Alison Bales   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 25 11 4-10 0-0 3-3 0 4-5-9 3 2 0 1   Ali looked unstoppable in the first half as Miami was forced to send plodding center Amy Audibert out to guard her on the perimeter. For quite some time, she was the only Duke player who was hitting any jumpers. She got Denson in foul trouble, ruled the boards, got to the foul line and blocked 3 shots. In the second half, Bales played just 10 minutes and was nowhere near as effective. The need certainly wasn't there for her to dominate, but Ali has yet to put together a truly dominant game on offense from beginning to end. With Maryland on the horizon, that need will soon arrive. Carrem Gay   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 25 12 6-13 0-0 3-3 1 6-4-10 2 4 0 1   I grow to admire Carrem's game more and more with each passing contest. It's completely no-frills (despite the occasional threat of a dunk), and it's clear that while she doesn't care about scoring, she's perfectly happy to do it if that's what's required of her. Gay concentrates on defense & rebounding first and scoring second, and if her shot isn't falling, she finds other ways to score. In the first half, Gay wasn't going hard enough to the basket, which is perhaps her main flaw. While she's tough as nails on defense, her slender build makes her a finesse player on offense. Her footwork enables her to get in scoring position with relative ease, but her 2-9 shooting in the first half shows that finishing with contact is still an issue. In the second half, Gay scored points by being in the right place at the right time. With a stickback, 2 fastbreak finishes and a cut, Gay quietly finished with a double-double, 4 steals and a couple of blocks. With Chante Black continuing to recover from injury, Gay has to continue to grow her game. Wanisha Smith   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 20 8 3-6 1-3 1-2 3 2-0-2 0 0 4 2   Nish's impact was blunted in the first half after her encouraging start, thanks to 4 turnovers (including 2 offensive fouls). She shook that off in the second half with several key early plays. That included a spectacular steal that led to a score for Gay, a transition pass to Gay, a free throw, a finish on a steal from Gay and a pull-up three during the middle of a Miami run. Her main impact came on defense, where she was able to isolate on Reid and either deny her the ball or force bad shots. Abby Waner   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 25 10 4-16 0-6 2-2 5 1-4-5 2 2 1 2   Like several of her other teammates, Abby continues to find ways to contribute even when her shot isn't falling. Despite missing 5 threes in the first half (most of them good looks), she racked up 5 assists and 2 steals--victimizing Taylor. She mostly scored off cuts or in transition and was generally solid in everything but shooting. Lindsey Harding   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 24 9 3-8 0-2 3-4 4 2-3-5 0 0 1 2   Lindsey's overall numbers were modest but they don't speak to the influence she had on the game. Her relentless pressure on Taylor made life difficult for Taylor, who rarely had room to breathe, much less get into any kind of offensive rhythm. While Harding only had 9 points, 7 of them were important ones in the frist half. That included a jumper that put Duke ahead after UM went up 10-0, a late drive and a key 17' shot with less than a minute to go in the half. Lindsey spearheaded a defensive effort that forced 23 turnovers with 3 shot-clock violations. Joy Cheek   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 14 7 2-3 0-0 3-4 1 1-5-6 0 0 3 1   Joy was the first player off the bench, and her hook shot was an important part of Duke's big first half push. Coach G noted that the bench has really elevated their play of late and that they deserved their extended minutes. Joy is still having trouble hanging on to the ball at times and also is nailed with at least one three-seconds call a game Still, Coach G is obviously eager to bring her along as quickly as possible because she's the only back-up post on the roster. Joy did manage to get to the foul line and grabbed 6 rebounds. Emily Waner   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 23 7 3-9 1-5 0-0 2 2-5-7 0 2 1 1   Emily's confidence continues to grow, and her influence continues to be felt in unexpected ways. For example, she used pure hustle & positioning to grab 7 rebounds. She hit a three late in the first half that was one of just 2 for Duke, and came as Duke was really stepping on Miami's collective throat. As the leader of the second unit late in the last twelve minutes of the game, Em had a steal and pass to Mitchell, a fast break finish and a pull-up jumper. Waner is also growing more comfortable with the first unit as the first guard off the bench. Brittany Mitch   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 20 2 1-4 0-1 0-0 2 0-1-1 0 2 0 1   Brit's defense and passing was strong, but she continues to lack confidence in her shot. She did finish in transition and found Cheek inside for a couple of baskets. Bridgette Mitchell   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 15 6 2-5 0-0 2-2 2 2-3-5 1 2 1 2   Mitchell's minutes have been a bit erratic of late as Gay has really established herself inside. Mitchell continues to play in the post on offense but on the wing on defense, and she still bites on fakes a bit too often. After an unproductive first half, Bridgette had that five minutes in the second half where she was everywhere--passing, rebounding, scoring and playing defense. Mitchell hasn't quite developed the sort of chemistry where she can be depended upon to play strong off-ball defense. As she continues to get used to playing with this group against athletic & skilled opponents, her amazing quickness & aggressiveness will be a great asset for her team. Keturah Jackson   MIN PTS FG 3FG FT A O-D-REB BLK STL TO PF 9 0 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 0-1-1 0 1 1 2   KJ and the rest of the bench played out the last nine minutes of the game, but she wasn't able to score. She did grab a couple of rebounds, however. Copyright © 2006 DWHOOPS.COM (Orin A. Day, Durham, NC, USA.) All Rights Reserved.