Freshman behind Duke’s win streak, Big South suspension, hot seat watch

After thrashing SMU on Sunday 95-36, the Duke women’s basketball team has extended its win streak to 15 games. It’s Blue Devils longest longest under sixth-year head coach Kara Lawson and best since the 2012-13 season.

Injuries to junior wing Jadyn Donovan and highly-touted freshman product Emilee Skinner have forced Duke to do it with a tight rotation. The Blue Devils have seven players averaging north of 18 minutes per game, and an eighth — guard Anna Wikstrom — has seen a slight uptick recently.

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Duke’s starting five is among the best in the country, led by sophomore forward Tony Fournier and anchored by a pair of senior guards in Taina Mair and Ashlon Jackson. Riley Nelson has emerged as an athletic 3-and-D wing who can knock down shots from behind the arc, and Delaney Thomas continues to be a versatile do-it-all forward.

More recently, Duke has been boosted by the play of redshirt freshman Arianna Roberson. A five-star prospect and McDonald’s All-American, who was ranked eighth in the 2024 recruiting class by ESPN, Roberson missed all of her true freshman season with a knee injury.

Now, Roberson is living up to the hype bestowed upon her as a prospect. In Duke’s lopsided victory over the Mustangs she had 22 points and 16 rebounds, her third double-double off the bench in the Blue Devils’ last five games.

“There were a lot of highs and lows, the ebbs and flows … every time I step on that court, it’s a reminder of being grateful and being in the moment,” Roberson said Sunday. “I didn’t have this a year ago, and so I never want to take that for granted again.

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No. 1 UConn women’s basketball thumps Tennessee in revenge game

UConn guard Azzi Fudd had 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists vs. Tennessee.

1 / 17

No. 1 UConn women’s basketball thumps Tennessee in revenge game

UConn guard Azzi Fudd had 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists vs. Tennessee.

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No. 1 UConn women’s basketball thumps Tennessee in revenge game

UConn forward Sarah…

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Publish date : 2026-02-09 14:46:00

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