The Duke women’s basketball team took down another top-25 team on Monday, opening the Ball Dawgs Classic out in Nevada with a 73-62 victory over No. 10 Kansas State.
The Blue Devils rode into town on the back of three straight victories, but the Wildcats won each of their first five games and they looked primed to continue that form in the opening minutes.
KSU scored the game’s first 11 points, holding Duke scoreless until the 6:35 mark of the first quarter. Facing a 16-8 deficit with three minutes left in the frame, however, the Blue Devils finally began to stir. Jadyn Donovan, Ashlon Jackson, and Reigan Richardson combined to make four shots in a two-minute span, with Richardson earning a whistle for an additional point on the last of them to stunningly take a one-point lead.
From there, Jackson grabbed complete control of the game in the second quarter. She made all four of her 3-point looks during the 10-minute period, including three in the final 5:13, to tie a school record with 16 points in a single quarter and open up a 37-31 advantage at the halfway point.
“The energy was crazy from my teammates,” Jackson said after the game. “It just felt great. My teammates have the utmost confidence in me. That’s what keeps me going.”
Jackson finished the afternoon with a career-high 30 points, making six of her nine 3-point attempts, and she added three rebounds and a pair of steals.
“Ashlon was the best player on the floor offensively and defensively,” head coach Kara Lawson said afterward.
The Blue Devils outscored the Wildcats by six points in the third quarter, effectively removing the drama from the final 10 minutes. Reigan Richardson ended with 16 points, the second-most of any player on the team, and Taina Mair and Delaney Thomas combined for 15 rebounds.
Duke will face the winner of Monday’s game between the Oklahoma Sooners and DePaul Blue Demons in Wednesday’s title game for the Ball Dawgs Classic crown.