Duke 72, Florida State 66 (final): When Duke needed a push to knock off a surging Florida State squad, it was the team's freshman point guard who stepped up in a big spot for the Blue Devils once again.
Alexis Jones threaded the needle to a cutting Richa Jackson for a big bucket to give the Blue Devils a 62-60 lead. Jones then used a hesitation move to knock down a floater on Duke's next trip down the floor.
After a dominant performance in the first half on the glass, Duke did not have the same tenacity on the boards in the game's closing minutes. Florida State garnered a number of second-chance opportunities in its final trips down the floor, but could not finish at the rim.
Jones continued to create opportunities for the Blue Devils, jumping ahead of her defender after a steal by Elizabeth Williams and finishing with an easy fast break layup to give Duke a six-point advantage with less than three minutes to play.
Florida State tried to claw its way back into the game in the closing second, but Duke converted on its opportunity from the free throw line to advance to tomorrow's ACC championship game.
Duke 60, Florida State 58 (3:46 second half): An 8-0 run by Florida State has the Blue Devils on their heels. Duke has struggled to find looks inside and has been unable to convert on easy looks. Florida State has fought back to tie the game thanks to much-improved rebounding and aggressive defensive play. Tricia Liston knocked down a big 3-pointer to give Duke back the lead, but Leonor Rodriguez answered with a triple for the Seminoles on their next trip down the floor. Haley Peters cut to the basket for a lay-in to give the Blue Devils a two-point advantage. With less than four minutes to play, it appears that Duke is holding on for dear life.
Duke 47, Florida State 42 (11:20 second half): The Blue Devils continue to turn the ball over, but they are finally starting to force some turnovers of their own. Duke still has four more turnovers than it does assists, but has also forced eight second half turnovers from Florida State. Chloe Wells and Tricia Liston have kept their hands up on defense, jumping in the passing lanes to knock the ball down and create steals and fast break opportunities. Wells has been all over the place for the Blue Devils, recording four assists and registering a steal and a block. A jumper by Richa Jackson from just inside the foul line pushed Duke's advantage to five heading into the media timeout.
Duke 43, Florida State 37 (15:45 second half): The Blue Devils appeared to be in trouble until an aggressive move by a Seminole player swung the game's momentum back the other way.
Florida State's Chelsea Davis is having her way with Elizabeth Williams in the post as the Seminoles were able to cut Duke's lead to one. Davis has scored five points early in the second half, working the pick and roll to perfection as Florida State took control of the game. The Blue Devils continue to struggle with ball control and have now turned the ball over 13 times.
But Seminole forward Natasha Howard was called for a technical foul after a tie-up for the ball with Duke's Chloe Wells led to some extra-curricular activities. Tricia Liston stepped to the line and knocked down both free throws. Duke then retained possession and Liston nailed a 3-pointer to give her team some breathing room heading into the media timeout.
Duke 34, Florida State 31 (halftime): The Blue Devils made a late run near the close of the first half, but Florida State mounted a response at the final buzzer. After clinging to a tight lead throughout the first period, Duke took a quick 5-0 run to take a 34-26 lead. Chloe Wells found Alison Vernerey with a pinpoint pass for an easy finish down low before Tricia Liston knocked down a 3-pointer from the right wing to push the Blue Devil lead to eight points.
Despite tough defense from Duke, Florida State mounted a quick comeback in the final 30 seconds of the first half. The Blue Devils appeared to have a turnover in their own end but the Seminoles were able to scoop up the loose ball, giving Florida State a 2-on-1 opportunity. Cheetah Delgado took the feed and finished for the Seminoles. With the clock winding down, Duke was unable to find a clean look at a shot. Florida State forced a turnover in the final seconds and pushed the ball ahead to Delgado, who banked in a runner off the glass from 35 feet away to cut her team's deficit to three heading into the locker room.
Key halftime stats:
- Duke holds a 28-10 advantage on the boards.
- 10 offensive rebounds in the first half for the Blue Devils.
- 11 points and six rebounds for Haley Peters.
- Nine first half turnovers for Duke, just one for Florida State.
- Seminoles scored 12 points off turnovers.
Duke 29, Florida State 24 (3:39 first half): Both teams have kept defense at a minimum in the game's last few minutes, getting to the bucket for easy finishes. Elizabeth Williams cleaned up an easy offensive board for a putback lay-in but Florida State's 5-foot-2 junior guard Cheetah Delgado answered with a fast break opportunity, blowing by Duke's Alexis Jones for the layup with her left hand. Jones answered calmly, driving past Delgado on the next trip down the floor for a layup of her own to keep Duke's advantage at five.
Despite the Blue Devils' commanding advantage on the glass in the first half, Florida State has taken excellent care of the basketball, turning it over just once against Duke's normally stingy defense. The Blue Devils have struggled with ball control and have turned the ball over eight times thus far.
Duke 23, Florida State 18 (7:07 first half): The Seminoles have kept pace thanks to their inside scoring, but Duke continues its dominant performance on the glass. Florida State's front line of Chelsea Davis and Natasha Howard have combined for 10 early points, and the Blue Devils' interior defense has not been terribly strong. But once shots go up, Duke has been all over them. The Blue Devils now hold a commanding 18-6 lead on the glass thus far, and have seven offensive rebounds—more than the entire Seminole lineup has on either end.
Haley Peters has matched Williams' early production with four rebounds to go along with her game-high 11 points. Florida State had cut the lead to just two points before Richa Jackson stepped out and hit a big 3-pointer to push Duke's lead back up up to five.
Duke 13, Florida State 10 (11:41 first half): Florida State had found its shooting touch, but Duke's inside presence continues to propel it out to an early advantage. The Blue Devils hold a 12-2advantage on the glass in the early-going and have stifled any chance of second-chance points for the Seminoles. Elizabeth Williams has pulled down four early boards for Duke.
Haley Peters has been an efficient scoring option for the Blue Devils, knocking down four of her first five shots and showing off her shooting touch from outside as well as her intensity on the block. She leads all scorers with nine points.
Duke 9, Florida State 0 (16:37 first half): After a slow start against N.C. State yesterday, the Blue Devils have come out firing on all cylinders against Florida State, going on a 9-0 run to start the game. Alexis Jones kicked off the scoring for Duke with a jumper from the left wing. Tricia Liston added a runner off the glass before Haley Peters knocked down a three from the top of the key and added another jumper with her toe on the line to push the Blue Devils lead and force the Seminoles to take a timeout. Elizabeth Williams has been a force on the glass early and has excelled blocking out down low, helping her team out to an early 5-0 advantage on the boards.
Pregame: Welcome everyone. We are live from Greenboro Coliseum for the semifinal round of the 2013 ACC tournament, where top-seeded Duke will square off with No. 4 seed Florida State at 1 p.m. The Blue Devils defeated N.C. State 79-65 yesterday in their quarterfinal round matchup. The Seminoles knocked off Miami 70-58 to advance.
Duke and Florida State squared off Feb. 22 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils overcame a slow start to defeat the Seminoles 61-50. With a win this afternoon, Duke can continue to make its push toward a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Entering action as the No. 23 team in the country, Florida State is looking for an upset today to bolster its postseason resume and improve its seeding for the Big Dance.
Follow all the action through our live blog and Twitter updates from @chroniclesports.
Duke starters: G Alexis Jones, G Tricia Liston, F Haley Peters, F Richa Jackson, C Elizabeth Williams
Florida State starters: G Leonor Rodriguez, G Alexa Deluzio, G Morgan Toles, F Chelsea Davis, F Natasha Howard
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