Alison Bales   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 14 0 0-5 0-0 0-0 2 2-6-8 3 2 2 2 TOT 32 7 2-9 0-1 3-4 2 2-12-14 7 4 4 3   There was no room for the timid in the low post in this contest. Ali gave as good as she got to the powerful Heels frontcourt tandem of Larkins & Pringle. While the Heels blocked her shot like no other team does, it didn't prevent her from frustrating them just as much. One thing that's rarely discussed regarding UNC is that while they are strong & quick, they're not actually that tall. This is usually not that big a deal if the deficit is just an inch or two, but this certainly wasn't the case with Bales. It almost seemed a point of pride to take the ball right at Bales over and over, despite the fact that it never worked. Most other teams try to either get her out of the block on defense, shoot higher-arcing shots or at the very least try a head fake. UNC just went right at her and got their shots stuffed or drastically altered. What was remarkable about Bales' performance was that she not only shut down Pringle, she was able to slide over and neutralize Larkins whenever she actually managed to get her hands on the ball. Coach G was careful to get her extra rest by taking her out before TV timeouts. As a result, she was fresh down the stretch and Larkins cramped up so badly that she had to be walked off the floor. Towards the end of the game, she hit several key shots, including a basket that gave Duke the lead for good and a jumper that pushed the lead to three. The main problem she had was putting the ball on the deck a bit too often, opening herself up to turnovers. Ali kept hanging in there despite her difficulties, and that's a mark of her maturity. Carrem Gay   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 15 2 1-3 0-0 0-2 1 1-0-1 0 0 1 2 TOT 26 2 1-4 0-0 0-2 1 2-3-5 0 0 1 4   Carrem had a sneakily good game. She had trouble scoring against the Larkins-Pringle tandem (her only field goal was a long jumper) and missed a couple of foul shots, but she inflicted equal amounts of pain on the defensive end. Coach G had her front Larkins for most of the game, and her excellent ball denial was a huge key in containing her. UNC wasn't always committed enough to get her the ball, and so all Gay had to do was continually deny her in hopes that the Heels would go elsewhere. Gay was great on the boards down the stretch, coming up with a crucial offensive rebound after a Harding missed foul shot. Considering how much trouble she had with Lyndra Littles, seeing her step up like this against one of the best players in the country was inspiring. Wanisha Smith   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 18 17 7-12 2-5 1-1 0 1-0-1 0 0 2 0 TOT 35 17 7-12 2-5 1-1 2 2-2-4 0 0 4 4   Nish was absolutely brilliant in the first half, and all she did was take what the Heels gave her. UNC has pretty much conceded her the jumper for the entirety of her career--she just hasn't always had the best luck in getting them to go down. In this game, it was clear that the Heels were more worried about dealing with Waner, and so they let Smith roam around and fire at will. Smith became the target of a cut, nailed a pull-up jumper from 15' tipped in a miss, drained 2 threes, and went baseline for a beautiful three point play. In any given game and at any given time, any Duke player is supposed to be able to take over on offense. Nish was feeling it in the first half, with only a few turnovers marring her performance. In the second half, the Heels actually shadowed her in an effort to get her to give up the ball or prevent her from handling it. That simply allowed Waner & Harding to take over on offense. Nish still had a couple of crucial assists--one where she recognized Harding had a mismatch on the low block and another where Nish saw Bales breaking free for an easy basket. Smith has quietly put together an extremely solid ACC campaign, breaking loose from a long shooting slump. She wasn't able to contain Little, but I knew that Nish wouldn't be able to guard her without a double-team. Abby Waner   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 17 5 2-8 0-4 1-2 1 1-2-3 0 1 0 1 TOT 37 16 7-16 0-4 2-4 2 1-3-4 0 2 1 3   Abby did Abby things in this game--leak out for fast breaks, stick her nose in for rebounds, dart in passing lanes for steals, and attack the basket. She's way past the point of worrying about her three not falling in a game, and her performance here was a testament to how effective an all-around player she's become. With the Heels shadowing Nish more in the second half, that gave Abby plenty of opportunities, and she scored 11 of her 16 in the second frame. That included 7 of Duke's last 13 points and an assist. That last jumper she hit (complete with fist-pump) spoke to her confidence and willingness to put it all on the line. That was actually a great shot--she worked her way around the