Sunday, November 16
Lynchburg, Va.
2:00 PM ET
Liberty University
2-2,0-0CUSA
57
vs
71
Duke
3-2,0-0ACC
1
2
3
4
F
Duke
19
22
14
16
71
Liberty
13
14
17
13
57
Emmy Stout led all players with 21 points on Sunday vs. No. 11 Duke.
No. 11 Duke’s Defense Leads to 71-57 Victory at Liberty
11/16/2025 5:48:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – No. 11 Duke's defense was on full display, Sunday afternoon at Liberty Arena. The Blue Devils pulled out a 71-57 victory over host Liberty, due in large part to converting the Lady Flames' 25 turnovers into 26 points and limiting the home team to 39.6 percent from the field.
The Lady Flames' record evens at 2-2 with their second setback in five days, despite getting a game-high and season-best 21 points from Emmy Stout. On a day where recently retired head coach Carey Green was honored, Liberty was able to outrebound Duke, 38-34. However, the Lady Flames fall to 0-8 all-time against the Blue Devils and have now lost 44 straight contests to Top 25 opponents.
Duke (3-2) bounces back from a Friday setback to West Virginia to give Kara Lawson her 100th career coaching victory. The Blue Devils snapped Liberty's 15-game home winning streak, which was bookended by a pair of setbacks to Duke. The Blue Devils, who never trailed, put three players into double figures (Toby Fournier – 18, Ashlon Jackson – 16 and Delaney Thomas – 12).
Sunday's matinee drew a crowd of 2,404, the second largest ever to see a women's basketball game at Liberty Arena. The only larger attendance (2,845) came during last season's Liberty-Duke clash (Nov. 7, 2024).
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Stout – 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals; Avery Mills – 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks; JaKayla Thompson – 3 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists.
Duke Individuals: Fournier – 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 blocks; Jackson – 16 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3-6 3FG; Thomas – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 6-8 FG; Arianna Roberson – 9 points, 11 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks; Taina Mair – 8 points, 7 assists, 3 steals.
Key Team Stats: Duke finished at 46 percent (29-of-63) from the field and hit two more triples than Liberty (7-of-21 on 33.3 percent shooting to the Lady Flames' 5-of-14 on 35.7 percent). Both teams struggled from the foul line with Liberty going 10-of-18 (55.6 percent) and Duke hitting just 6-of-12 (50 percent). Duke had the upper hand in blocked shots (7-2), points in the paint (36-30), second-chance points (16-11) and bench points (15-9). Both teams distributed the ball well, with the Blue Devils recording 22 assists on 29 made field goals and Liberty posting 15 helpers on 21 made field goals.
Turning Point
Duke's defense set the tone early on, holding the Lady Flames scoreless for 5:32 to start the contest and forcing eight turnovers during that drought.
Jackson nailed a pair of early triples, staking Duke to a 10-2 advantage it would never relinquish.
Three-point plays by Nwaobi and Thompson keyed Liberty's 8-0 run coming out of halftime which shaved a 14-point deficit to six. But that's as close as the Lady Flames would get.
Notes and Nuggets
Liberty will not play again for 10 days, until a Nov. 26 home matchup with UVA Wise. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Liberty Arena, and the matinee will be televised on ESPN+.
The Lady Flames' record evens at 2-2 with their second setback in five days, despite getting a game-high and season-best 21 points from Emmy Stout. On a day where recently retired head coach Carey Green was honored, Liberty was able to outrebound Duke, 38-34. However, the Lady Flames fall to 0-8 all-time against the Blue Devils and have now lost 44 straight contests to Top 25 opponents.
Duke (3-2) bounces back from a Friday setback to West Virginia to give Kara Lawson her 100th career coaching victory. The Blue Devils snapped Liberty's 15-game home winning streak, which was bookended by a pair of setbacks to Duke. The Blue Devils, who never trailed, put three players into double figures (Toby Fournier – 18, Ashlon Jackson – 16 and Delaney Thomas – 12).
Sunday's matinee drew a crowd of 2,404, the second largest ever to see a women's basketball game at Liberty Arena. The only larger attendance (2,845) came during last season's Liberty-Duke clash (Nov. 7, 2024).
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Stout – 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals; Avery Mills – 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks; JaKayla Thompson – 3 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists.
Duke Individuals: Fournier – 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 blocks; Jackson – 16 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3-6 3FG; Thomas – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 6-8 FG; Arianna Roberson – 9 points, 11 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks; Taina Mair – 8 points, 7 assists, 3 steals.
Key Team Stats: Duke finished at 46 percent (29-of-63) from the field and hit two more triples than Liberty (7-of-21 on 33.3 percent shooting to the Lady Flames' 5-of-14 on 35.7 percent). Both teams struggled from the foul line with Liberty going 10-of-18 (55.6 percent) and Duke hitting just 6-of-12 (50 percent). Duke had the upper hand in blocked shots (7-2), points in the paint (36-30), second-chance points (16-11) and bench points (15-9). Both teams distributed the ball well, with the Blue Devils recording 22 assists on 29 made field goals and Liberty posting 15 helpers on 21 made field goals.
Turning Point
Duke's defense set the tone early on, holding the Lady Flames scoreless for 5:32 to start the contest and forcing eight turnovers during that drought.
Jackson nailed a pair of early triples, staking Duke to a 10-2 advantage it would never relinquish.
Three-point plays by Nwaobi and Thompson keyed Liberty's 8-0 run coming out of halftime which shaved a 14-point deficit to six. But that's as close as the Lady Flames would get.
Notes and Nuggets
- Stout scored 15 of her 21 points after halftime, recording her third career 20-point contest. She has now reached double digits in five consecutive games after doing so only five times in her first 24 collegiate appearances.
- Mills (13 points, two triples) has now scored in double figures and made multiple three-pointers in each of this season's first four games.
- Nwaobi grabbed double-digit rebounds (11) for the second game in a row, following her 13-rebound performance at JMU on Wednesday. She matched her career high of eight points and set new career bests for assists (3), steals (3) and blocks (2).
- Starting at point guard for the second consecutive outing, Thompson recorded a team-high and career-high six assists.
- Sunday's 14-point loss was Liberty's narrowest margin of defeat in eight all-time matchups with Duke.
- Liberty suffered its first home loss of the season, falling to 2-1 at Liberty Arena in 2025-26 and 67-10 all-time at the facility. The Lady Flames' 15-game home winning streak, which was halted Sunday, fell one shy of Liberty's longest win streak in arena history.
- The Lady Flames have won the rebounding battle in all four games to start Alexis Sherard's first season as head coach.
- Liberty has lost back-to-back games for the first time since dropping three in a row between Dec. 31, 2023-Jan. 10, 2024.
Liberty will not play again for 10 days, until a Nov. 26 home matchup with UVA Wise. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Liberty Arena, and the matinee will be televised on ESPN+.
Team Stats
DU
Lib
FG%
.460
.396
3FG%
.333
.357
FT%
.500
.556
RB
34
38
TO
19
25
STL
14
9
Game Leaders
Pts
21
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's Basketball
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