Boston – It is probably safe to say Duke was hoping somebody would knock North Carolina out of the NCAA Tournament.
It might be safer to say the fourth-ranked Blue Devils were hoping it would be somebody other than third-ranked Maryland.
But, either way, the Blue Devils will be playing the young and dangerous Terrapins again Tuesday in an Atlantic Coast Conference battle for the championship, a title neither team has won in the tournament’s 25-year history.
That’s what Duke (31-3) got for throttling LSU 64-45 in the semifinals Sunday, and Abby Waner, for one, wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s just a dream come true right now, to have a chance to play for the national championship,” said the Blue Devils standout freshman from ThunderRidge High School. “Maryland is a very good team playing with a lot of confidence right now. Our last loss (78-70 in the ACC Tournament semifinals) was to them, so we want our revenge.”
It was with some revenge in their hearts that the Blue Devils – two-time losers to North Carolina this season – shut down two-time player of the year Seimone Augustus. LSU beat Duke in last year’s regional finals, shutting them out of the Final Four.
A team noted for its explosive offense (tops in the nation at 87 points a game) used a rotating choke hold on Augustus, the nation’s leading scorer (23.0 points a game), limiting her to 14 points, none in the first half when the Blue Devils put the game out of reach with a 26-15 lead.
“We just focused on not letting her touch the ball,” said Waner (11 points, three rebounds, two steals) who was a significant contributor in defending Augustus in the first half. “We kept rotating fresh people on her, but she kind of wore us down in the second half.”
With Augustus finally breaking loose, LSU (31-4) got to within 37-31 early in the second half, but it was too little too late as the Blue Devils – with forward Mistie Williams (14) and guard Monique Currie (13) doing most of the scoring – pushed the lead to as much as 18 with eight minutes to go.
“Duke had an easy time guarding us,” Augustus said after her third straight trip to the Final Four came up short.
With 6-foot-7 center Alison Bales blocking six shots, the Blue Devils worked their defensive game plan “almost to perfection,” Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. “It was definitely a team effort. It takes a whole team to hold Seimone down.”
Duke, making its third Final Four bid in the past five years, is going to have to make its persistence pay off against the hottest team in the tournament, but with the way the Blue Devils have been playing defense, they like their chances.
“They’re young, but they don’t play like they’re young,” Currie said. “They have a great point guard (Kristi Tolliver), and Crystal Langhorne, she’s been unstoppable throughout the tournament, so we have to really focus on rebounding and defense like we have been.”
Staff writer Joseph Sanchez can be reached at 303 820-5456 or jsanchez@denverpost.com.