court and was wide open. This was in contrast to a bit earlier in the half, when she took consecutive bad shots. Abby also did a nice job rendering McCants fairly useless on offense, making her a jump-shooter. Lindsey Harding   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 17 8 4-10 0-0 0-0 3 2-2-4 0 0 2 2 TOT 36 16 7-19 0-0 2-6 7 3-6-9 0 1 2 2   Lindsey expended an incredible amount of energy guarding Latta (not to mention stopping Miller on one memorable fast break). I think that showed in how short some of her shots were, but she also knew that she had to lead Duke's attack. It was her aggressiveness midway through the first half that got Duke a nice lead. That included one of her one-woman fast breaks and 3 long jumpers. Later in the half, she got the ball to Smith and Gay for baskets. Harding was even better in the second half--she held Latta to 1 point on 0-11 shooting and forced 3 turnovers. She also grabbed rebounds, dished out 4 assists and had 3 steals. That included a clutch 15' jumper when UNC had tied the game at 45 and that spectacular drive that pretty much ended the game. Once again, Lindsey stepped up when her team needed her the most in a big game, and she once again delivered in the brightest of spotlights. Joy Cheek   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 3 2 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 2-0-2 0 0 0 2 TOT 15 6 3-4 0-0 0-0 0 1-1-2 0 1 1 4   Joy was simply excellent in this game, and likely would have played even more if she hadn't been in such extreme foul trouble. The key factor was that she wasn't afraid of UNC's physical play; in fact, it was her kind of party. Cheek had played against several of UNC's players before, and I think that may have been a key in her early comfortability. The early stickback she had displayed her overall aggressiveness, and she ripped down another rebound between two opponents. Where she really made her mark was with her smooth shooting stroke. Not only were they good shots, but they also came at crucial points during the game. Joy's recent development as a player is a very exciting prospect indeed, because this game showed that Duke will need to lean on its bench at times. Brittany Mitch   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 4 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1-0-1 1 0 0 2 TOT 10 0 0-3 0-2 0-0 1 1-1-2 1 0 0 2   Brit was very tense when it came to taking shots. One of her threes missed badly, and she also blew a perfect layup opportunity. In every other phase of the game, she was excellent against the top set of athletes in the country. Her hustle play to block Larkins was one of Duke's best plays this year; she also had a couple of key rebounds. She did a nice job handling the ball (0 turnovers) and had a pass to Cheek for a score. I'd like to see her loosen up a bit more on offense, because that would really help the team when she's in the game. Duke's approach this year is a group scoring effort, where every player has to be ready to shoot. If Brit is too tight to shoot, that will only impede her potential to get more playing time. Still, her effort on defense was remarkable against several players who were much stronger than she was. Bridgette Mitchell   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 6 0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0-2-2 0 1 1 2 TOT 7 0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0-2-2 0 1 1 4   Her numbers were modest, but she played with her usual high-energy level and had a couple of nice hustle plays. Her foul trouble spoke to the problems she sometimes has with being in the right place at the right time, but I loved her crosscourt steal. The only real negative I saw was Larkins ripping a rebound out of her hands. Emily Waner   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 1 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0-0-0 0 1 0 0 TOT 1 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0-0-0 0 0 0 0   Em came into the game late in the first half to relieve Duke's foul-ridden players, and had a heady pass to an open Nish for a three. Keturah Jackson   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st DNP TOT 1 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0-0 0 0 0 0   KJ relieved Lindsey in the final moments so she could take a bow. However, she should be prepared to play a good bit in Duke's next two contests. This could be a good way for her to continue to put what she's doing in practice to real use. Duke   PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 34 15-40 2-9 2-5 8 11-14-25 4 4 9 13 TOT 64 27-68 2-13 8-17 16 13-29-42 8 9 14 26 U.N.C     PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 1st 28 9-28 0-8 10-13 4 7-15-22 5 3 11 8 TOT 53 18-66 2-19 15-26 9 17-27-44 9 9 17 19 Sorry, no photo gallery for this game. Copyright © 2007 DWHOOPS.COM (Orin A. Day, Durham, NC, USA.) All Rights Reserved.