It was announced on Sunday that two of the five Duke women’s basketball players that were invited to USA team trials were selected to their respective team.

Rising sophomore guard Alexis Jones was picked for the USA U19 World Championship team. She was one of 12 players selected after four days of trials in Colorado.

Here is what Jones had to say about making the U19 team again:

“It felt really good to know that I made the team again,” commented Jones.  “We all worked hard in the tryouts to make the team. Coming out here and making the team again, I really felt good and I’m happy about making the team.  The competition was really tough. There were a lot of guards out there, there were a lot of good posts, but it was fun and exciting.”

Joining Jones on the U19 team are: Brianna Turner, A’ja Wilson, Candice Agee (Penn State), Nia Coffey (Northwestern), Bashaara Graves (Tennessee), Gabby Green, Linnea Harper (Kentucky), Kelsey Plum (Washington), and Moriah Jefferson, Breanna Stewart, and Morgan Tuck of UConn.

The team will regroup for training on July 1st in Colorado before heading to Europe from July 11-14 for a Spain-hosted event in the Canary Islands. The other teams participating include Australia, Canada, and Spain.

From there, the USA will head to Lithuania to defend their gold medal. As a member of Group D, they will play preliminary and second round games in Panevėžys. They open against Lithuania on July 18, followed by China on July 19, and Mali on July 20. The top three teams from each group advance to the second round (July 22-24). Each team will play three new teams as part of Groups E and F. Records from the preliminary round carry over to the second round. The top four teams qualify for the quarterfinals. The medal rounds begin on July 26th (quarterfinals), with the semifinals on July 27th and the gold medal game on July 28th.

» Continue reading “Two Blue Devils Selected to USA Teams”

On Thursday, it was announced that the Duke women’s basketball team will face Purdue on December 5th at Cameron Indoor Stadium, as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. It will be the seventh year of the women’s event, which has been extended to 2016. The official title of the challenge rotates each year (last year it was the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, but does it really matter).

Last season, the ACC won the challenge 7-5 and it was their fifth challenge win. Six Big Ten teams reached last season’s NCAA Tournament, while the ACC had five.

It is the second time over the last three seasons that Purdue will travel to Durham. Duke won on December 1, 2011, 64-53.

The Challenge gets underway on Wednesday, December 4th, with four games:

New to the ACC Notre Dame @ Penn State, Illinois @ Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech @ Indiana, and Michigan State @ FSU.

It concludes on the 5th with eight games:

NC State @ Northwestern, Boston College @ Wisconsin, new to the ACC Syracuse @ Iowa, Purdue @ Duke, Ohio State @ Maryland, Nebraska @ North Carolina, Michigan @ Virginia, and Miami @ Minnesota.

Duke women’s basketball rising seniors Haley Peters and Tricia Liston have been invited to the USA Basketball World University Team Trials. The trials will take place May 16-19 at the US Olympic training complex in Colorado. The 12-member team is expected to be announced on the morning of the 19th. The team will meet again at the training complex for training from June 24-July 1 before heading to Russia.

The team will be coached by Oklahoma head coach Sherri Cole. The 2013 World University Games will take place in Kazan, Russia from July 8-15.

Haley Peters

Peters averaged 12.2 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds last season. She also had ten double-doubles. Her 273 rebounds on the season is ranked sixth most in Duke’s single season history. Peters became just the fourth player in Duke history to shoot over 50% from the field, 40% from the three point line, and 75% from the free throw line in a season. Here are some of the accolades she received: second team All-ACC selection, All-ACC Academic Team, and Capital One Academic All-District III selection.

Liston averaged 13.5 points and 5.1 rebounds last season. She set a school record with 80 three pointers made during the season. She also became the best free throw shooter in ACC history, as she made 93.1% (81-of-87). Liston scored 20 or more points in six games last season. Here are some of the accolades she received: Norfolk Regional All-Tournament Team, All-ACC Second Team, All-ACC Tournament Second Team, and All-ACC Academic Team accolades

The only other ACC player who accepted an invitation to the trials was Tyaunna Marshall of Georgia Tech.

