Duke Set To Play In Surf?N Slam Classic

Game 10 - St. John's
#2/2 Duke (9-0) vs. St. John's (9-1)
Dec. 28, 2005 ? San Diego, Calif. ? 11:00 PM (EDT)
Jenny Craig Pavilion (5,100)

Media Information
Series Record: First Meeting
Duke Head Coach: Gail Goestenkors
Career Record: 342-93 (14th Year)
Record at Duke: Same
SJU Head Coach: Kim Barnes Arico
Career Record: 141-121 (10th Year)
Record at SJU: 47-49 (4th Year)
Radio: WDNC-AM 620
Steve Barnes (PxP), Missy Anderson (Color)
Television: none
Online Gametracker: TBA
Tickets: San Diego Ticket Office...619-260-7550
Rankings: Duke (No. 2 - AP; No. 2 - USA Today)

Duke Set To Play In Surf'N Slam Classic...

After having five days off for the Christmas holiday, second-ranked Duke will travel to San Diego, Calif., for the Surf'N Slam Classic on Dec. 28 & 30. The Blue Devils will take on St. John's (9-1) on Dec. 28 at 11:00 p.m. (EDT) and then will take on either San Diego (3-7) or Montana State (0-9) on Dec. 30 at either 9:00 or 11:00 p.m. (EDT) which will be played in the Jenny Craig Pavilion on the campus of the University of San Diego.

Duke is currently ranked second in both the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN Coaches Polls.

Noting The Blue Devils...

Duke tallied a season-best 12 treys against Colorado State and a season-high 15 blocks against Ball State ... Chante Black is averaging 8.7 rebounds over the last three games ... the Blue Devils enter Wednesday's game with a 426-122 points in the paint advantage so far this season ... after finishing the season with only eight players in 2004-05, the Blue Devils feature a roster of 13 this year ... Duke was ranked No. 1 in the preseason by the Associated Press, Street & Smith's and Lindy's Magazine polls

A Look At St. John's...

St. John's enters the tournament with a 9-1 record with its only loss coming at Marquette on Dec. 6, 2005 (60-
57). The Red Storm is led by Kia Wright (13.7 points, 3.8 rebounds), Angela Clark (13.7 points, 9.6 rebounds) and Danielle Chambers (11.0 points, 10.8 rebounds). St. John's opened the season with seven straight wins under head coach Kim Barnes Arico.

The Series With St. John's...

This will be the first meeting between the Red Storm and the Blue Devils.

Duke Versus The Big East Conference...

The Blue Devils own a 23-14 record against teams from the Big East-- Cincinnati (0-1), Connecticut (2-3), DePaul (1-1), Georgetown (4-0), Louisville (1-1), Marquette (2-0), Notre Dame (1-4), Providence (1-1), Rutgers (1-1), Seton Hall (4-2), South Florida (2-0), Syracuse (1-0), Villanova (1-0) and West Virginia (2-0).

A Look At San Diego...

San Diego is coached by Cindy Fisher, who is in her first season with the Toreros. USD enters the tournament with a 3-7 overall record and has lost four straight contests. The Toreros are led by Michelle Augustavo, who is averaging 11.4 points and 3.7 rebounds. She leads the squad with 22 treys and had a team-best 42 points at Clemson on Dec. 11, which is the second-most points scored by a Division I player this season.

The Series With San Diego...

Duke owns a 1-0 record against San Diego as the Blue Devils notched a 64-56 victory on Nov. 26, 1988 in the Downeast Auto Classic in Bangor, Maine.

Duke Versus The West Coast Conference...

Duke owns an overall record of 3-1 against teams in the West Coast Conference-- Loyola Marymount (1-0), Pepperdine (1-0), San Diego (10) and San Francisco (0-1).

A Look At Montana State...

Montana State enters the tournament with a 0-9 record and is led by Scotta Morton (10.4 points) and Alyssa Nelson (10.1 points).

The Series With Montana State...

Duke and Montana State have never played each other.

Duke Versus The Big Sky Conference...

The Blue Devils own an all-time record of 3-0 against teams from the Big Sky Conference-- Eastern Washington (1-0), Montana (1-0) and Sacramento State (1-0).

High Scoring Affairs...

Over the last three contests, the Blue Devils are averaging 100.3 points as Duke has collected 92, 110 and 99 points. On the year, Duke leads the NCAA with 95.6 points a game. In nine contests, the team has scored 90 or more points seven times.

Smith Picks Up Scoring...

One of the top players in the ACC this season in the assist category, sophomore Wanisha Smith has started picking up her scoring over the last two contests. She has notched double-figure points in two straight games marking the first two times this year she has scored more than nine points in a game. Smith tallied 11 points against Ball State and 13 points versus Colorado State. She leads the Duke team with 5.1 assists a game and also ranks sixth in the ACC. She has done all of this in only 18.9 minutes a game.

Last season, Smith averaged 32.3 minutes a game and 10.9 points, while dishing out 4.3 assists.

Abby Waner Posting Impressive Numbers...

In only her first year of college basketball, freshman Abby Waner is posting very impressive numbers for the Blue Devils. On the season, Waner is averaging 12.2 points, 4.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds, 2.8 steals, while hitting 52.4 percent of her field goals and 41.7 percent from downtown.

Waner is coming off scoring a career-high 23 points against Colorado State on Dec. 22. She also dished out six assists, grabbed five rebounds and had four steals in only 24 minutes. Waner was the 2004-05 National High School Player of the Year and 2005 Colorado Miss Basketball.

Williams Posting Stellar Numbers...

After working very hard over the summer to get in better shape and improve her post moves, senior Mistie Williams continues to register some of the best numbers of her career. On the year, Williams is averaging 11.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.9 blocks in 19.9 minutes.

Williams has scored double-figures in six of nine contests and grabbed four or more rebounds in seven of nine games. She is hitting 62.1 percent of her field goals and 81.5 percent