The Nutshell by Rob Clough
Duke halted its three-game slide against a Rutgers team that had defeated some
of the best teams in the country, including Maryland & LSU. This was one of
the strangest basketball games I've seen in quite some time, and both teams
seemed trapped by the problem plaguing Duke all season: energy without
efficiency. It was especially strange in Rutgers' case, considering that the
Scarlet Knights returned every significant player and have played that tough
schedule. Both teams were out of synch on offense and were either unwilling or
unable to break down the opposing defense. Neither team could successfully
establish an inside game, neither team could attack the basket with any
consistency, neither team got a firm grasp on rebounds or loose balls, neither
team moved well without the ball, and neither team could buy many outside
shots. Rutgers put Duke in an early hole, but Duke's use of the zone allowed
them to very slowly creep back into the game, pulling within 2 points at the
half.
An 8-0 Duke run in the second half put Duke ahead, and the Devils survived foul
trouble from Chante Black and Abby Waner to stay close. Three straight threes
from Rutgers put Duke in another hole, but some big plays from the veterans put
Duke ahead. With the game tied at 44 with thirty seconds left, Carrem Gay hit
a 
free throw and Keturah Jackson (a huge second half spark) rebounded a miss.
When Rutgers coach C.Vivian Stringer was hit with a technical, Duke suddenly
had a three point lead thanks to Waner. Jackson hit a foul shot to put the
game away.
The game featured such oddities as that technical foul issued by a young
official with ten seconds left; Stringer replacing her entire starting five
with a little-used bench for over five minutes; Abby picking up three first
half fouls; a crowd that went from moribund to rowdy very quickly; and Rutgers
routinely getting three cracks at the basket in the same possession. What was
conventional in this game was coach McCallie's substitution patterns. After
several games of flailing a bit in trying to find a group that worked well
together, the team seemed to fall into a rotation that felt very comfortable,
while still getting plenty of minutes for almost everyone. One could see an
enormous weight being lifted from the team after the game, a mixture of delight
and relief in equal measures. We'll see if winning this game gives Duke the
lift they need to play well again on Saturday.
|
