The Virginia women’s basketball team is looking to channel the positive energy from it’s win against Virginia Tech Sunday into its two remaining regular season games, against No. 15 North Carolina and No. 8 Louisville, and beat a top-25 team for the first time this season.
“We need to play a top-25 team because we need to beat a top-25 team,” coach Joanne Boyle said.
First up for the Cavaliers (16-11, 6-8 ACC) is a Thursday night matchup with the Tar Heels (22-6, 9-5 ACC), who are coming off a one point-win against Miami Sunday and have also lost a handful of games to ranked opponents.
“It’s going to be a tough game for us,” freshman guard Mikayla Venson said. “They’re a really competitive team — aggressive on every play. They like to do a lot of transition, so we’ve got to be ready for it and bring the energy like we did in the second half against Virginia Tech … We just need to play our game, make sure we execute on offense, play good defense, make sure we rebound — a big key for us — and just play a whole 40 minutes.”
After offense fell short in the first half against Virginia Tech, the Cavaliers adjusted at the break, shooting 56 percent from the field and committing only two turnovers in the second half to pull away with a 73-59 win.
With senior center Sarah Imovbioh out for the majority of the game due to foul trouble, freshman forward Lauren Moses stepped up in the post, delivering 13 points on 4-5 shooting from the field and 5-6 shooting from the free throw line to earn Imovbioh’s praises.
“Lauren having that big game against Virginia Tech was huge for us,” Imovbioh said. “It builds her confidence [and] her momentum going into a big game against North Carolina. During practice, we have spent time in the gym with coach [La’Keshia] Frett [Meredith] shooting, finishing, going up strong and rebounding, so I’m really happy for her. I feel like she’s making progress every day, and she comes to practice prepared.”
Venson, another freshman, also stepped up for the Cavaliers Sunday, contributing 22 points, three assists and four steals in 35 minutes of play. The 22 points matched Venson’s season high. Just two weeks ago against Duke, she was close to matching her season low in points, scoring only seven against the Blue Devils.
“I’m trying to be vocal as a point guard and get everyone involved as well as getting me involved,” Venson said. “I have to be a lot more aggressive and the coaches have been on me about that — continuously looking for my shots especially if I’m on.”
Against Tech, junior guard Faith Randolph also contributed 17 points, but even with three players reaching double figures, Boyle said she sees opportunities for the team to improve on the offensive end where the team has been inconsistent throughout the season.
“I think [the key to consistency is] getting a mentality offensively to just go north-south and understand how [Sarah] is being played so we can give her touches,” Boyle said. “I think it’s running more in transition to get easy baskets, looking for some of the mismatches we’re going to face … and looking to attack more and getting to the free throw line.”
On the defensive side, the Cavaliers will have to contend with sophomore forward Stephanie Mavunga, three time ACC Player of the Week three times this season. She received her third such nod earlier this month after scoring 25 points and securing 14 rebounds in a game against Boston College.
“If she gets good position, she’s tough to rebound against,” Boyle said. “I watched some film from last year, and [Sarah] really battled her in the low block, so it’ll be a fight. [Sarah] can do her job, but you never want her just one-on-one, so we’ll definitely send double team[s]…Defensive rebounding has got to be key [because] their M.O. is to take shots in the first eight seconds of the shot clock and send everybody to crash the boards and try to get second-chance points.”
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
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