Duke Blue Devils at Virginia Tech Hokies

Elizabeth Williams, Haley Peters lead No. 5 Duke past Virginia Tech

In the Blue Devils' 77-33 victory against undermanned Virginia Tech on Thursday night, she had one sequence where she blocked a layup from behind on a fast break, then hustled up court and scored a layup of her own seconds later, not the kind of hustle play most frontcourt players can make.

It's the kind of thing that can get in an opponent's head, as the Hokies found out on a night when they committed 23 turnovers, many by overpassing and seemingly passing up shots for fear of Williams' dominance down low.

"I wouldn't say that we were scared," Hokies scoring leader Monet Tellier said after managing just four points on 2-for-8 shooting. She said she also passed up several open looks she normally would have taken. "You just think about it more going in there knowing she's so tall and dominant."

Williams blocked only two shots against the Hokies, but probably prevented several others.

She and Haley Peters each also matched their career high with 25 points as No. 5 Duke cruised.

While some Hokies fans were angry that Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie kept shuttling her starters in until the final five minutes, Hokies coach Dennis Wolff said he never gave it a second thought.

"We're worried about our team. They're worried about their team," he said.

"It didn't bother me," he said. "She's got to do what's best for her team. They're playing for a lot."

The Blue Devils (23-1, 13-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) forced 18 first-half turnovers and led 40-14 at the intermission on their way to their 29th consecutive road victory against an unranked opponent.

The loss Thursday night was the 11th in 12 games for Virginia Tech (8-16, 2-11) and its second lopsided setback against the Blue Devils this season. Duke won 58-26 just over a month ago in Durham, N.C.

Alyssa Fenyn led Virginia Tech with seven points and Lauren Evans had six.

The game got out of hand almost immediately.

Peters, who was scoreless in the Blue Devils' 15-point victory against No. 7 Maryland on Monday night, made the first of her four 3-pointers 13 seconds into the game. She added a jumper and another 3-pointer with the game barely 2 minutes old, an 8-0 run. After Laura Evans' baseline 10-footer for the Hokies, Alexis Jones scored on a drive for Duke and Williams scored the next four points to make it 14-2 after 4:05.

The Hokies pulled within 21-9 on Fenyn's desperate, one-footed heave to barely beat the shot clock with 12:18 to go in the half, then managed just two field goals the rest of the way as they committed 12 of their 18 first-half turnovers. Duke's 19-5 burst to end the half made it academic at 40-14.

Just for good measure, Williams scored the first six points of the second half, sparking a 16-7 run, and it wasn't until 15 minutes remained the Hokies' point total exceeded their turnovers.

Until Fenyn's 3-pointer 1:37 before halftime, Williams (14) and Peters (13) were both outscoring the Hokies, who shot just 33 percent (6 of 18) even though Fenyn was 3 for 3.

Virginia Tech finished 15 of 54 from the field (27.8 percent) and had 23 turnovers.

Duke shot 46.3 percent (25 of 54) with 10 steals and six blocks.

How can I watch Blue Devils vs. Hokies?

• TV Channel: Blue Devils vs Hokies 2021 College Basketball, week 15, is broadcasted on .
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Location: Blacksburg, VA
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