The Huskers won a tight contest against Duke thanks to sharpshooting from junior Taylor Kissinger who finished the night with 19 points (six three-pointers and a free throw). The Huskers are now 8-1 on the season and owners of non-conference wins against the PAC12 (USC), SEC (Missouri), and ACC (Duke).
Sophomore Ashtyn Verbeek scored 14 points on pefect 5 for 5 shooting. Junior Kate Cain pitched in 12 points (some of them were beautiful fadeaway shots that are impossible to defend) and five blocked shots while senior Hannah Whitish added 10 points, including critical free throws to seal the win down the stretch. Nicea Eliely added nine points and Leigha Brown eight in an all-round effort.
First Quarter
Kate Cain scored the first points of the game a little over a minute in but Duke responded on their next possession. It was a back and forth battle throughout most of the quarter with the Huskers notching three long-range baskets (Haiby, Verbeek, and Kissinger). Especially important is the offensive rebounding by Nebraska.
End of first 21-20 Nebraska
Second Quarter
Duke started the quarter on a 5-0 run and opened up a 25-21 lead. The Huskers responded to tie the game. The teams traded three-pointers with Kissinger hitting everything. Huskers up 31-30 with 6:24 left in the quarter. Taylor Kissinger hit her fourth three-pointer to force a Duke timeout with the Huskers up 34-30.
The Huskers extended the lead to 41-33 behind some drives behind Eliely and Brown.