Duke was struggling to overcome early-season injuries combined with the most difficult non-conference schedule in school history. On top of all that, only one of Duke's first five brutal games was at home. Things didn't get any easier on November 21st, 1998, when the Devils traveled to South Bend to play #11 Notre Dame. Peppi Browne suffered an injury just two minutes into the game and wouldn't return. She was greatly missed on defense as the Irish broke open a relatively close game down the stretch, battering Duke 84-57. Michele Van Gorp had 17 points while Krista Gingrich & Payton Black had 10 points apiece off the bench. Notre Dame's Ruth Riley had a monster game with 20 points and 18 rebounds as Duke was an astounding -33 on rebounds. The Devils dropped to 1-3 and were in danger of falling out of the top 25.

The Devils traveled to Nashville to face #18 Vanderbilt--now ranked two slots higher than Duke. Two nights after being humiliated on the boards, Duke turned the tables against Vandy by going +15. While Gorp was again solid with 14 points, the real key to this victory--and many victories in this season--was the play of the starting backcourt. Hilary Howard and Nicole Erickson, after a rocky start, turned it around in this game and led the team. Erickson, playing on a bad foot all year, had 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Howard had 11 points and 6 assists. Rochelle Parent stepped in for the injured Browne and had a solid performance with 8 points and 6 rebounds. Duke led by 12 at the half before hanging on for a 79-71 win. Duke would next head home for a bit of a respite.