DURHAM, N.C. – Allison Vernerey scored 18 of her 22 points in the decisive first half, and No. 9 Duke forced 40 turnovers in a 107-45 rout of UNC Wilmington on Tuesday night.
Tricia Liston added 18 points and Elizabeth Williams finished with 16 for the Blue Devils (8-2).
They shot 57 percent, never trailed, built a 41-24 rebounding advantage and used a dominating start that included three overwhelming runs to claim a second straight lopsided victory since a loss at No. 8 Kentucky.
Abria Trice had 12 points for UNC Wilmington, but the Seahawks (5-5) had nearly as many turnovers (21) as points (22) in the first half. They fell to 0-22 against ranked opponents and had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Chelsea Gray finished with 14 points and Chloe Wells had 11 for Duke, which scored 78 points in the paint and turned UNC Wilmington's turnovers into 56 points.
The Blue Devils won their 30th straight at Cameron Indoor Stadium and finished with their highest point total since a 117-28 victory against North Carolina Central in December 2009.
Duke was playing its only game in a span of nearly three weeks. The Blue Devils have been off since Dec. 11 and don't play again until a Dec. 30 trip to Temple.
In that last outing, Williams was perfect, hitting all 10 of her shots.
This time it was Vernerey's turn to flirt with perfection.
She made all eight of her attempts in the first half, helping Duke built a 33-point lead at the break. The only question after halftime was whether she would match the school-record 12-for-12 performance set by Sheana Mosch against Clemson in 2001.
It didn't happen: Vernerey missed a contested layup with about 13½ minutes left and finished 10 of 11.
But that was about the only thing that didn't go Duke's way. In their first game since a 58-point romp against USC Upstate, the Blue Devils showed few signs of rust in putting the Seahawks in a deep, early hole.
Duke opened the game with a 14-1 run that included nine UNC Wilmington turnovers, with Gray capping the burst with a layup 5 1/2 minutes in. After the Seahawks briefly chipped away at the lead, the Blue Devils responded with runs of 12-2 and 25-5 to push the lead well into the 30s.
Liston scored nine points during that last run that ended the half. Vernerey added eight during the burst, capped by a layup with just under a minute left that made it 55-22.
Tawanna Lee finished with 11 points for the Seahawks, who haven't beaten Duke since 1982.
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