DURHAM, N.C. – Tricia Liston scored 13 of her 20 points in the second half and Duke pulled away to beat Hampton 67-51 on Sunday in the first round of the Norfolk Regional.
Elizabeth Williams added 18 points and Haley Peters finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds for the second-seeded Blue Devils (31-2).
They watched Hampton trim their 19-point lead to six before recovering with a 23-8 run that gave them their 20th straight NCAA tournament-opening victory.
Keiara Avant had 18 points to lead 15th-seeded Hampton (28-6), and her jumper with just over 10 minutes left capped a furious 27-14 rally that pulled the Pirates to 46-40.
But Duke locked down defensively — forcing Hampton to miss 12 of its next 15 shots — and scored on five straight trips to regain some separation and end the Pirates' 19-game winning streak.
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