PHILADELPHIA — It wasn’t pretty or the lopsided game many expected, but it was a win.
No. 7 Duke (9-2) disposed of Temple (5-7) by a score of 65-54 at McGonigle Hall in Philadelphia. Tricia Liston led all scorers with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, adding six rebounds in the process. Chelsea Gray added 12 points and seven assists and Elizabeth Williams contributed nine points and 10 rebounds.
“The physical nature of the game was great,” head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “You want these games because they simulate NCAA games a lot more than many other games can simulate. We’re all sophomores and freshmen so every experience that they can get as a group is important.”
The Blue Devils came out firing on all cylinders, knocking down shots from all over the floor and playing hard-nosed defense. They were able to jump out to an early lead, which they would eventually extend to 17 points by halftime. Liston had her way with the Temple defense in the first half, leading all scorers with 12 points. Williams struggled in the first half, shooting just 2-for-8 from the field. She did not score her first points until there were less than four minutes to go in the half.
The Owls came roaring back in the second half, cutting the Duke lead to six with 10 minutes left. The Blue Devils were hampered by sloppy offensive execution, committing a season-high 25 turnovers on the game.
Temple’s run was led by Brittany Lewis, Kristen McCarthy, and Victoria Macaulay, who were able to knife inside the Duke defense for easy buckets, often at the expense of Williams.
“When you’re playing a team like Duke, whenever they are not at their best and you have opportunities you have to take advantage of them, and we didn’t,” Temple head coach Tonya Cardoza said. “In the second half we took it to them, and we made it a game because we were the aggressor.”
Liston and Williams were able to take over the game down the stretch, converting crucial inside buckets to keep Temple from ever cutting the lead to fewer than six points.
“Offensively I wasn’t really in a flow but the coaches just told me to stop worrying about the past and just move forward,” Williams said. “I just tried to get a bucket and get rebounds because I knew in a game like this possessions were probably the most important thing.”
Temple continued to fight, cutting the lead to five points with just under a minute to play. But the Blue Devils’ defense stepped up, making key stops against the surging Owls. Duke converted on numerous free throw chances, shooting 11-for-14 from the line on the game, and was able to escape with a hard-fought 11-point victory.
Before the game began, the Blue Devils welcomed one player back to the team while they said goodbye to another, for the time being. Shay Selby, who had been suspended for violating unspecified team rules on Nov. 29, was reinstated after missing the Blue Devils’ previous five games. Selby was available to play and sat on Duke’s bench, but did not see any action in the closely-contested game.
“I think our team showed great leadership in that process, having Shay back. It was their decision [to reinstate Selby], jointly with me. So we welcome Shay back, and we’re excited about [her return],” McCallie said.
Meanwhile, the team was without starting guard Chloe Wells. The sophomore had averaged 10.4 points and four assists per game this season. Wells traveled with the team to Philadelphia and sat on the bench in warmups, but is out indefinitely while resolving an academic matter. McCallie declined to comment on Wells’ absence or a timetable for her return. Tricia Liston took Wells’ spot in the starting lineup, and made the most of the extra minutes. This was the fifth time this season Liston has scored more than 18 points in a game.
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