Third Quarter Surge Leads Duke to Victory over Appalachian State

Wednesday, November 24

Durham, N.C.

7 P.M.

Duke University

5-0,0-0ACC

Appalachian State

3-3,0-0Sun Belt

Appalachian St.

Duke

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Third Quarter Surge Leads Duke to Victory over Appalachian State

11/24/2021 9:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score FINAL BOX SCORE (PDF)GALLERY DUKE NOTES LAWSON QUOTES APP STATE QUOTES LAWSON INTERVIEW GORDON & DAY-WILSON INTERVIEW

DURHAM – Duke women's basketball used a dominant third quarter to help propel the Blue Devils to a 73-65 win over Appalachian State Wednesday evening at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Blue Devils (5-0) finished the contest with three players in double figures, including two off the bench. Graduate student Lexi Gordon paced the Duke offense with 21 points on a scorching 6-of-7 from the floor (4-of-5 from distance), along with four rebounds – both season bests. Freshman Shayeann Day-Wilson added a season-high 14 points to go with five assists, while graduate student Amaya Finklea-Guity chipped in a season-high 11 points and five rebounds. Senior Elizabeth Balogun led the way on the glass with six boards and junior Celeste Taylor dished out a career-high seven assists.

Jade Williams scored the first bucket of the game, but Appalachian State registered the next six to take a four point lead. Gordon snapped a two-minute Duke drought with a triple, kickstarting a strong finish to the period. The Blue Devils hit five of their last seven shots from the field and ended the quarter holding a three-point lead, 13-10.

Duke extended its lead to five at the start of the second on Finklea-Guity's layup. However, the Mountaineers responded with a 13-2 run to surge ahead, 23-17. App State extended its lead to 10 with 2:30 remaining in the half, before Finklea-Guity and Gordon each knocked down a pair of free throws to pull Duke within six heading into the break.

Gordon paced the Blue Devils through the first half with eight points, with Finklea-Guity adding seven and three boards. Balogun and Onome Akinbode-James also pulled down three rebounds apiece, while Taylor dished out three assists.

The Blue Devils emerged from the locker room and immediately snatched the game back. Vanessa de Jesus' trey initiated a 14-2 Duke run, which Day-Wilson capped off with a tough finish inside to push Duke ahead by four. The Blue Devils continued to execute offensively and extended their lead to 56-43 following back-to-back triples from Day-Wilson and Gordon, a pullup jumper from freshman Lee Volker and another bucket from Day-Wilson.

Duke shot 62 percent from the field in the third and the defense clamped up to force eight App State turnovers. Day-Wilson poured in 12 of her 14 points in the period, while Gordon registered seven points to push her total to 15. After outscoring the Mountaineers 33-13, Duke held a 61-47 lead.

App State attempted to mount a late fourth-quarter rally and pulled within 65-59 with just over four minutes to play. That would be as close as the Mountaineers would get though, as the Blue Devils scored the next seven points to regain a double-digit advantage and ice the game.

Duke outscored App State 34-5 off the bench and finished the game with a +18 margin on the glass, 41-23.

Janay Sanders and Michaela Porter paced the Mountaineers with 19 points apiece.

Up Next:
Duke continues its three-game home stand this Sunday, as the Blue Devils play host to the Troy Trojans at 2 p.m., in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The contest will air live on ACC Network.

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