Duke Seniors Shell the Terps
Duke 69, Maryland 57
Comcast Center; College Park, MD
February 18, 2007
By Rob Clough
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The Nutshell
Thanks to ridiculous shooting by Lindsey Harding in the first half and
lockdown defense in the second half, Duke spoiled Maryland's Senior Day
with a win that locked up the ACC regular season title. Their last solo
ACC title came in 2004, with last season being the first since 1997 that
the Devils didn't win either the regular season or tournament titles.
Duke handled the wave of emotion the Terps felt with the Senior Day
ceremony and their huge crowd and carved out a small lead . After 4 ties
and 7 lead changes in the first fifteen minutes of the game, Duke went on
an 8-0 that gave them a working margin for the rest of the game. Duke
pushed its lead into double figures in the second half and then withstood
a furious Terps rally about five minutes into the half. The defense took
over for the Devils and several players made a number of clutch shots on
offense to extend the lead out once again. Maryland was once again baited
into taking jumpers off the dribble as their starting backcourt went 10-37
for the game. This was thanks to a shifting series of zones and the stout
rebounding of Alison Bales, who overcame foul trouble to post a
double-double. While Abby Waner (still recovering from the flu) and
Wanisha Smith struggled from the floor (a combined 3-14), Lindsey Harding
somehow managed to one-up her performance against the Terps in Cameron
with a career-high 29 points. She had Duke's first 11 points and 20 of
the team's 35 points. Also deserving mention is Carrem Gay, who took
Maryland star Crystal Langhorne inside and outside while also battling
foul trouble. She hurt her shoulder at the end of the game, but early
indications note that it's not serious. With the regular season title
wrapped up, Duke's next goal is to ensure getting the #1 seed in the
Raleigh and Greensboro regions. Standing in the way of that goal: UNC.
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Editor's Note: Articles and stats are published, & mom is fine.
Thanks for your patience! Orin
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