A trio of Duke women’s basketball players accepted invitations for the USA Basketball U19 World Championship Trials. Two will be incoming freshmen.

They head to the US Olympic training complex in Colorado from May 16-19. The announcement of the 12 member team will be May 19th. Miami’s head coach Katie Meier is the team’s head coach.

The US will be looking to capture a fifth-consecutive gold medal at the U19 Worlds. They will compete in the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship, (hosted by Lithuania) from July 18-28 in Klaipeda and Panevėžys. So the team will return for training on July 1 at the USOTC prior to traveling to Europe for the World Championship.

Alexis Jones is coming off a stellar freshman campaign at Duke. Here are some of her accolades this past season: a Full Court Freshman All-America, All-ACC Freshman Team, All-ACC Academic Team, ACC Tournament MVP, and Norfolk Regional All-Tournament selection.

She took over as the point guard after Chelsea Gray‘s season-ending injury in February. Though she had her ups-and-downs, Jones averaged 13.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 5.4 assists over Duke’s final 11 games of the season (including the tournaments). She finished the season with a team-high 144 assists.

Oderah Chidom and Kendall Cooper are the incoming freshmen and both are post players. Both were McDonald’s All-Americans, along with being named to the WBCA All-American team.

Chidom averaged 14 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks during her senior season at Bishop O’Dowd High School in California. Cooper averaged 12.3 points, 23 rebounds, 4.2 blocks, and 2.4 assists during her senior season at St. Anthony’s High School (also in California). Over her high school career, she scored 1,516 points, hauled in 1,318 rebounds, and blocked 427 shots.

Xylina McDaniel of UNC and new to the ACC Brittney Sykes of Syracuse are the other ACC members invited to the trials.

Watching Allison Vernerey grow over the last four years has made me a big fan of hers. In her final season at Duke, she became a vocal leader both on the court and on the bench. At the women’s basketball end-of-season banquet, she made her “senior speech”.

Check it out (courtesy of Duke):

The Duke women’s basketball team will be playing in the 2013 Paradise Jam (or more formally known as the 2013 Ezybonds Global Payments U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam). It will take place from November 28-30 at the University of the Virgin Islands.

The Blue Devils will first face Xavier on November 28th at 1:15pm ET. The Musketeers went just 13-16 last season.

Next up will be Central Michigan on November 29th, also at 1:15pm ET. They went 21-12 on the season and reached the NCAA Tournament.

The Blue Devils finish up their time in St. Thomas with a game against Kansas on November 30th at 3:30pm ET. Kansas reached the Sweet 16 in the Norfolk Region (just like Duke) before losing to Notre Dame (just like Duke). The Jayhawks went 20-14 on the season.

Duke played in the Paradise Jam twice before (2002 and 2007) and are 5-1 in the tournament.

For more information on the field and for tickets and travel information, click HERE.

Winning ACC Coach of the Year the last two seasons and taking the Duke women’s basketball team to four straight Elite 8′s has earned Coach Joanne P. McCallie an extension through the 2018-2019 season.

Duke is coming off four straight ACC regular season titles and their third ACC Tournament title out of those four seasons. In her six seasons at Duke, Coach P is 174-35 and 77-13 in the ACC.

Here is what Duke Vice President and Director of Athletics Kevin White had to say:

“It is with great enthusiasm that Duke Athletics formally announces the extension of Coach Joanne P. McCallie’s contract through the 2018-19 season,” said White. “Joanne’s amazing track record of success – both on and off the basketball court – speaks for itself. With her extraordinary winning percentage, coupled with outstanding graduation rates and academic success, we are extremely proud to have an elite coach such as Joanne firmly established as the leader of the Duke women’s basketball program. To be sure, we are thrilled to announce this long-term extension to secure Joanne’s considerable talents at Duke University for the long term!”

