Turnovers Haunt GWU, as Runnin' Bulldogs Fall to No. 6 Duke On Friday Night at the 2011 Junkanoo Jam
November 26, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Freeport, Bahamas - The Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs turned the ball over 34 times, while the No. 6 nationally ranked Duke Blue Devils shot 52.2 percent from the floor for the game to defeat GWU in the one sided affair 97-31 on Friday night at the 2011 Junkanoo Jam in Freeport, Bahamas.
Gardner-Webb falls to 0-5 on the year, their worst start since 2005-06, while Duke improves to 5-0 on the year with the win.
The length and athleticism of the Blue Devils bothered the young Runnin' Bulldogs all night long, as in the first five minutes of play Gardner-Webb committed four turnovers to fall behind 16-4 to start the contest.
Duke then got hot from downtown, as the Blue Devils drained four three -pointers on offense and forced GWU into five more turnovers en route to a 21-8 run to pull out to a 35-12 lead with 7:35 to play in the first half.
A layup by freshman guard KiKi Smith and two made free throws over the final three minutes of the opening half, put the halftime score at 50-18 in favor of the nationally ranked Blue Devils.
In the first 20 minutes of play, Duke was 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) from behind the three-point line, while the Runnin' Bulldogs were 7-of-24 (29.2 percent) from the floor overall and were plagued by 16 first half turnovers.
In the second half, again head coach Rick Reeves' young squad struggled with their composure and taking care of the ball, as the Runnin' Bulldogs coughed up the ball a total of six times in the first four minutes with their lone point coming by way of a free throw from junior forward Cierra Harris.
A 15-foot jump shot from the free throw line from freshman Mayhana Dunovant at the 14:04 mark was the Runnin' Bulldogs first field goal of the second half, as the Blue Devils had blown the game wide open at 68-21.
GWU's Catrina Green would score seven of her 10 points in the final 10 minutes of play, as the Blue Devils picked up the 97-31 win.
Green had 10 points and five rebounds for the Runnin' Bulldogs, while Smith added five points, all in the first-half.
For Duke, Tricia Liston had a game-high 23 points off the bench, as she was 7-of-9 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from behind the three-point line. Three other Duke players added double-digit points in the win.
Gardner-Webb as a team shot 25.6 percent (11-of-43) from the floor and was held to only 11 made baskets, while Duke had the hot hand offensively, shooting 52.2 percent (36-of-69) from the field overall and 10-of-21 (47.6 percent) from the three-point line.
The 31 points by the Runnin' Bulldogs is the lowest scoring output for a GWU team in a single game since GWU only totaled 34 points in a loss to Northwestern in the Bahamas back in 2006-07.
With the loss, Gardner-Webb remains winless at 0-7 against top-25 nationally ranked opponents and 0-7 versus foes from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Gardner-Webb (0-5) will look to rebound from Friday night's loss on Saturday evening, as the Runnin' Bulldogs will take on Southern California at 5:45 p.m. as part of day two of the 2011 Junkanoo Jam in Freeport, Bahamas.
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| Box Score: No. 6 Duke 97, Gardner-Webb 31 |
