The 2025-26 season didn't begin as Duke's strongest, but the Blue Devils have also made it clear the team has no plans to throw in the towel just yet — if they do at all. Though Duke lost two important players after both Emilee Skinner and Jadyn Donovan went down with injuries, freshman Arianna Roberson is emerging as a leader for the team.
Roberson had a big game this week when the Blue Devils faced off against SMU. The game resulted in the team's largest win margin to date, and Duke took SMU to task for a 95-36 victory. That's the team's 13th straight win in the ACC and their 15th overall straight win — two factors that make all the stories about whether the team would be competitive this season go straight out the window.
Arianna Roberson is a dominant force for Duke
Though the Blue Devils played well together, it was Roberson's efforts on the court that drove the win. The team managed to force 25 turnovers and 53 rebounds. That was a performance powered by a team that wanted to win and that did everything possible to make that happen. Roberson, a 6'4" center, recorded a career-high 16 of those rebounds as well as a career-high 22 points.
That's a powerhouse performance for any athlete, but definitely an incredible one for a freshman who has mostly been coming off the bench this season. Roberson didn't start getting playing time for Duke until this year after playing only 14 minutes during the team's match against South Florida and zero minutes when Duke played Virginia Tech.
The team's game against Syracuse offered a glimpse into what Roberson is capable of. She logged 12 rebounds in only 16 minutes on the floor, and Duke pulled off a 71-51 win. “Every time I step on that court, it’s just a reminder of love, being grateful and being in the moment, because I didn’t have this a year ago,” Roberson told the Duke Chronicle this week. “I never want to take that for granted again.”
Arianna Roberson is an elite rebounder
When it comes to team contributions, Roberson's rebounding ability is what sets her apart from many basketball players her age, and it's also what helps push Duke toward making a greater impact on the floor as a team and getting the win. Her ability to take over under the basket creates opportunities that teammates Ashlon Parker, Delaney Thomas, and Toby Fournier are only too happy to grab — and that helps everyone on the Blue Devils succeed.