Renee Robinson's tie-breaking foul shot with 0.4 seconds left capped a 57-55 victory over Arkansas State yesterday, giving Virginia women's Coach Debbie Ryan her 520th win in her 700th career game.
The victory boosted the Cavs' record to 19-6 overall. The Indians, who play in the Sun Belt Conference, fell to 14-6.
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Robinson registered only three points in the first 38 minutes of the contest, but with the game tied at 51, the fourth-year point guard hit a sixteen-foot bank shot to put the Cavs up by two with just over a minute left.
Two plays later, the Cavaliers botched their set play after a time out, but Robinson salvaged the possession with a wild, underhand lay-up as the shot clock ticked to zero.
"She really wanted it tonight," Ryan said. "She just took us on her back and carried us tonight."
Back on the defensive end of the court, the Cavs were unable to mount any resistance as Lady Indian Jolie McKeirnan slipped inside for an uncontested lay-up with only 7.7 seconds remaining.
On the final play, Robinson said she asked Ryan to direct the play to her.
"I just felt I wanted the ball," Robinson said. "I just wanted it. That's the first time I've ever done that."
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Robinson received the ball on the inbound pass and drove to the basket with the game tied 55-55. She drove for a lay up, but a body check from Lady Indian Natalie Goodall kept Robinson from getting a solid look at the basket. Players from both teams heard the final buzzer sound and prepared for overtime, but Ryan saw the referee with her fist raised, signaling a foul. After nearly a minute of discussion between the referees, the referee handed Robinson the potentially winning free throw.
She sank the first one.
Although Robinson intentionally tried to miss the second under instructions from her coach, the ball fell in to put the Cavs up by two with 0.4 seconds left.
Arkansas State was unable to convert on their final possession, and Virginia pocketed another win. Robinson scored each of Virginia's last six points.
The tense ending followed Ryan's reshuffling of the starting lineup to tip-off the game. Center Dean'na Mitchelson started for first year Schuye LaRue, who was benched by Ryan for a rules infraction. LaRue entered early in the second half.
Mitchelson saw this game as her opportunity to shine. With Robinson feeding her passes down low, Mitchelson scored a career-high 12 points in the first half while grabbing six rebounds.
"They weren't guarding penetration very well, and she was open half the time," said Robinson, who finished the game with six assists. "I'm not going to jack the ball up just to get some points."
Arkansas State spent the first half firing away from three-point land, hitting 4-of-12 treys. Midway through the first half, the Lady Indians shot four threes back-to-back, converting on just one. The Cavs entered the locker room after the half down by two, 28-30.
Early in the second half, Virginia pulled away with a 12-point run after LaRue entered the lineup for the first time, despite not being accustomed to coming off the bench.
"I think that Schuye was completely out of whack when she went in tonight," Ryan said. "I think she was trying too hard."
Ryan's impassioned arm waving worked the crowd of 3,286 at University Hall into a frenzy. With every Indian turnover and missed shot, the audience responded with roaring applause and shouting. At the end of the run, Virginia was ahead 43-35.
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