Through three quarters of hard-fought play Sunday, the Virginia women’s basketball team led 44-36 in Blacksburg. However, over the final 10 minutes the Hokies (17-12, 5-11 ACC) outscored the Cavaliers 24-11 and snatched the victory, 60-55.
Shooting discrepancies between the two teams during the fourth quarter stand out on paper. Virginia (16-14, 6-10 ACC) shot just 5 for 18 and 0 for 5 from three-point range in that decisive quarter.
The Cavaliers attempted only two free throws and sank one. Virginia Tech drained eight of thirteen field goals and seven of eight from the charity stripe — albeit Virginia fouled once or twice in order to stop the clock.
During the game, the Hokies and Cavaliers were nearly even in rebounds, field-goal percentage and assists. Virginia Tech snatched 36 boards to Virginia’s 34 and shot 41.5 percent from the floor to the Cavalier mark of 37.3. The Hokies dished out 10 assists, to the Cavaliers’ nine.
Once again, free throwing shooting proved pivotal. Whether a result of hometown officiating or greater aggressiveness off the bounce, the Hokies took 18 free throws and converted on 13, while Virginia shot 83.3 percent from the line, but out of a mere six attempts.
Freshman guard Chanette Hicks — who scored eleven points on 3-of-7 shooting back in the 66-46 win Feb. 7 in Charlottesville — finished with a game-high 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting Sunday. She hit seven of eight free throws.
Junior forward Sidney Cook — who led all scorers Feb. 7 with 23 points — struggled offensively Sunday. She tallied seven points on 3-of-13 shooting and three turnovers.
Although four players scored in double figures for Virginia — a typical sign of a Cavalier win this year — the team still lost. Sophomore point guard Mikayla Venson led the way with 16 points. Senior guard Faith Randolph and sophomore guard Aliyah Huland El both scored 11, while junior guard Breyana Mason added 10.
Losing a contest it could have and probably should have won against the Hokies, Virginia didn’t end its regular season as it would have hoped.
However, the Cavaliers will turn their attention to an 8-9 matchup with Duke in the second round of the ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament, set for March 3 in Greensboro, N.C.
—compiled by Grant Gossage
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