Former conference foes Duke, Maryland face off

They’ve traveled from the East Coast to renew their rivalry.

Once conference foes in the ACC, fourth-seeded Duke and top-seeded Maryland no longer see each other during the regular season with Maryland’s departure to the Big Ten.

Make no mistake, though. The teams consider each other rivals.

“The rivalry goes way back even before my years at Duke,” said Blue Devils coach Joanne McCallie, in her eighth season. “It has (been) a very historic rivalry for so many years in the ACC. Certainly there are times of probably animosity and all the things that happen with rivalries.”

Maryland enjoyed immediate success in its new conference, going undefeated (18-0). The Terrapins’ last league loss, in fact, came last season to Duke.

Maryland (32-2) puts a 26-game winning streak on the line this afternoon when it faces off with Duke (23-10).

The game marks the 81st meeting between the teams. Duke leads the tightly contested series at 41-39, and the teams are 6-6 in games played on a neutral court.

They’ve never played a game on a neutral court this far away from home. Maryland has traveled 2,482 miles to Duke’s 2,574.

Players’ eyes from both teams lit up and smiles crawled across faces when they were asked about the rivalry.

“I just think it’s funny we ended up seeing them again even after they left the ACC,” Duke leading scorer Elizabeth Williams said. “They’re always a good team. They’re always ready to play us and us the same way.”

Perhaps the most classic matchup between the teams occurred in the 2006 national championship game won by Maryland on a last-second shot in overtime.

Maryland coach Brenda Frese said Duke was the Terps’ chief rival in the ACC.

“For us, we had to make it become (a rivalry) … in terms of where we needed to get our program,” said Frese, who arrived at Maryland in 2002. “So, classic matchups through the years, two teams with phenomenal players and rosters that have gone back and forth. Obviously, interesting to have to come all the way out here to the Northwest to be able to play this matchup. It’s always been a tremendous matchup for both teams.”

The Terps, who advanced to the Final Four last year, want redemption from the last time they played Duke.

“I have a bad taste in my mouth from that last game and that’s what I’ve been kind of focused on,” Maryland sophomore guard Shatori Walker-Kimbrough said of Duke’s 84-63 win over the Terps last season in the teams’ only meeting. “I don’t want another 20-point loss against Duke. So that’s all I’ve been worried about.”

Maryland’s lone senior, Laurin Mincy, is looking forward to the showdown.

“It’s a little added motivation that we’ll be able to play Duke,” Mincy said, “but they’re just another team in our way to the championship. The Duke and Maryland rivalry (is) always usually competitive. So you’re going to see a really good game.”