What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
This certainly holds true for Duke women’s basketball, who put on a stellar defensive performance in its 81-59 win against Virginia Tech after falling to South Carolina 81-70.
With this game crucial to setting the tone of how both teams want to carry themselves for the rest of conference play, Duke showed that it is a dominant team both on the offensive and the defensive ends.
Duke’s first-half defense was impeccable, forcing Virginia Tech to 12 turnovers. The Blue Devil defense was scrappy and filled with tremendous heart, racking up eight steals compared to only one from the Hokies.
“The thing that stuck out to me in this game was our defense in the first half. I hadn't seen it all year, and it's something that we talked about … It takes work. It takes connectivity. It takes improvement. It takes buy-in. It takes effort,” Lawson said.
Besides showing viewers what it means to play strong, tough Duke defense, Lawson’s team also revealed it is not composed of only the starting five. Instead, roster depth is a key factor in making it such a tough opponent to face.
Central to the bench’s strength is freshman Toby Fournier. Not being weighed down by her performance against South Carolina, she came back stronger than ever with a career-high 27-point performance.
Soon after checking in, Fournier received a dish from senior Reigan Richardson and finished for a nice reverse layup. On the next possession, the Toronto native connected once again and eventually closed her first four minutes of play with seven points.
During a possession in the third quarter, the ball was constantly in motion. Richardson shot a three but didn’t connect, allowing Fournier to get the offensive rebound and convert for the and-one, with Cameron Indoor Stadium erupting in cheers.
Closing out the fourth quarter in style, and similar to the win against Belmont, Fournier drained a deep shot that was thought to be a 3-pointer but was eventually ruled a long two.
This jaw-dropping performance by the highly-touted freshman was a step up from her recent level of play. Rather than taking a backseat in her development, she has actively sought out ways to improve her game as the season progresses. The Crestwood Prep alum took all of the lessons she learned from the South Carolina game and wanted to apply them.
“I think leading into this game, my mindset was just trying to think positively. Because I think at the end of the South Carolina game, I was thinking very negatively about how I played [and] my performance,” Fournier said. I wasn't really thinking, how can I get better?... [On the bus Jadyn] just walked me through her freshman year as well and how that went for her. So I think that really helped me, her struggle, kind of relating to my struggle, and then being able to build off of that, and then also just having the rest of my team to support me through everything, and obviously coaching staff as well.”
This offensive spark off the bench was not limited to Fournier. Finishing the game with 12 points and 12 boards, sophomore Oluchi Okananwa was a force to be reckoned with throughout the entire game.
Okananwa’s heart and hustle on the floor were hard to miss. Standing at only 5-foot-10, this guard totaled the most rebounds in comparison to the rest of the team.
“There is no doubt when Oluchi is playing well, we're a different team,” Lawson said. “And I think the last couple games, the last two games, specifically, we have seen that player from last year, and I think she's starting to kind of hit her stride and find her groove with us, and we need her.”
In the second quarter, the Boston native got the rebound, pushed the ball forward to Taina Mair, who kicked the ball back to Okananwa. After missing her shot, she then regained possession of the ball and missed, got the ball once more and finished for the and-one, filling Cameron with boisterous cheers. This exemplified the gritty player that she is.
Towards the end of the third quarter, Okananwa did not connect for the three, but quickly hustled to get her own rebound for a tough shot at the rim, causing fans to burst with excitement. She also is an essential part of the defensive effort Lawson discussed, with two blocks and steals on the afternoon.
“She literally changes games with how hard she plays, with her ability to score, and certainly her ability to rebound, her ability to defend and get steals. She touches the game in every area, and gives us such a jolt when she's in the game,” Lawson said.
The outstanding performances by Fournier and Okananwa truly emphasize the depth of Duke’s bench, making them a hard team to defend. This is certainly shown in the Blue Devils recording 51 bench points, highlighting that when some players are not performing at their highest potential, there are other members on the team that can shine and lead Duke to victory.
“It's definitely a luxury to have the depth that we enjoy … I thought the starting group played well defensively. They were a big part of that half where we held them to those 22 points,” Lawson said. “But offensively, I didn't think they were sharp. I mean think about some teams, if you don't have four or five starters sharp on offense, you're probably going to lose.”
But one starter who also lit a fire for the Duke team was sophomore Delaney Thomas, recording 14 points after going 7-for-7 against a strong South Carolina team.
With the Blue Devils having the fifth best strength of schedule nationally and the best in the ACC, this exposure to great competition will certainly bolster their performance as they continue to play against outstanding teams.
Duke’s ability to come back and learn from tough losses, developing its defensive prowess which it is highly regarded for and having a balanced scoring performance will set up Lawson’s squad well for ACC success.
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