Cavalier Daily Staff Writer
The Virginia women's basketball team will travel to take on No. 4 Duke tonight at 7 p.m. With just four games remaining, the Cavaliers (12-12, 5-7 ACC) are fighting to close the season with a record above .500 in the conference.
Virginia faces a tough schedule ahead to contend for their 21st straight bid to the NCAA tournament, the third most in NCAA history, behind Tennessee and Louisiana Tech -- the only two teams to compete in all 22 NCAA tournaments.
"We have a tough schedule to finish, two at home and two away," Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said. "We have the two top teams in the league away, but we're not going to quit, we're going to keep fighting."
The Cavaliers lost their second straight ACC game to N.C. State, 72-67, last Sunday. Junior forward LaTonya Blue scored 17 points while shooting a perfect 5-5 from the line. Junior forward Jocelyn Logan-Friend recorded a career high 14 points and senior guard Anna Prillaman added 10 points.
The Cavaliers struggled defensively against the Wolfpack, which out-rebounded them 35-27.
"We didn't play very defensively in the second half, so I imagine we'll spend a lot of time with that," Ryan said after the game.
The Cavaliers look to correct minor mistakes apparent in the N.C. State loss before the season comes to an end.
"But at this time of year, you kind of are what you are and you're not going to change a lot at this point," Ryan said. "It's just a matter of how the players bounce back and respond."
The Blue Devils record stands at 12-3 overall, 11-1 in the ACC. The team is lead by 12-year head coach Gail Goestenkovs. Duke won its last contest 89-79 against N.C. State. The Blue Devils' top scorer, senior Alana Beard, averages 19.5 points per game, followed by Monique Currie with 12.5 points per game.
"Versus a team like Duke I think all you can do is play hard," Logan-Friend said. "We've got to give everything we've got and we can't make the little mistakes we made in [the N.C. State] game and a lot of the other games we played. We've got to give it all we've got for 40 minutes."
Virginia can remain optimistic about reaching the post season, however, if history repeats itself. Last year the Cavaliers had a record of 0-4 in the ACC and went on to finish third in the conference, the biggest turnaround in ACC history.
"I think they're beatable, even on their home court -- they proved that when they lost to Florida St. and they prove it every time they come here and it's a close game," Logan-Friend said. "We just have to give it everything we have."
Virginia will return home to play Florida State at 4 p.m. on Sunday. All girls aged 18-and-under will be admitted to the game for free in celebration of National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
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