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Top-Ranked Blue Devils Travel To Tulsa For Iciss Tillis Homecoming
12/19/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2002
Game 10 - Tulsa
#1/1 Duke (9-0) at Tulsa (4-5)
December 21 * Tulsa, Okla. * 9:00 PM (EST)
Donald W. Reynolds Center * WDNC-AM 620
Game Notes in PDF Format
Tulsa Trip Photo Gallery
Top-Ranked Blue Devils Travel To Tulsa For Iciss Tillis Homecoming...
The top-ranked Duke women's basketball team (9-0) will travel to Tulsa, Okla. on Friday for a Saturday, Dec. 21 contest against the University of Tulsa (4-5), which will mark homecoming for junior Iciss Tills. The game will begin at 9:00 PM (EST) and played at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
The game will be aired on the Duke Radio Network (WDNC-AM 620) with Steve Barnes calling the play-by-play and Missy Anderson doing the color. It will also be on television in Oklahoma. It will be televised by Cox Communications channel nine in Tulsa and channel three in Oklahoma City. Calling the game will be Mark Neely and Rod Thompson.
A Look At Tulsa...
Tulsa enters Saturday's game with a 4-5 overall record and is led by senior Allison Curtin, who is averaging 26.0 points and 7.4 rebounds. She has scored 30 or more points in five games this season and ranks fifth in the nation in scoring. Head Coach Kathy McConnell-Miller, a 1989 graduate of Virginia, is in her fifth season at Tulsa.
The only common opponent between Tulsa/Duke is Arkansas. On Dec. 9, Arkansas def. Tulsa 66-49, while on Nov. 30 Duke def. Arkansas 74-72 in overtime. It marks the first time Duke and Tulsa have played in each in school history.
Undefeated Starts...
For only the third time in school history, Duke has bolted out to an 9-0 record on the season. Since Coach G arrived in 1992-93, Duke has two of the top three undefeated marks.
Duke Vs. The Western Athletic Conference...
Duke owns an all-time record of 2-0 against the Western Athletic Conference-- Louisiana Tech (1-0) and San Jose State (1-0).
Homecoming For Tillis...
Junior Iciss Tillis will be heading home to Tulsa, Okla. on Friday as the Blue Devils travel to play the University of Tulsa on Saturday. Tillis was a 2000 graduate of Cascia Hall Prep in Tulsa. She guided Cascia Hall Prep to a 91-17 record in four years and was a two-time Parade All-America selection.
Traveling to hometowns of players is a regular thing for the Blue Devils. Here is a listing of past trips-- Toledo - Vicki Krapohl & Crystal White; Penn State - Sheana Mosch & Krista Gingrich; Seton Hall - Michele Matyasovsky & Missy West; Manhattan College - Hilary Howard; Notre Dame - Lauren Rice; Northwestern State - Alana Beard next season; New Orleans Tournament - Shaeeta Brown; Georgetown - Monique Currie; UCLA - Nicole Erickson.
Hey, I Know You!...
When the Blue Devils and Golden Hurricanes meet on Saturday it will be a reunion of some players and coaches. Duke's new assistant coach LaVonda Wager and Tulsa Head Coach Kathy McConnell-Miller coached together at Illinois from 1995-96 through 1998-99. The duo also recruited Tulsa senior Allison Curtin to Illinois where she was a two-time All-Big Ten first team selection prior to transferring to the Golden Hurricanes prior to the 2001-02 season.
Blue Devil Jessica Foley and Golden Hurricane Megan Moody are each from Victoria, Australia and played against each other in the Under 16/18 Championships. Iciss Tillis knows most of the Tulsa players and staff as she worked at its summer basketball camp the summer after her freshman year.
Winning Streak...
Duke owns a 17 game home winning streak dating back to last season. In ACC games only, the Blue Devils have won 11 consecutive home contests. Duke has not lost more than two games at home in one season since the 1995-96 season. The streak is the third-best in the nation behind Connecticut (50) and Oklahoma (25).
The Blue Devils have also won 10 consecutive true road games dating back to last season with the last loss coming at Toledo on Nov. 18 at Toledo.
Beard Moves Up Scoring List...
With her 21 points on Wednesday, Alana Beard moved into fifth place on the Duke career scoring list with 1,407 points. She passed Kira Orr (1,388) and next up is Georgia Schweitzer (1,620). Her points have come in only 74 games with an average of 19.0.
No Rest For The Blue Devils...
After having seven days off for final exams, Duke is in the end of a stretch where the Blue Devils will play three games in five days. This is nothing new for Duke this year as it opened the season with five games in nine days.
The stretch also includes the first true road contest for the Blue Devils as they travel to Tulsa. So far Duke has played five home games and four neutral contests.
Harding Continues Stellar Play...
Freshman Lindsey Harding continues to be a big boost off the bench for the Blue Devils this season. She is averaging 6.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists. Harding has scored double-figures three times out of the last four games for an average of 10.0 a game.
Harding is averaging 3.56 assists a game, which ranks 10th in the ACC stats. She has the best steals average (2.56) and the second highest assist average of any freshman in the ACC. Harding also ranks fourth in the ACC with a 82.6 free throw percentage.
Sizzling From Three...
With the exception of centers Brooke Smith and Mistie Bass, the remaining eight players on the Duke squad has hit at least one 3-pointer on the season.
So far, Duke is averaging 5.9 made a game and hitting 34.9 percent. Vicki Krapohl (16), Jessica Foley (10) and Iciss Tillis (10) have each hit double-figures from behind the arc.
Key Point Play ...
The Blue Devils are getting key production from its point guard tandem of Vicki Krapohl and Lindsey Harding. The duo is averaging a combined 12.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 3.2 steals on the season. Krapohl leads the ACC with a 55.2 three-point field goal percentage, while Harding has a team-best 82.6 free throw percentage.
Turnover Prone ...
Duke's defense this season has been incredible as the Blue Devils are forcing 27.1 turnovers a contest. In nine games, Duke has forced 30 or more turnovers three times and 20 or more eight times. Charleston Southern committed a season-high 37 on Monday.
As a team, the Blue Devils are only committing 14.9 turnovers a game and leads the ACC with a +12.2 turnover margin. Duke had a season-low eight turnovers on Wednesday against FIU.
Bass Comes Back Strong...
After coming off the bench against Charleston Southern because of a sore ankle, freshman Mistie Bass was back in the lineup against Florida International on Wednesday and produced well with 16 points and six rebounds in 22 minutes. Bass has now scored double-figures in five consecutive games, while pulling down six or more rebounds in four of the five contests.
Bass has given Duke the much needed post play the Blue Devils have lacked since the graduation of Michele VanGorp in 1999. She currently ranks 15th in the ACC in scoring (12.3),sixth in field goal percentage (52.9) and fifth in free throw percentage (77.1).
Brooke Smith Misses Game...
Freshman Brooke Smith missed the Florida International game on Wednesday due to a sprained ankle. Smith turned the ankle on Monday and did not practice on Tuesday. She is expected to play on Saturday at Tulsa. On the season, Smith is averaging 6.1 points and 3.9 rebounds.
The Beard Factor...
In nine games this season, junior Alana Beard is averaging 22.7 points and has scored 20 or more points in seven of the nine games. Of her 20-point games, Beard has registered 21 or more points in all seven games.
As of Dec. 16, her 22.9 average ranked 11th in the NCAA, while her 4.3 steals average was eighth.
--For a full set of game notes, click below--
Game Notes in PDF Format
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