Next season, the Blue Devils will return all five starters and get back a healthy Chelsea Gray (along with Amber Henson and Katie Heckman). They will have Elizabeth Williams, Chloe Wells, and Richa Jackson healthy for the entire season. Oh and they have the number two recruiting class in the country, bringing in three McDonald’s All-Americans.

The 2013-2014 season could be a special one for the ladies in Durham.

On Thursday, the Duke women’s basketball team held their annual end of season banquet, recognizing the great season by the 33-3 ladies.

Allison Vernerey

The highlight of the night may have been saying goodbye to senior Allison Vernerey, the team’s only senior. Her 140 games played is tied for second-most in Duke history. Overall, she won four ACC regular season titles, three ACC Tournament titles, and went to four Elite 8′s. She compiled a 62-2 record at Cameron Indoor Stadium and 122-19 overall.

Tricia Liston was named the Player of the Year, as she averaged 13.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. She set a school record with 80 three pointers made and was ranked third nationally by making 46.5% of them. Liston also earned the Best Free Throw Shooter award (duh), as she made 93.1% of her attempts. That is best in ACC history (she missed six total free throws all season). She scored twenty or more points six times and was named to the Norfolk Regional All-Tournament team, the All-ACC Tournament second team, an All-ACC second team member, and an Academic All-American in the ACC.

Haley Peters earned three awards on the night. She was named the MMOOC (Meanest Mother on the Court) for her dirty work and floor burns. She was named the Scholar Athlete for the third straight season. Peters led the team with 13 or more games with ten plus rebounds (thus earning the Best Rebounder Award). On the season, she averaged 12.2 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds per game. Peters became just the fourth Duke player to hit over 50% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc, and 75% from the free throw line in a season. She was named a second team All-ACC selection, an All-ACC Academic member, and a Capital One Academic All-District III selection.

Alexis Jones also took home three awards at the banquet: Most Improved Player, Making Plays, and Assist Maker. After taking over as the point guard after Chelsea Gray‘s injury (the final 11 games), the freshman averaged 13.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.3 steals. In the ACC Tournament, she averaged 17.7 points, 6.0 assists, and 5.0 rebounds, thus earning her Tournament MVP honors. Jones finished the season with a team-best 144 assists. She was a Full Court Freshman All-America, All-ACC Freshman Team, All-ACC Academic Team and Norfolk Regional All-Tournament selection.

Speaking of Gray, she shared the Making Plays award with Jones. Before her season-ending injury (25 starts), she was averaging 13.1 points, 5.6 assists, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.7 steals. Those numbers helped Gray earn a share of the ACC Player of the Year award (with Maryland’s Alyssa Thomas). She was also named a WBCA Coaches All-American, as she led the ACC in assists and steals (and was ranked in the top ten nationally in assists).

Chloe Wells took home two awards. She was named the Sixth Player and Best Defender. Against rival North Carolina, she scored a career-high 18 points. Against Florida State, she came off the bench to make 6-of-7 shots (a career-best). Wells scored 13 second half points in helping Duke come back to beat Oklahoma State and advance to the Sweet 16. Her 55 steals was a key reason why Duke only allowed 53.9 points per game.

*The following awards were voted on by team members and coaches: The Player of the Year, Most Improved, Sixth Player, Making Plays, and Best Defender.

**I personally would have given out the awards the same way.

Despite missing the final four regular season games and the entire postseason for the Duke women’s basketball team, junior guard Chelsea Gray was honored as a member of the 10-player All-American team. She received her honor in New Orleans, the home of the women’s Final Four. It was her first All-American honor, but the seventh Blue Devil all-time.

A screen shot of Chelsea Gray on the bench in the second half after her knee injury (via the ESPN3 telecast).

