DURHAM, NC — Cameron Indoor Stadium featured a top-20 matchup between its No. 13 Duke Blue Devils and No. 16 Miami Hurricanes. Duke came into the day on a hot streak with six straight conference wins, while Miami was looking to win its third in a row.
It was also senior day for the Blue Devils, so they celebrated the careers of both Kendall Cooper and Oderah Chidom.
Duke took an early lead, but it didn’t take long for this one to get competitive. By halftime, Miami had closed the gap to a one-point deficit with a score of 32-31. However, they had trouble stopping Rebecca Greenwell who made an impressive tip-in three-point play within the last minute of the game. It was her first of three three-point plays in the game.
For the Blue Devils, Greenwell and Lexie Brown each had 10 points in the first half, followed closely by Kendall Cooper with eight. Miami’s Adrienne Motley made her presence known with 11 points of her own.
The third quarter started the same as the first. Duke’s intensity was tough for the Hurricanes’ to match. Unfortunately for them, this time they couldn’t quite catch up to the lead they had given up. The Blue Devils scored a season-high 51 second half points. Despite halftime adjustments, Greenwell and Brown again proved too much to handle.
Though the Hurricanes fought hard until the end, Duke got its seventh win in a row with a final score of 83-70. They improve to a perfect 16-0 at home for the season.
During the post-game conference, Cooper said, ”I think we just put last season behind us all together. We know we can do amazing things together, so that was kind of our mindset. We all have the same goal.”
Miami Head Coach and former Duke star Katie Meier reflected on what it was like to be back at Cameron, “I’m a little far removed now, unfortunately, but it’s a wonderful place. The crowd is so sweet. This was a top matchup that dominates any personal feelings I would have.”
She also had high praise for Brown, calling her a “stone-cold killer.”
It’s easy to see why when looking at her stats for the day. Brown scored a game-high 28 points. Though what is more impressive is how she did it. She was 8-of-10 from the field, 4-4 for three-pointers and 8-8 on free throws.
Greenwell finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds. She is now number 14 on Duke’s all-time scoring list with 1,397 points and second all-time when it comes to three-pointers with 550.
The Blue Devils close out the regular season at North Carolina on Sunday, Feb. 26. As for the Hurricanes, they travel to Virginia Tech on Thursday, Feb. 23, followed by their regular season finale at home against Georgia Tech on Sunday, Feb. 26.