Duke Rides Defense to 63-46 Win Over No. 14 Virginia Tech

Thursday, January 18

Durham, N.C.

8 p.m.

Duke University

12-5,4-2ACC

Virginia Tech

13-4,4-2ACC

Virginia Tech

Duke

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke Rides Defense to 63-46 Win Over No. 14 Virginia Tech

1/18/2024 10:29:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Postgame Notes (PDF)Coach Lawson Quotes (PDF)Duke Player Quotes (PDF)Opponent Quotes (PDF)Coach Lawson Presser Richardson Postgame Availability Highlights Photo Gallery

DURHAM – The Duke women's basketball team limited Virginia Tech to 33 percent shooting for the game and forced 20 turnovers en route to an exhilarating 63-46 victory over the 14th-ranked Hokies Thursday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils held Virginia Tech to single-digit scoring in the second and third quarters and to 24-percent shooting from the field in the second half.

Reigan Richardson spearheaded Duke's offensive effort with a game-high 22 points on 10-of-15 shooting and Ashlon Jackson chipped in 13 points of her own, while Kennedy Brown hit the glass hard with 10 boards. Duke improves to 12-5 overall and 4-2 in conference action, picking up its first ranked win of the 2023-24 season. Virginia Tech drops to 13-4 and 4-2 in ACC play.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Virginia Tech jumped out to an early 13-1 lead and held an 18-7 margin after the opening quarter.
The Blue Devils showed their resolve, outscoring the visitors 14-8 in the second stanza to pull within 26-21 at the break. Virginia Tech made just four field goals in the second quarter and turned the ball over seven times as Duke ramped up its defensive pressure.
Offensively, Ashlon Jackson netted a quick five points for Duke, which classmate Emma Koabel followed up with a triple from the left slot to pull the home team within seven at the 3:36 mark.
Duke tallied six of the second period's final eight points as Kennedy Brown converted inside and Richardson notched consecutive buckets to trim the deficit to five.
Jackson got going offensively in the third quarter, opening the period with a personal 8-0 run as Duke surged in front, 29-26, at the 7:08 mark.
An Elizabeth Kitley jumper halted the Duke run briefly, but the Blue Devils answered with two quick fastbreak buckets – Taina Mair lobbed a pass toward the rim which Jadyn Donovan tipped in, then Mair called her own number to push the Duke advantage to 33-28, forcing the Hokies to burn a timeout.
Two more scores inside shortly after via Donovan and Oluchi Okananwa extended the lead to nine, 37-28, causing another Virginia Tech timeout.
For the quarter, Duke outscored the Hokies, 27-8, parlaying the performance into a 48-34 lead at the end of three.
Duke kept its foot on the gas in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Hokies, 15-12. Six of Virginia Tech's 12 points in the quarter came from the charity stripe as the Blue Devils held the visitors to just three field goals.
Richardson scored nine points in the final frame despite playing just five minutes. Okananwa pulled in five boards in the final 10 minutes as Duke outrebounded Virginia Tech 13-6 in the quarter and 38-34 for the game.

GAME NOTES:

Now winners of its last three games, Duke improves to 12-5 on the year and 4-2 in the ACC.
The Blue Devils earn their first win over a ranked opponent this season.
In the all-time series against Virginia Tech, Duke moves to 29-8 overall including a 16-3 ledger when playing in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Duke held Virginia Tech below 30-percent shooting in each of the final three quarters and to just a 24-percent clip in the second half.
Fifty-two percent of Duke's baskets were assisted as the Blue Devils dropped 13 dimes on 25 made shots.
The Blue Devils won the battle on the glass (38-34), forced 20 Virginia Tech turnovers and collected 10 steals. Duke also rejected five shots.
Duke swept the superlative stats, holding the advantage in all five categories – points in the paint (30-14), fast breaks (19-0), points off turnovers (20-9), bench (14-13) and second chance (7-5).
The 27 points scored in the third quarter is the third highest point total by the Blue Devils in any quarter this season, trailing only the point totals in the first quarter against NC Central (32) and third quarter against Georgia Tech (28).
The Blue Devils have now held 16 of 17 opponents this season below their respective scoring averages. Virginia Tech's 46 points were 34.1 fewer than its average of 80.1.

UP NEXT
The Blue Devils head up the road to Raleigh for an in-state matchup against No. 4 NC State on Sunday, Jan. 21 at 12 p.m., live on ACCN.

To stay up to date with Duke women's basketball, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWBB."

#GoDuke