Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Clemson on March 6, 2026 at 11 a.m.
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11 a.m.
Women's Basketball
vs Clemson
Friday, March 6
Duluth, Ga.
11 a.m.
Duke University
vs
Clemson
Photo by: Duke Athletics
Top-Seeded Duke Opens ACC Tournament Action Friday
3/5/2026 9:28:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Opening Tip
- Duke looks to capture its second ACC Tournament Championship this weekend at Gas South Arena. The Blue Devils are the No. 1 seed for the first time since 2013 and for the 12th time overall. Duke finished 16-2 in league action and is 21-8 overall and ranked 13th in the latest AP poll. Duke's 16 ACC victories are the most in a season under head coach Kara Lawson and tied for the second most in program history.
- The Blue Devils are 54-48 all-time in ACC postseason action and have won the tournament crown nine times. The last team to win consecutive titles was NC State in 2020 and 2021. The Blue Devils won five straight from 2000-2004. The Wolfpack also was the last team to win both the regular season and tournament titles in the same year - 2021.
- Duke will take on either No. 8 seed Virginia or No. 9 seed Clemson for the seventh or 10th time, respectively, in ACC Tournament history. The Blue Devils are 2-7 against the Tigers and 5-1 versus the Cavaliers. Duke last faced Clemson in the ACC Tournament in 1999 and Virginia in 2016.
- The Blue Devils are led on offense by All-ACC First Team seleciton Toby Fournier's 17.8 points per game. Taina Mair is averaging 11.0 points, 5.6 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game. Ashlon Jackson is playing both ends of the court at an elite level, dropping 11.9 points per game, a team-best 65 three-pointers and 4.4 assists per game, while drawing the toughest perimeter defensive matchup for Duke's elite defense. Fournier, Delaney Thomas and Arianna Roberson lead the charge on the glass, averaging 8.2, 6.1 and 5.9 rebounds per game, respectively. Thomas also contributes 10.3 points per game on a team-high 61 percent shooting, while Roberson adds 8.7 points and 1.3 blocks per game. Fournier is the top rim protector, averaging 2.3 blocks per game.
- Duke looks to capture its 10th ACC Tournament title and second straight. The Blue Devils are the No. 1 seed for the 12th time and are 24-4 all-time as the top seed. Duke has won seven titles as the top seed.
- Senior Ashlon Jackson has the most ACC Tournament experience, playing in seven games. She is averaging 8.4 points per game and shooting 25 percent in ACC postseason play.
- Head coach Kara Lawson is 5-3 in ACC Tournament action, advancing to the semifinals in 2023 and 2025 and winning the title in 2025. In ACC Tournament history, the No. 1 seed is 38-1 against the No. 8/9 seeds.
- Duke senior point guard Taina Mair is climbing her way up both the Duke and ACC assists charts. With five assists against NC State, Mair took over sole possession of ninth on the ACC career assists chart. Her 635 helpers are 19 away from the No. 8 spot on the ACC career list.
- In three seasons at Duke, Mair has 418 assists to rank 10th in Duke career history and 10 away from the No. 9 spot.
- Mair has 161 assists on the season to sit fourth in Duke single-season history and just seven away from tying Lindsey Harding's No. 3 total. Chelsea Gray (2010-14) holds the record at 201, while Kira Orr (1993-97) is second at 170.
- Ashlon Jackson hit five threes at North Carolina to pass Abby Waner for third in career history at 227. Jackson has 65 threes this season, leaving her five away from becoming the fourth Blue Devil to record at least 70 trifectas in two seasons.
- Jackson and Mair are two of Duke's best free throw shooters. In three seasons, Mair is 102-of-121 (.843), which would rank fourth in Duke history. In Jackson's four years, she is 178-of-215 (.828). That percentage would rank fifth in Duke history. Only six Blue Devils have finished their career shooting at least 80 percent from the line with a minimum of 100 attempts.
- Lawson's teams are known for their defensive prowess and this year is no different with Duke ranking third overall in scoring defense and first in league action.
- Duke has held all but one of the ACC programs with a winning record under their season scoring average.
- A win by the Blue Devils puts Duke into the semifinals March 7 at 12 p.m. on ESPN2.
Players Mentioned
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