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Dukeโs mascot taunts Pitt during a game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Feb. 3, 2019. (Mitchell Northam / The Next)
Kara Lawson has been the head coach at Duke for less than four months, but sheโs already making an impact on the recruiting trail.
On Wednesday, the Duke Blue Devils picked up a top 20 2022 recruit, receiving a verbal commitment from Shay Bollin. Tabbed a four-star recruit and the 19th best player in her class by ESPN, Bollin is a 6-foot-4 native of Bridgewater, Massachusetts who has been praised for her versatility and faceup game.
She garnered interest from nearly 40 Division I schools, including offers from Tennessee, South Carolina, Stanford, N.C. State, Ohio State, and FSU. According to the Boston Globe, Lawson reached out to Bollin shortly after she was hired back in July.
โI could really see myself thriving playing for (Lawson),” Bollin told the Globe. โNot only is she going to be there for me these next four years when sheโs coaching me, but sheโs also going to be there for me for the rest of my life.โ
Bollin comes from a basketball family; her father played at Colgate and her mother played at Ithaca.
Her and Lawson also have a connection through the Boston Celtics. While Lawson was an assistant coach under Brad Stevens during the 2019-20 season, Bollin trains with former Boston forward Brian Scalabrine weekly. The Red Mambaโs daughter Elliana plays AAU ball with Bollin for the Bay State Jaguars.
At Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School, Bollin has scored 836 points over the past two seasons. As a sophomore, she averaged 18.8 points and 10 boards per game.
Bollin told the Patriot Ledger that Duke โhas always beenโ her โdream school.โ She first stepped onto the campus a few years ago, attending a camp as an eighth-grader. She met Lawson two years ago at a USA Basketball three-on-three event.
โI really think (playing at Cameron Indoor Stadium) is indescribable,โ Bollin told the Patriot Ledger. โItโs so insane to see in person and be on the floor there. Just being able to look up and see all the seats and see how iconic the building is, itโs just really cool. Iโm just so excited to be able to play in a place like that.โ
Bollin is the third player to commit to Duke during Lawsonโs tenure. In September, the Blue Devils picked up commitments from Canadian guard Emma Koabel (2022) and Washington Post All-Met selection Lee Volker (2021).
ACC extras
The ACC-Big Ten Challenge will not take place in womenโs basketball this season, the ACC confirmed on Friday.
Muffet McGraw has not completely distanced herself from Notre Dame. Instead of coaching, sheโs become an advisor to her successor, Niele Ivey. Ivey said on a Zoom call Monday that she tries to talk with her predecessor โevery week.โ Ivey said: โIโm always a person that wants to learn, be a sponge, especially with Coach McGraw. Just try to pick her brain about some things. For me, itโs amazing to have a hall of fame coach I can go to, you know, just 15 minutes away from campus, and just vent to if I have to, or just lean onโฆ I’m very fortunate to have her as my mentor and still have that relationship with her. So, she gave me some really great advice on things.โ
According to an FOIA request from @LongwoodStats, Duke will open its season at home vs. Longwood on Nov. 25 at 1 p.m.
On a Zoom call Tuesday, Wake Forest head coach Jen Hoover said that the Demon Deacons will open their season on Nov. 27 at a multi-team event in Fort Myers, Florida. Aside from that, Hoover is hoping to play at least three regional non-conference games and mentioned Charlotte, East Carolina, Campbell, and Norfolk State as potential opponents.
Miami will not play in a multi-team event during the non-conference slate. Head coach Katie Meier said the Hurricanesโ non-conference schedule will consist of teams within driving distance.
Wake Forest will host UNC on Dec. 10 in the ACC opener for both teams. With an expanded 20-game ACC schedule this season, Wake Forest will play UNC and N.C. State both home and away this season.
Hereโs what Miami guard Destiny Harden had to say Friday about the upcoming season: โI think weโre going to be very competitive this yearโฆ I just felt like during quarantine, there was nothing to do, and there was a lot of time to get better. I may be playing a big role this season and I just have to stay competitive and stay hungry.โ
The ACCโs predicted order of finish and preseason teams will be announced on Packer & Durham on Nov. 10 at 9 a.m.
Former Wake Forest guard Ellen Hahne has been declared immediately eligible at Albany, where she transferred to this offseason. A native of Sweden, she played in 52 games for the Demon Deacons across two seasons, averaging about a point and a rebound per game.
UNC forward Janelle Bailey is changing her number back to 44. Bailey wore No. 30 for her junior season as a tribute to teammate Jaelynn Murray who suffered an ACL injury in the 2019 preseason. Now that Murray is back, Bailey is back in No. 44. Illinois grad transfer Petra Holeลกรญnskรก โ who wore No. 13 for the Illini โ will wear No. 2 for the Tar Heels.
Former Duke head coach Joanne P. McCallie is writing another book. โSecret Warriorsโ is due out in the spring of 2021.