No. 8 Duke took on Virginia Tech for a first round of ACC play Sunday afternoon, and once again defended its home territory, hammering the Hokies 81-59.
After a heavy loss to South Carolina Thursday, the Blue Devils went home angry and ready to get another win under their belt. Freshman Toby Fournier paced the team, scoring a team-high 27 points and coming up just one rebound short of a double-double.
“Coming off of a South Carolina game where I didn't play to my full potential,” Fournier said. “Leading into this game, my mindset was just trying to think positively.”
In the second quarter, graduate guard Vanessa de Jesus made a jumper, and when the ball turned over to the Hokies, it slipped out of Virginia Tech’s Lani White hands. Oluchi Okananwa grabbed it, running back to the basket for a layup. Suddenly, the home team led 19-8 with 8:52 remaining in the half.
The Blue Devils (9-2, 1-0 in the ACC) just kept winning, and by the middle of the second quarter, the Hokies hadn’t scored for over three minutes. After a steal by Jadyn Donovan and layup on the fastbreak, Virginia Tech (7-3, 0-1) called another timeout.
The Hokies were formidable, but Duke took great advantage of its possessions, averaging 1.06 points per possession in the first half, compared to Virginia Tech’s 0.63. The visitors also had twice as many turnovers as the Blue Devils. Even in precarious situations, Duke was able to capitalize, with strategic passes and reverse layups aplenty — especially from Fournier. In the first half, the freshman was already in double-figure scoring, leading the team with 13 points.
“Toby has the ability to get a double-double every night,” head coach Kara Lawson said. “She’s an impact player for us, and I thought it was a pretty good ACC debut for the freshman.”
By the end of the half, most of the Hokies’ catch-up was being aided by their free throws — a cost of the Blue Devils’ offensive might. However, it wasn’t nearly enough for Virginia Tech to break through, and the half ended 38-22.
In the third quarter, the Hokies came back with a force, opening with a layup and then a shot from deep. The teams went back and forth, but neither was in control. Duke’s lead shrunk to as low as 10, but Virginia Tech could not quite cut it to single digits. Then, Taina Mair made a three, and the crowd erupted.
After Virginia Tech responded with a basket in the paint, the Blue Devils took two of their own to make it 48-33 with 5:28 left in the period. But then the Hokies’ White shot the ball to make a jumper, and even though she ended up on the ground with a shove by Jordan Wood, the ball miraculously made it into the basket.
The third quarter was sloppy, and both teams were neck-and-neck; Virginia Tech slightly outscored Duke 20-19.
“Did we lose it in the third quarter for a little bit, sure, but like, that's the basketball game, right? There's four quarters. Their team is good, too," Lawson said. "They're going to have moments, but we were able to bring that back, and I'm very pleased. We need it for ACC play.”
But in the final quarter, sophomore forward Delaney Thomas brought her team back on track, making an impressive five points in a row in the quarter’s first minute. After a layup by the Hokies, the sophomore forward went back for another to put Duke up 20 points with eight minutes left.
Even with a comfortable lead, the Blue Devils maintained a steady energy against their opponent. With 4:53 left in the final quarter, Mair stole the ball and ran it down the court, hurling it to Fournier who made it in the basket on a second-chance shot. After that, it was only with 2:58 left that the Hokies made another field goal.
Virginia Tech started the game off strong and took the ball down the court for a quick shot, but Duke answered with a bucket of its own; a pretty pass to Thomas in the paint and a layup. After that, the ball turned over and over. Nobody scored for a couple minutes, until a Hokie tipped the ball in.
Both teams played with anger. Jadyn Donovan pushed a Hokie and got herself a foul, then freshman forward Toby Fournier was awarded a free throw from a foul by Virginia Tech, bringing the teams’ scores closer together. Fournier made three layups in a row to jumpstart Duke’s scoring towards the end of the first quarter; clearly, she didn’t like being pushed around.
Virginia Tech responded, but the Blue Devils weren't ready to give up control. Mair dribbled the ball to the 3-point line. She kept dribbling, staring her opponent down. Then, like a bullet, she passed to Jordan Wood, who sunk a three. The Hokies called timeout. After the timeout, senior guard Reigan Richardson sank an easy three and the Blue Devils were up.
It wasn’t only Duke’s offensive grit that made the blowout win possible, but its tried-and-true defense. Time and time again, the Blue Devils’ defense created a wall against Virginia Tech’s offensive attempts.
“It was nice to see the Duke defense back in the first half. That is what my takeaway is from this game that I'm most proud of,” Lawson said. “We were locked into their shooters.”
With 26 seconds left, the crowd chanting “Our House,” Mair made a beautiful shot from deep, and the Hokies knew it was over.
Next up for Duke is another home contest against Wofford Dec. 18 at 7 p.m.
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