Balanced Effort Pushes No. 13 Duke Past Wake Forest, 72-47

Thursday, February 13

Winston-Salem, N.C.

6 p.m.

Duke University

20-5,11-2ACC

Wake Forest

8-16,1-12ACC

Duke

Wake Forest

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Balanced Effort Pushes No. 13 Duke Past Wake Forest, 72-47

2/13/2025 8:50:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Duke freshman Toby Fournier and sophomore Oluchi Okananwa led a balanced scoring effort with a combined 32 points in a 72-47 road victory at Wake Forest for the 13th-ranked Blue Devils in ACC women's basketball action Thursday evening.

Fournier led all scorers with 17 points while Okananwa had 15 for Duke. Fifteen of Fournier's 17 points came in her nine second-half minutes. Okananwa added three rebounds, two assists and two steals in her 23 minutes of action. Eight different Blue Devils got on the scoreboard while sophomore Delaney Thomas led the charge on the glass with six boards. Junior Ashlon Jackson had her playmaking ability on full display en route to posting a career-high seven assists.

Defensively, Duke (20-5, 11-2 ACC) forced Wake Forest (8-16, 1-12) into 33 turnovers – the second most by a Blue Devil opponent this season. The Blue Devils scored 41 points off those miscues.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke jumped out to an early 7-4 lead in the first three minutes. Wake Forest put the clamps on the Blue Devils over the next three minutes, scoring five unanswered for a 9-7 advantage. The teams traded baskets over the final few minutes with an Okananwa layup with four ticks left on the clock pulling Duke within one, 12-11, after the opening 10 minutes.
Four of Duke's five starters scored in the first quarter, but the Blue Devils hit just 29 percent of their shots from the floor in the period.
The Blue Devils gained some momentum in the second quarter, parlaying a 12-4 run early in the period – one featuring six different scorers – into a 25-18 advantage with 3:17 to play in the period. Senior Reigan Richardson and Thomas converted the final two Duke buckets of the half as the Blue Devils took a 29-19 lead into the half. Duke forced Wake Forest into 20 first-half turnovers, scoring 20 points in transition off the giveaways.
Duke remained steady in the third quarter, slowly extending its lead to 18, 46-28, after three quarters. Balance once again was the story with six different Blue Devils finding the bottom of the net. Okananwa led the offensive charge with six points.
The Blue Devils forced the Demon Deacons into seven turnovers in the stanza, scoring nine points off those takeaways. Duke also held the home squad to just 25-percent shooting in the third quarter.
Duke scored the first six points of the fourth quarter, including three from the hot hand of Okananwa, to stretch the lead to 24 at 52-28. The remainder of the period was all Fournier as she scored 13 points to send Duke back to Durham with the 72-47 victory.

NOTES:

With the victory, Duke improves to 20-5 overall and posts its third consecutive 20-win season.
The Blue Devils earn their 11th ACC dub of 2024-25 (11-2), matching last season's overall ACC win total.
Duke shot 30-of-60 (50%) from the field, 3-of-9 (33%) from distance and 9-of-11 (82%) from the free throw line.
The Blue Devils eclipsed 70 points for the fourth straight game and 20th time this season overall.
Seventy percent of Duke's scoring came via the extra pass with 21 dimes on 30 made buckets. It marks the fifth time in 2024-25 Duke has tallied over 20 assists in a game.
Duke finished with a plus-seven margin on the glass, outrebounding Wake Forest, 27-20. The 20 rebounds marked a season low for the Demon Deacons.
Duke limited Wake Forest to just three offensive rebounds for the game - tied for the second fewest by a Duke foe all-time.
Duke held Wake Forest to single digits in the second (7) and third (9) quarters. The Blue Devils have held opponents to single digits in 26 quarters this season.
The Blue Devils racked up 15 steals and forced the Demon Deacons into a season-high 33 turnovers. Duke has posted double-digit steals 15 times on the year, including six games with 15 or more thefts.
The Blue Devils pushed their season total to 33 shot clock violations forced after forcing four by Wake Forest.
Duke won the superlative battle with a sweep of all five categories - points in the paint (50-14), points off turnovers (41-18), bench scoring (35-14), fastbreak points (16-4) and second chance points (9-2).
Toby Fournier reached double figures for the 16th time this season with a game-high 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting (64%). Fournier scored 13 of her points in the fourth quarter - tied for fourth-most all-time on the Duke single game charts.
Oluchi Okananwa scored 15 points (6-of-12), notching her 13th game this season with 10-plus points. Okananwa also had three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Taina Mair (4-of-5) and Delaney Thomas (4-of-6) each chipped in nine points against the Demon Deacons. Mair added two helpers to her statline, while Thomas rounded out her evening with six caroms, three steals and two assists.
Jadyn Donovan turned in a solid all-around performance with eight points (4-of-6), four rebounds, four steals and a block. Donovan's four thefts match a career high.
Ashlon Jackson notched a career-high seven assists against Wake Forest - her fifth game in 2024-25 with at least four assists. She finished her night with seven points, two rebounds and two steals.

UP NEXT:
The Blue Devils cap their road swing Feb. 17 with a trip to South Bend, Ind., for a top 15 showdown at No. 2 Notre Dame on Big Monday. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m., live on ESPN.

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