Lexie Brown
The statline:
Thursday vs. Wake Forest: 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds
Sunday vs. Miami: 28 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-4 from beyond the arc, two assists, two rebounds and two steals
The good: Brown continued to shoulder the offensive load for the Blue Devils, combining for 52 points in two Duke wins. Brown’s ultra-efficient outing Sunday against No. 16 Miami carried the team its sixth victory against a ranked team this season, closing out Duke’s fifth perfect year at Cameron Indoor Stadium in program history and its first since 2012-13.
Brown’s lights-out 62.1 percent shooting propelled Duke through two early turnover-laden ruts against both the Demon Deacons and the Hurricanes, helping the Blue Devils combine to outscore their opponents 100-69 in the second half this week. Her defensive presence also disrupted their offensive flow, forcing six steals that she converted into several easy transition layups.
The Suwanee, Ga., native made plays with the ball in her hands and also excelled in distributing the ball against Wake Forest, facilitating forward Oderah Chidom’s 17-point effort on 7-of-9 shooting with sharp passes into the post.
The bad: Although Brown proved to be instrumental in getting Duke’s offense to bounce back from rough stretches, she also was part of the problem at times. She combined for seven turnovers in the two contests while the rest of the team also had trouble holding onto the ball, combining for 38 giveaways. This hasn’t been an isolated issue for Brown—she has a team-high 78 turnovers this season.
Brown was perfect from beyond the arc against the Hurricanes, but her outside shot wasn’t stellar against Wake Forest, going just 1-of-6 from deep. In addition, Brown could have crashed the boards a little harder, combining for just five rebounds in the two games.
The bottom line: With her stout defense and lethal offensive repertoire, Brown is continuing to emerge as one of the best all-around players in the country. Her play-making ability on both sides of the ball gives the Blue Devils a shot to play with anyone in the country if they clean up their offensive execution on the road.
Duke was perfect at home at season, but the Blue Devils have not picked up a win against a ranked opponent on the road in more than two years. If Brown and Duke can grapple with their road demons, they could be a dangerous team in March.
Honorable mention: While Brown dominated the perimeter, her backcourt mate Rebecca Greenwell created in the paint for the Blue Devils, with an 18-point performance against Wake Forest and a 22-point outing against Miami. She attempted just two 3-pointers against the Hurricanes, but created off the dribble and drove hard to the paint to complete three 3-point plays.
Greenwell’s physicality also helped the Blue Devils on the glass, combining for 20 rebounds and picking up a double-double against Miami with a season-high 13 boards. Despite turning the ball over five times Sunday, she played mistake-free basketball Thursday in spite of the team's turnover woes.
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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.