LIVE BLOG: No. 2 Duke vs. No. 1 Connecticut

Final: No. 2 Duke 38, No. 1 Connecticut 75 -

Freshman Tricia Liston gives Duke its final points with two made free throws with 14.5 seconds remaining. The Blue Devils are still implementing a full-court press, an impressive show of effort for the team that was trailing for almost the entire game. That's all from Philadelphia! Thanks for following along, and be sure to pick up a copy of The Chronicle tomorrow for a recap of tonight's game, as well as an analysis piece.

1:25 2nd Half: No. 2 Duke 38, No. 1 Connecticut 73 -

A quick three by Thomas, but it has no real effect, as the game was decided minutes into the second half. Connecticut keeps firing rapid shots, and McCallie takes out Thomas, who sits down to polite applause from most of the people in the stadium. The game is all but over, with just a minute and a half sitting between the Huskies and their spot at Indianapolis.

3:12 2nd Half: No. 2 Duke 35, No. 1 Connecticut 71 -

Moore is back on the court, nailing a jumper to get her 3,000th point to a cheering crowd of Huskies fans. The Blue Devil team is still trying, despite being down by more than double.

4:46 2nd Half: No. 2 Duke 33, No. 1 Connecticut 63 -

Connecticut has come out of the locker room with an explosive 17-3 run in the first eight minutes of the half, with Moore contributing eight of those points. The Blue Devils are hurting severely on the glass and seem to be unable to get a rebound--they have only 3 for the half so far to Connecticut's 11. Duke is also being tremendously out-scored by Connecticut, 21.4 percent to 48.8 percent.  The team is beginning to resemble the one that faced the Huskies earlier this season.

13:56 2nd Half: No. 2 Duke 22, No. 1 Connecticut 43 -

Moore--as well as Dolson--are once again a huge presence on the inside for Connecticut, contributing multiple points in the paint as well as second chance points. And though Duke led in the rebounding category in the first half, it is now down 25-28, failing to grab the rebound on a Connecticut missed shot until the fourth tip. That might have been due to Christmas sitting on the bench, a period that proved instrumental for the Huskies to expand the lead to 21.

17:08 2nd Half: No. 2 Duke 22, No. 1 Connecticut 37 -

Duke comes out with a line-up of Thomas-Gray-Thomas-Christmas-Peters. Peters picks up her third foul in the opening minute of the second half, putting Moore to the line with two easy points. The Blue Devils are still having shooting woes, though they seem to have decided to go with shooting from the outside. The team's defense on the inside is still lacking, with Moore making an easy, open layup under the basket. Thomas is still being pressured, missing all three of her shots this half.

Halftime: No. 2 Duke 20, No. 1 Connecticut 30 -

With the end of the first half, it's certain Duke is entering the locker room looking for an answer for Connecticut's dominance on the inside. The Blue Devils are being outscored 18-4 in the paint and are also behind in fast break points 10-2. The team will also be looking for more efficient ways to score, as they are being out-shot 23.5 percent to 48.3 percent in field goals. They also are experimenting to find a solid line-up to combat the Huskies' presence in the post and their performance behind the arc. The Thomas-Selby-Thomas-Christmas-Vernerey one seems to have worked the best, especially with halting the Huskies' performance from inside the paint. The Blue Devils also need to find a way to stop Moore, who boasts a team-high 13 points and 9 rebounds. However, one area Duke is performing well in is rebounding, out-rebounding Connecticut 22-19, something that started showing toward the end of the first half and will hopefully continue in the second half.

1:23 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 20, No. 1 Connecticut 28 -

The Blue Devils have begun to employ a full-court press and are more aggressively attacking the boards. For a while, Duke was seeing success from the inside, but the team reverted back to pushing the ball outside, which has proved unsuccessful as the team has been unable to gain points or come back with second chance points. Trying to go back to shooting from the inside after a long shooting drought, Duke is still not making buckets as Connecticut's bigger players are making huge blocks.

4:00 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 18, No. 1 Connecticut 23 -

A crucial break in the game happens when Christmas is fouled and has the opportunity to shoot three from the charity stripe--she makes the first two, and the Huskies grab the last ball. The ensuing possession proves Moore's worth as a senior leader, revitalizing enthusiasm in the team, which is starting to look frustrated by Duke's pressure defense. The moment proves short-lived, however, as Thomas sinks a jumper and Connecticut proceeds to turnover the ball. Though the Blue Devils are managing to keep not too far behind the Huskies, they need to find a more efficient way of scoring, as they are being outscored in the paint 16-2. Scheer and Vernerey have just entered the game for Selby and Peters to better block Connecticut on the inside. Luckily for Duke, Moore is only 4-for-10 and is 0-for-2 from behind the arc, and she just picked up her second foul.

7:48 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 14, No. 1 Connecticut 19 -

Connecticut is really putting a tight-lock on Thomas, and as a result, she has been rushing to shoot, missing five of her eight total shots. On the ensuing deadball, McCallie takes her out and puts in Peters. Selby again makes a big impact, hitting a big three that slows the Huskie momentum. Thomas comes back into the game replacing Selby, immediately grabbing two rebounds but missing an easy lay-up. The Blue Devils need to find a better solution to its shooting woes (28.6 field goal percentage right now) if it wants to secure a win over Connecticut.

11:48 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 11, No. 1 Connecticut 15 -

McCallie is switching the line-up putting in Allison Vernerey and Shay Selby, replacing Gray and Peters. The impact has been immediate, with Jasmine Thomas and Christmas each adding two points. The Blue Devils' pressure defense is beginning to have an impact, forcing Connecticut to turnover the ball when entering the lane or forcing the team to pass to the outside, though the Huskies do have an array of sharpshooters, including Hartley who holds the team's only trey so far. In an attempt to find an answer for the Huskies' inside players, Duke has turned to outside shots, as well, with Selby making her first three of the game.

14:57 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 4, No. 1 Connecticut 10 -

Since its opening basket, Duke has allowed Connecticut to go on a 10-0 run in a 5-minute span of time, with Jasmine Thomas coming through with a two-point jumper off of a Faris turnover to post the Blue Devils' only other points. They are still having difficulty finding an answer for the Huskies' bigger players and dominance on the inside.

16:43 1st Half: No. 2 Duke 2, No. 1 Connecticut 8 -

Connecticut is proving deadly on the inside with multiple players--Dolson, Faris and Moore--finding themselves open inside the paint for easy shots under the basket. The Blue Devils are showing early signs of being unable to keep up with the pressure, running down the shot clock on two of he last three possessions and loose ball control. Head coach Joanne P. McCallie calls a 30-second time-out in an effort to stop Connecticut's momentum.

Preview -

Here we are, live from Philadelphia at The Liacouras Center about 10 minutes before tip-off. Tonight, No. 2 seed Duke faces off against No. 1 Connecticut to gain a spot on the plane to Indianapolis. The Blue Devils will be looking for an answer to Huskie All-American Maya Moore as well as Connecticut's performance on the glass. When the two teams last faced each other Jan. 31 in Connecticut, the Blue Devils came away with a heavy loss--their first of the season, where they were outmatched in nearly every aspect of the game. Tonight, however, Duke is optimistic that it will come out as a stronger, more experienced team, one with a deep bench and better rebounding skills. Tonight's probably line-up is:

Connecticut - F Maya Moore, F Stefanie Dolson, G/C Kelly Faris, G Tiffany Hayes, G Bria Hartley

Duke - F Karima Christmas, F Haley Peters, G/C Krystal thomas, G Chelsea Gray, G Jasmine Thomas