Jackson Drains Three at Buzzer to Send Duke to Elite Eight

Friday, March 27

Sacramento, Calif.

10 p.m.

Duke University

27-8,16-2ACC

LSU

29-6,12-4SEC

Duke

LSU

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Jackson Drains Three at Buzzer to Send Duke to Elite Eight

3/28/2026 2:40:00 AM | Women's Basketball

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Duke senior Ashlon Jackson buried a three-pointer from the right corner at the final buzzer to send the eighth-ranked Blue Devils into the Elite Eight with a thrilling 87-85 victory over No. 5 LSU Friday night in the NCAA Women's Basketball Regional Semifinal at Golden 1 Center.

Jackson finished with 19 points and five assists, while Toby Fournier and Taina Mair led the way with 22 points. Fournier added nine rebounds and Mair handed out four assists. Arianna Roberson had a solid outing with nine points and a team-high 10 rebounds and three blocks.

With Duke leading by nine with 3:35 to play in the fourth quarter, LSU went on a 10-0 run to take an 85-84 lead on two free throws from Mikaylah Williams with nine seconds remaining.

Duke called a timeout to advance the ball. Mair's three-pointer rimmed out, but LSU touched the ball last to set up Jackson's heroics.

HOW IT HAPPENED

LSU opened the scoring with a pair of free throws just 15 seconds into the game. The Blue Devils responded with a 9-0 run over 3:38 to force an LSU timeout. Fournier led the charge with six of the nine points while Jackson added in a three.
The two teams traded baskets for the next two minutes to make it a 13-9 game at the first media timeout. Roberson found her rhythm on offense in the final four minutes, scoring nine of Duke's next 13 points, including a triple from the corner, to give Duke a 24-19 at the first break.
Duke surged ahead in the second, capitalizing on five LSU turnovers to build an 11-point cushion, 34-23. The Tigers' offense picked up the pace in the last four minutes, going 5-for-5 from the floor, to pull within four, 44-40. A three-point play from Jackson gave the Blue Devils the 47-40 edge heading into halftime.
LSU came out firing in the third quarter, opening with a 10-5 run to close the gap and tie the game at, 52-52. From there, the game turned into a back-and-forth battle with six lead changes and three ties. A jumper from Mair in the final seconds gave the Blue Devils a two-point advantage after three, 67-65.
An LSU bucket tied the game up at, 67-67, less than a minute into the fourth before the Blue Devils' offense erupted for 11 unanswered points in just over a minute to put Duke in front, 78-67, and force another LSU timeout.
LSU responded with a late rally, fueled by MiLaysia Fulwiley and Mikaylah Williams' 14 combined points, eventually taking an 85-84 lead and setting up the memorable finish.

UP NEXT

The Blue Devils meet top-seeded UCLA in the Elite Eight Sunday, March 29 at 3 p.m.

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