History does repeat itself. The Virginia women's basketball team (14-8, 5-4 ACC) notched its 47th consecutive win against Wake Forest (11-9, 3-6) with an energetic double-overtime 76-73 victory at University Hall yesterday.
Virginia sophomore forward Schuye LaRue, benched in the first half for being late to the pregame shoot-around, brought much needed scoring and intensity to the overtime periods. LaRue, last year's ACC rookie of the year, was the only Virginia player to score in the second overtime. Her seven points proved enough to seal a win and stop the Cavs' two game-losing skid. LaRue also dominated on the boards and was just one rebound away from a double-double.
"I just tried to come in and get in the flow, feel where the rough spots are and that kind of got me in my game," LaRue said.
But for all of LaRue's scoring and rebounding, Marcie Dickson redefined the prime-time player.
"I can't say enough about her headiness at the end where she was just all over the ball," Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said.
Virginia's leading scorer with 21 points, Dickson nailed two clutch shots to revive the lethargic Cavaliers and their fans.
Down by three points with 8 seconds remaining, Dickson got the ball off an inbounds pass and was fouled as she sank the 2-foot jumper. She converted the free throw to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Dickson loved the thrill of clutch shooting so much she did it again.
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With the Cavaliers down by two with 13.9 seconds left on the clock, LaRue caught an inbounds pass and was forced into a tough leaning jumper that ricocheted off the rim. Dickson scooped the ball up near the top of the key with 1.9 seconds left and sunk a one-footed fadeaway shot at the buzzer to keep Virginia's hopes alive.
Poor shot selection haunted the Deacons throughout the game. Wake Forest shot a measly 30 percent from the floor and hit on only two of 18 attempts from behind the arc. The Deacons also bled from the free throw line in the first half and shot a dismal 36 percent from the line.
Wake Forest compensated for its shooting woes by dominating the boards.
"We obviously didn't do a very good job rebounding and boxing out, but that is a correctable think that we can work on," Ryan said.
Throughout the day, Wake guard Kristen Shaffer foiled the Cavs' defense. The Deacon's leading scorer matched Dickson's 21 points by shooting 47 percent from the floor.
"This one was very tough to swallow," Shaffer said.
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