The nation's leading scorers, some of the country's best players, are averaging close to 27 points a game.
|  | | Through 18 games, Duke's Alana Beard is averaging 18.9 points. |
Duke's top player, Alana Beard, averages 18.9 points a game and has scored 25 or more points just twice this season. But it's what the Blue Devils sophomore does without the ball that hurts her opponents most. Defensively, she alters the game because of her ability to make steals, draw charges and close down passing lanes. Offensively, she draws so much attention that her teammates often end up raising their scoring averages.
Beard has long been regarded as one of the country's top players. But until you see her play in person, it's difficult to really pick up all the intangibles -- those things that never show up in a box score -- she brings to the Blue Devils. There's no question Beard's a Kodak All-American come March. She's a phenomenal player with full-court skills, and there just aren't 10 other players in the country better than her.
It's no secret Beard has extended her range this season, something that was lacking in 2000-01. As a freshman, Beard shot just 19 percent from 3-point range, but is making about 50 percent of her shots from beyond the arc this season. She has really worked on developing her mid-range 15-foot jumper and pull-up jumper. A lot of women's players don't have that game. They either are a 3-point shooter or work around the basket. But Beard, who is shooting 58.2 percent from the field and averaging 5.6 assists, can do both. She can post you. She can go around you.
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BEARD AT HER BEST
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A look at some of this season's highlights from Duke's do-it-all sophomore Alana Beard:
Scored at least 20 points in seven games, which leads the ACC
Scored at least 25 points in two games
Notched three double-doubles
Scored a season-high 35 points vs. Maryland
Shot 50 percent or better in 13 games
Shot 60 percent or better in seven games
Shot 90 percent or better in two games
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One of Beard's most valuable assets offensively is the attention she draws, which inevitably allows Iciss Tillis better looks inside and Duke's perimeter players some open 3-point shots. Against Virginia on Sunday, for example, Vicki Krapohl went 4-for-6 from 3-point range for 12 points. Over the past 10 games, Krapohl is shooting 50 percent from 3-point range. Beard, who also is a very humble person, commands so much attention that it allows other players to raise the level of their game, and that's the mark of a great player.
Defensively, Beard is just as tough, and is a big reason Duke is only giving up 63 points a game and currently riding a six-game winning streak. She averages 3.6 steals a game (her 171 career steals puts her fifth on Duke's all-time steals chart), leads her team at drawing charges (six) and gets a hand on or deflects countless passes, which often starts a fastbreak.
And with those long, lanky arms, Beard is constantly disrupting passing lanes for her opponents. To compensate for Beard's wingspan, which is 6 feet, 4 inches, opposing playmakers are forced to back up a couple feet to widen the passing lane -- but that also means they are two feet further from the basket when they start their offense.
Even with eight players, Beard, who leads the ACC in scoring, field-goal percentage and steals, makes Duke a legitimate Final Four contender, and the future of the Blue Devils rests squarely on her back.
Nancy Lieberman, an ESPN analyst and Hall of Famer, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com's women's basketball coverage.
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