Duke women fall to rival Florida State in crunchtime

DURHAM, N.C. — Senior guard Morgan Jones put in 13 points en route to a 59-56 Florida State win over Duke on Thursday evening in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Jones, who was Second Team All-ACC last year, led a personal 7-0 run for the Seminoles midway through the fourth quarter which helped propel the Seminoles to victory.

The Blue Devils (15-8, 6-7 ACC) came into this game on a two-game winning streak following victories against Wake Forest and Pittsburgh.

Florida State (12-10, 6-6 ACC) collected one of their best wins of the year with a 70-65 victory over Notre Dame on Sunday.

The Seminoles started the contest on a 13-4 run getting early buckets from Jones and Senior forward Valencia Myers. Myers would finish with a game-high eight rebounds.

Duke on the other hand got off to a rough start shooting 2-18. Florida State led for the entire first quarter. Senior Lexi Gordon got into foul trouble early for the Blue Devils and didn’t see much playing time for the rest of the game, only seeing 12 minutes.

In the second quarter, the Blue Devils picked up their intensity defensively and forced three quick turnovers to start. Duke guards Celeste Taylor and Elizabeth Balogun capitalized off these turnovers with buckets in transition on the ensuing possessions.

Both teams traded points back and forth until the end of the second which saw Duke take their first lead of the game 27-26 at the half.

Guard Sammie Puisis began the half with two consecutive buckets for the Seminoles, driving through the lane and finishing at the rim. Duke sharpshooter Miela Goodchild responded on the next possession with a three-pointer.

The third quarter was a low-scoring affair but the Blue Devils rallied back and forth with the Seminoles, going into the fourth quarter only up by two.

Florida State began the final quarter on a 13-2 run led by Morgan Jones and River Baldwin. Baldwin, who was a key contributor to the Seminoles’ points in the paint, finished with nine points.

The Seminoles nearly made half of their shot attempts, shooting 47% from the field.

Duke cut their deficit to one late in the fourth following back-to-back threes from Goodchild and a three from Gordon with 1:09 left. Goodchild is only six three-pointers away from moving into seventh on Duke’s all-time three-point list with 170.

After Florida State made free throws to extend their lead to three, guard Shayeann Day-Wilson nailed a three-pointer to tie the game with two seconds left but stepped out of bounds as she shot.

Day-Wilson, who leads the Blue Devils in scoring on the season, struggled shooting just 1-11 from the field and finished with five points.

Duke returns to action on Sunday in a huge matchup against No. 5 NC State in Cameron Indoor Stadium on ACC Network Extra.