The Virginia women's basketball team hopes to infect top-seeded Tennessee with the March Madness bug by upsetting the six-time national champions Saturday in Memphis.
The fourth-seeded Cavs (25-8) advanced to their first Sweet Sixteen appearance in three years Sunday by defeating fifth-seeded Boston College 74-70. Sophomore guard Telisha Quarles poured in a career-high 24 points against the Eagles to lead Virginia, while senior guard Renee Robinson added 19 points.
The Lady Volunteers (30-3), who reached their nineteenth consecutive Sweet Sixteen with a 75-60 victory over Arizona Monday, are led by junior forward Tamika Catchings, the Women's Naismith Player of the Year. Catchings averaged 15.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game during the regular season and continued that success with 21 points and eight rebounds against Arizona.
Center Michelle Snow joins Catchings down low. The sophomore ran into foul trouble against the Wildcats and finished with only eight points and eight rebounds but should be a presence on the boards Saturday.
Though Catchings will be tough to defend, the featured one-on-one matchup will be Quarles and junior guard Semeka Randall. The Volunteers' second-team All-American averaged 14.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in the regular season and has averaged 16 points per game in the tournament. But the high-scoring guard may be even more valuable on defense as the Vols try to keep the hot-handed Quarles in check.
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Tennessee's only obvious weakness this season has been the inconsistency of their perimeter play. If Randall comes out flat, look for Quarles to light it up from the outside. The Louisa native is shooting 56.2 percent from behind the arc in the tournament, while Robinson and forward Svetlana Volnaya averaged 50 percent from three-point range in the first two rounds.
Along with her offensive spark, the Cavaliers will need Robinson's senior experience and defensive ability to shut down Lady Vol freshman Kara Lawson. The Springfield, Va. native moved into the starting point-guard role in mid-January and went on to lead the SEC in three-point shooting. Ryan is confident her senior point guard will be up to the challenge.
"Renee's a very good defensive player," Ryan said. "I think Kara's gotten better as she's come along in her freshman year, but most freshmen do have trouble."
One freshman that has had no difficulty this season is ACC Freshman of the Year Schuye LaRue, who starts at center for the Cavaliers. Snow and the rest of the Lady Vols will try and use their size to keep LaRue out of the paint and limit the Cavs' second chance opportunities.
With Tennessee entering as the No. 2 team in the nation and the first seed in the Mideast, the Volunteers are a prohibitive favorite to defeat the Cavs on their way to Final Four. Robinson says the Cavs understand the odds stacked against them.
"We're the only people that believe that we can beat them," she said. "It's a one-in-a-million chance from what I hear. If we do, we do it. That's out goal."
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