Gray was joined on the All-American team by fellow ACC Player of the Year, Alyssa Thomas of Maryland. The rest of the All-American team is as follows: Skylar Diggins and Kayla McBride of Notre Dame, Stefanie Dolson and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis of UConn, Brittney Griner and Odyssey Sims of Baylor, Elena Delle Donne of Delaware, and Chiney Ogwumike of Stanford.

Gray is also a finalist for the Wooden Award and a USBWA Player of the Year candidate.

She was averaging 13.1  points, 5.6 assists, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.7 steals before getting hurt, as she led the Blue Devils to a 23-1 record. Without her, they lost to Miami on the road, won the ACC Tournament title (and regular season title), but lost in the Elite 8 to Notre Dame.

*Check out the women’s Final Four tonight on ESPN.

The Duke women’s basketball team (the two seed) is currently in Norfolk preparing for their Sweet 16 matchup against six seed Nebraska. This afternoon, Coach P, along with Haley Peters, Elizabeth Williams, and Tricia Liston participated in the team press conferences. Apparently, it’s illegal to video tape the press conference, which I got in trouble for (I honestly had no idea because I had been doing it at regular season games).

So, this is my dictation of what I remember of the press conference.

Coach P started off the press conference talking about the opportunity to get out on the road (they played the first two games of the tourney at Cameron Indoor Stadium) and getting the chance to visit Elizabeth Williams’ family last night. “We earned the right to play in Norfolk”. She went on to talk about Williams and how she is a perfectionist, but “an amazing person”.

Coach P talked about the tough Norfolk Region and how their first two opponents, Hampton and Oklahoma State, prepared them for this. She talked about the OK State comeback and how it “was a very moving thing to watch…everybody played a role”.

When asked about how the team has “replaced” point guard Chelsea Gray, Coach P didn’t really care for the word. “We cannot replace Chelsea Gray. I’ve never had an injury like that.” But she has enjoyed watching the evolution of her team since the Gray season-ending knee injury.

“The leadership of Haley Peters and Allison Vernerey…to step up and take advantage.”

“For Alexis [Jones], she’s had to grow up quickly. She’s a fun girl to coach. She’s a listener. Alexis is pretty unusual.”

Coach P also talked a little about the Nebraska team they’re going to face tomorrow afternoon. “They’re really good…they use the trail better than anyone I’ve ever seen. They have a senior point guard…They’re very well coached. Exactly what you’d expect at this time of year.”

After Coach P, it was the players time.

Peters, Williams, and Liston talked about Nebraska. Peters: “Offensively, they’re a great penetrate and kick team.” Williams: “Being disciplined on defense,” is what Duke needs to do to win. Liston: what makes them so good is defenses have “to guard five interchangeable shooters”.

Williams talked about playing close to home: “It’s exciting. It’s a business trip. We’re here to win the next two games”. She also talked about Coach P’s comments about being a perfectionist and how to overcome that: “Relaxing on the court. Trusting my teammates.”

Peters and Liston both answered questions about the first two round games at Cameron and the tournament in general. Peters said that “you have to step up your intensity, especially defensively”. Liston said “our first two round games presented challenges” that they obviously exceeded.

Peters was asked whether they feed off the success of the men’s team, who beat Michigan State last night to advance to the Elite 8. “We’ve been competitive with the guys. We watched the game and were cheering for them. We’re really focused on what we need to do.”

Liston was asked about the loss of Gray. “It’s been a growing experience. We’ve done a good job getting to the team we want to be. Lex is not trying to be Chelsea. She’s done a great job staying true to herself.”

*I also had a chance to watch the first 15 minutes of practice. There was a lot of chatter going on (positive encouragement during drills). You can check out my Facebook page for some video of practice.

Now I’m off to the Nebraska press conference.

*For those wondering, the Virginia Zoo was nice and it was an absolute beautiful day to walk around outside. Especially since I’ll be in the arena all day tomorrow.