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Currie, Beard Carry Blue Devils Past Tar Heels, 87-80
3/4/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
By DAVID DROSCHAK
AP Sports Writer
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Third-ranked Duke can exhale a little bit now.
AP Sports Writer
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Third-ranked Duke can exhale a little bit now.
Monique Currie scored a career-high 30 points and Alana Beard added 25 as the Blue Devils became the first women's team to complete a perfect run through the Atlantic Coast Conference with an 87-80 win over No. 16 North Carolina in the tournament championship Monday night.
The victory extended the Blue Devils' school-record winning streak to 18 and likely secured a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament for a team that went 16-0 in league play and won its third straight ACC crown at the Greensboro Coliseum with three more wins.
"Even when we went 16-0, I don't think we could really appreciate it because we had this next goal right in front of us that we had to get ready for," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "This is such a tremendous league and to be able to run the table is something.
"The regular season is like a marathon and the tournament is a sprint," she added. "It's two different things and sometimes the team that does the marathon can't sprint. I'm proud of this team because we were able to run the marathon and sprint at the end. It was a big sprint tonight for the finish."
Beard, the ACC's leading scorer, was quiet most of the night, but saved her best for late. The sophomore guard scored 11 straight down the stretch as Duke took control with 3{ minutes left.
"I just let the game come to me," said Beard, who was 10-for-16 from the field and 5-of-6 from the foul line. "I had the open lanes, I had the open jump shots so it was basically a 1-on-1 thing and I knew I could get points."
Top-seeded Duke (27-3) beat the second-seeded Tar Heels (24-8) by 20 and 15 during the season, but this one didn't come easy as the Blue Devils turned it over 21 times.
However, the Blue Devils shot 55 percent and were 26-for-29 from the foul line to pull out the close win over their archrival, which got 19 points each from Candace Sutton and Nikki Teasley.
North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell couldn't believe the stat sheet after the game. Her team took 30 more shots and won the battle of the offensive boards 22-8, but still came up short.
"I am looking at this and I just have to shake my head," said Hatchell, who won her 600th career game in the tourney semifinals. "I don't know how much better we can do. I would play them basically the same way - maybe try to be a little more physical."
North Carolina led 48-45 before scoring on five straight possessions to go up by 12 with 13:24 left.
Krista Gingrich then scored on a baseline shot and sank a 3-pointer, and Beard scored four points as Duke pulled within one midway through the half.
But the Blue Devils failed on three straight possessions to take the lead, turning it over twice and missing a hurried 3-pointer by Gingrich after North Carolina lost the ball.
Duke finally got over the hump when Wynter Whitley hit a free throw and Beard scored on a driving layup for a 73-70 lead with 3:28 left.
Beard sank a 14-footer 37 seconds later and Duke was just minutes from another ACC tourney crown and its eighth straight NCAA appearance.
While Duke may get to stay close to home at the East Regional finals in Raleigh, North Carolina will also head to the NCAAs for the 14th time.
"Our season is not over," Teasley said. "We're going to go home and learn from this. Life goes on."
Duke trailed at the break for just the third time all season, and the first time since Dec. 27 in an 89-68 loss to Tennessee.
The Tar Heels shot just 34 percent in the opening 20 minutes, but the Blue Devils turned it over 10 times as Beard and Iciss Tillis, Duke's two all-conference players, combined for just eight points.
Most of Duke's first-half offense came from tourney MVP Currie, who was 5-for-8 from the field and 10-of-10 from the foul line for 20 of her team's 37 points.
Her previous best was 23 points earlier this season against the Tar Heels.
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