Lady Vols turnover win to No. 10 Duke in Knoxville

Getting off to a rocky start, both Duke and UT had a hard time hanging on to possessions and not throwing them away. However, Duke rounded out the game with 22 turnovers, which is 5 more than UT, and still came out on top with a 62-54 win in Knoxville Monday night.

The two teams squared off for rivalry week and depended on their point guards to do the dirty work. Briana Bass had 14 points and was 2-2 in 3-pointers, while Duke point guard Jasmine Thomas led her team with 19 points.

UT's defense was non existent tonight as they allowed blue jerseys into the paint constantly for easy layups. Thomas took advantage of this and had a few glass touching buckets herself.

Three point shooter Angie Bjorklund had a difficult time from the field tonight, going 2-13 from inside the arc and 1-7 outside. UT head coach Pat Summitt told Rebecca Lobo at half time that Bjorklund needed to step up and make some big plays for her team. Unfortunately, Bjorklund came up short in the second half and was completely silent in the first, except for a few passing turnovers.

Even though UT's experienced players struggled from the field, newcomer and freshman Kelley Cain had 10 points and 6 rebounds. This young lady has definitely taken the position of former Lady Vol Nikki Anosike, who now plays in the WNBA.

Rebounds also played a big part in Duke's success because they were grabbing both defensive and offensive boards through the first and second half. Duke ultimately had 49 and UT only had 36.

As the Lady Vols look to take on Kentucky on Thursday, turnovers and rebounding are going to be the main focus for coach Summitt and her team during these next few days of practice.

No. 4 Dukes falls to No. 8 North Carolina

Without the talent of Lindsey Harding, Alison Bales and former head coach Gail Goestenkor, Duke seems to be struggling. Even though it still has the leadership of Abby Waner, who played alongside Harding and Bales, the team is lacking an important element.

Then again Duke is ranked No. 4 in the country this year, which is why fans have been scratching their heads wondering why they fell to No. 8 North Carolina on Monday in Chapel Hill.

When these two teams compete there is always rivalry, but it looks like Duke pretty much handed the win to the Tarheels. Chante Black, who has stepped into Bales shoes, led Duke with 13 points. Following her, Abby Waner and Jasmine Thomas had a collective total of 22 points.

On the other side of the court, Rashanda McCants had 22 points alone. And even though North Carolina led in rebounds with 4, the number for both teams was significantly low. I just hope that these new players can unite their teams together and start playing at a national level again.