Lexie Brown
The statline:
Tuesday vs. Longwood: 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting, seven assists, two rebounds and eight steals
Thursday vs. Grand Canyon: Seven points on 2-of-7 shooting, four assists, three rebounds and two steals
Sunday vs Vanderbilt: 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting, three assists, four rebounds and two steals
The good: Heading into the season, Brown was expected to help lead a more up-tempo Blue Devil offense. After a slow start, Brown has done just that. Despite a poor statistical night against Grand Canyon in which Duke’s offense primarily ran through the paint, Brown brought energy to the Blue Devils with her strong defense and efficient shooting.
Her eight steals against Longwood helped Duke top last season’s single-game high for steals in the first 20 minutes with 19 before the break, and Brown also led the team in shooting percentage. The Suwanee, Ga., native also carried the offense in a losing effort Sunday against Vanderbilt, leading the team with 21 points while backcourt mate Rebecca Greenwell struggled to shoot efficiently, making just 6-of-17 attempts from the field.
The bad: After hitting 120 3-pointers in two seasons with Maryland, the All-American point guard couldn’t connect from beyond the arc against Vanderbilt, missing all five of her 3-point attempts. Brown also turned the ball over a team-high four times against the Commodores, part of a 19-turnover performance as an offense. Heading into the heart of the nonconference schedule, Brown and the Blue Devils will need to take better care of the ball.
The bottom line: With her scoring and playmaking ability, Brown has proven that she can live up to the hype that she garnered after two dominant seasons at Maryland. Alongside Greenwell, Brown will lead a stacked Blue Devils backcourt that could develop into one of the best in the nation. But although she turned the ball over just twice against Longwood and Grand Canyon combined, she isn’t necessarily immune to the turnover bug that has plagued Duke in recent seasons against higher-level competition.
Honorable mention: A leader in all facets for Duke, Greenwell also shouldered a large portion of the load, averaging 20.7 points per game last week while pacing the team with a career-high 30 points against Longwood. Before an uncharacteristic 2-of-9 performance from beyond the arc against Vanderbilt, Greenwell combined to drain 8-of-18 triples against Longwood and Grand Canyon. She also passed the 1,000-point mark for her career with a 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter Tuesday, becoming the fourth fastest player to do so in program history.
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Managing Editor 2018-19, 2019-2020 Features & Investigations Editor
A member of the class of 2020 hailing from San Mateo, Calif., Ben is The Chronicle's Towerview Editor and Investigations Editor. Outside of the Chronicle, he is a public policy major working towards a journalism certificate, has interned at the Tampa Bay Times and NBC News and frequents Pitchforks.