Duke women’s basketball drops to No. 16 in USA TODAY Sports coaches poll

Duke dropped two spots to No. 16 in the updated USA TODAY Sports women’s basketball coaches poll on Tuesday.

The Duke Blue Devils slipped down to No. 16 in the updated USA TODAY Sports women’s basketball coaches poll on Tuesday, their lowest spot in the rankings all season.

The Blue Devils defeated Virginia over the weekend, erasing a 10-point Cavaliers lead in the second half on the road, but Thursday’s loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels still knocked them outside of the top 15.

Duke has been on a defensive tear over the past four games, allowing an average of 49.5 points despite going to overtime against UNC. The Blue Devils’ last four opponents have shot a combined 32.9% from the field and 24.5% from distance.

However, the Duke offense has been held under 40% from the floor in three of those games after it surpassed that threshold in each of the first 12.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish remained unmoved at No. 3, the highest ACC program and trailing only the UCLA Bruins and South Carolina Gamecocks. The Tar Heels hopped over Duke to No. 14, now the second team in the conference, but Georgia Tech tumbled four spots to No. 17 to keep the Blue Devils in third.