Boston College Athletics
Boston College-Duke AP Preview
March 22, 2005 | Women's Basketball
March 22, 2005
GAME: No. 7 Boston College (20-9) vs. No. 2 Duke (29-4).
REGIONAL: Chattanooga, second round.
TIME: Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. EST.
SITE: Dean E. Smith Center; Chapel Hill, N.C.
Boston College is getting an early look at one of the teams it will have to contend with starting next season.
The seventh-seeded Eagles face future conference rival Duke on Tuesday night with a berth in the regional semifinals on the line.
Boston College is leaving the Big East to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference for the 2005-06 season. Second-seeded Duke has been the ACC's top team in recent years, though North Carolina won the conference championship this season.
Tuesday's game gives the Eagles a chance to learn a little about what they will be facing when they move, as besides playing the Blue Devils, the game takes place on the Tar Heels' home court.
Boston College advanced with a 65-43 victory over No. 10 seed Houston on Sunday. Clare Droesch scored a career-high 23 points and Brooke Queenan added 17 points and 12 rebounds, but the difference was an Eagles' defense that limited the Cougars to 21.2 percent shooting from the field.
"I was very pleased with our performance this afternoon, especially on the defensive end," Boston College coach Cathy Inglese said. "Houston is a team that can score a lot of points, and we held them down to about 21, 22 percent from the field, and I think that it was one of the keys of the game."
Boston College's defense will have to be even better - and it might help to be bigger - to slow down a Duke team that was very sharp in the first round.
Forced to go with a bigger lineup with starter Jessica Foley sidelined, the Blue Devils shot 54 percent in their 80-48 victory over No. 15 Canisius. Duke's starting frontcourt was all 6-foot-2 or taller, and 6-5 Chante Black came off the bench to post a double-double.
"I like the lineup. There are a lot of mismatches around and it allowed us to float more," Black said. "I think at times we do need to take more advantage of our size."
Duke outrebounded Canisius 53-30 and had 26 assists on its 34 field goals.
Even though it had no trouble using its bigger lineup, Duke is still facing a problem with its depth. With Foley out with an injured foot, the Blue Devils used only seven players Sunday.
"I'm a little concerned," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "Our team's going to have to play smart. We can't afford to get in foul trouble."
Boston College has done its best to overcome its own injury problem, going 5-5 since the season-ending injury to leading scorer Jessalyn Deveny.
The future ACC rivals have met three times, with Duke leading the series 2-1. A win gives the Blue Devils an eighth consecutive berth in the regional semifinals. They join Connecticut and Tennessee as the only teams with current streaks of seven or more.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Boston College - F Queenan (10.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg), F Kathrin Ress (10.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg), C Droesch (9.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg), G Sarah Marshall (4.7 ppg, 4.3 apg), G Aja Parham (7.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg). Duke - F Mistie Williams (11.5 ppg, 7.1 rpg), F Foley (11.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg) or Wynter Whitley (5.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg), C Alison Bales (7.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg), G Wanisha Smith (11.3 ppg, 4.5 apg), G Monique Curry (17.6 ppg, 7.1 rpg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Boston College - At-large berth, Big East; beat No. 10 Houston 65-43, first round. Duke - At-large berth, ACC; beat No. 15 Canisius 80-48, first round.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Boston College - 7-5, 6 years. Duke - 28-11, 12 years.
