The rested and rejuvenated Blue Devils will try to advance to the Sweet 16 tonight when they take on the battle-worn and depleted Trojans.
The winner of tonight's matchup between top-seeded Duke (27-3) and No. 8 seed Southern California (19-11) will take on the winner of fourth-seeded Michigan State and fifth-seeded Kentucky in the round of 16.
"We are very excited about the opportunity to play USC," head coach Gail Goestenkors said. "I think they are an outstanding team. We know we're going to have to be ready to play."
The Duke starters will be well-rested after the team dismantled Southern, 96-27, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Sunday. No starter was on the floor for more than 25 minutes against the Jaguars, as Goestenkors rotated all of her players in and out of the game and went deep into her bench during the rout.
The Trojans, on the other hand, will have less than 48 hours to recover from their down-to-the-wire win over South Florida Sunday. Leading 65-64 with 16 seconds left to play, USC center Chloe Kerr blocked a layup attempt by South Florida's Jessica Dickson. The Trojans took control of the ball and were able to hold off the Bulls, 67-65.
Unlike the Blue Devils, who gave significant playing time to six players on their bench, the Trojans were only able to play two reserves because of injuries the team has incurred throughout the season. Their latest casualty was junior forward Markisha Lea, who broke her arm in practice March 14 and will be out for the entire NCAA Tournament. None of USC's starters got significant rest in the tight first-round game, which featured 12 ties and 19 lead changes.
Goestenkors said the Trojans remind her of last year's Blue Devil squad that played only eight players in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. She said fatigue played a key role in that team's 59-49 loss to LSU in the Elite Eight of last year's Tournament and can foresee the Trojans facing similar issues.
"We understand that USC really goes seven players," Goestenkors said. "It was a battle, the game they just had with South Florida. We're hoping fatigue is a factor. We're certainly going to try to make the most of our depth and hope that becomes a factor for us in our favor."
Duke's crushing victory over Southern was a confidence builder for a team that dealt with two tough losses before the NCAA Tournament-the latest of which was a disappointing 78-70 loss to Maryland that sent the Blue Devils packing in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament.
The Trojans, however, boast a more talented and athletic lineup than the Jaguars squad that Duke held to the lowest scoring output in NCAA Tournament history.
USC is led by junior guard Eshaya Murphy, who posted 21 points in 37 minutes for the Women of Troy in their opening round victory.
Goestenkors said her team will have to key on stopping Murphy but still be keenly aware of USC's other weapons.
"Everybody talks about [Murphy] because she can hit the three and can penetrate to the basket," Goestenkors said. "We've got to be real smart and make her really work for all her points. We hope to contain her and not let somebody else go off and have an All-American night because it's not just about [Murphy]. She's surrounded by tremendous players as well."
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