarter.

Yes, that was fantastic and I haven't even been able to see the whole thing. I was putting together a new grill to replace the old one for Thanksgiving. I missed some crucial comeback time. I'm bummed we couldn't put it away, but I just love how hard we played and how poised we were. Outstanding game.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Against Stanford Duke had only 11 turnovers. Eleven! Stanford had 15.
That's some excellent progress in the Keeping The Ball department.

Also, Reigan Richardson shot the ball ten times, and missed them all. That's not so excellent.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Very nice win over NCCU today, 93-45. Yes, it was and should have been a blowout, but playing a game like today is far more useful than practice. It's a great opportunity to try out new ideas, and give out more PT to folks who don't see the court as much, while resting those who might need it.

[Phredd3]

Against Stanford Duke had only 11 turnovers. Eleven! Stanford had 15.
That's some excellent progress in the Keeping The Ball department.

Also, Reigan Richardson shot the ball ten times, and missed them all. That's not so excellent.

We regressed in the Keeping the Ball department, with a whopping 22 turnovers in the game against NCCU. There were 45 total turnovers in the game, and as I was thinking about that, I'm wasn't sure I'd ever seen that many in a basketball game. So, I checked out the media guide. It turns out that the answer is yes, since the record was set back in 1979, before I was here at Duke. But it's not that simple: Sunday's game was tied for the second-most total turnovers ever in a game involving DWBB, and it was the highest total posted since 2009, when we played...NCCU at home. So I've seen exactly that many in a game before, but not more.

The good news is that Reigan looked good again v. NCCU. 22 pts on 7-12 shooting (no threes attempted), with 8-10 from the line. That's more like it.

[CameronBornAndBred]

We regressed in the Keeping the Ball department, with a whopping 22 turnovers in the game against NCCU. There were 45 total turnovers in the game, and as I was thinking about that, I'm wasn't sure I'd ever seen that many in a basketball game.

That sounds more like dodgeball, with both teams intentionally throwing the ball at the other side. I'm looking forward to our next game. Georgia will be a tough test, especially on the road.

[Phredd3]

I'm looking forward to our next game. Georgia will be a tough test, especially on the road.

This will be a game that really sets the tone of the season, IMO. Up until now, we've kind of been finding our feet. But our best win was against Columbia, and we only beat them by four. Georgia's best win was also against Columbia, but they beat them handily. Our numbers say we should be better than they are, but this is a true road game and they'll have something to prove against Duke. Fortunately, we have something to prove, too, and I think we'll be fired up after a game where the team won handily but still very much drew the ire of the coach for their lack of focus and discipline.

This is the first game where the rubber really meets the road on deciding if we're truly a ranked team, or if we're only a very good team that has a good game every now and then. I'm not saying this one game decides the entire question, obviously, but this is where the grades start to count.

[CameronBornAndBred]

The game vs Georgia is at an odd time. 5PM, on SECN.

[Phredd3]

The game vs Georgia is at an odd time. 5PM, on SECN.

Yes, I wish it weren't quite so early in the evening. I might be missing the first few minutes.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Slow start, but Duke is looking good at the end of the 1st against Georgia. Long bomb buzzer beating three from Jackson gives Duke the 20-14 lead.
Georgia hasn't scored in forever, they were leading Duke early handily.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Anther OT game. Duke is lucky to be tied.
55 all at end of regulation.

[CameronBornAndBred]

WHEW!
So DWBB is now 1-1 in OT, with both those games coming on the road. Today was a back and forth grind with lots to question, but they got the job done.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I love this idea! Kudos to those implementing it. Some other schools do this, one that stands out will be noticed in Cameron this Sunday when South Carolina brings their busload(s) of fans.

Duke is taking the team and fans on the road to UVA. Road Devils!

Duke women's basketball announced its Road Devils initiative Friday morning, with the first trip of the 2023-24 season set for Sunday, Jan. 7 when Duke takes on Virginia at 12 pm in Charlottesville, Va. Tickets for the trip are $60 and cover a reserved game ticket and bus transportation.

https://goduke.com/news/2023/12/1/women ... ginia.aspx