For the Cavaliers, Friday night’s 78-48 victory against High Point was all about firsts.
Their first game of the season. Their first opportunity to adjust to play without recent graduate Sharneé Zoll. Their first chance to prove to fans and pollsters that they deserve their No. 15 ranking.
It was the first time the team would have to adjust to another big hole in the roster: senior forward Lyndra Littles, who will not participate in games during the fall semester, coach Debbie Ryan announced before the game.
“It is a huge loss for us,” Ryan said. “Lyndra is a very cerebral player, and she has turned into a very good leader on our team, so it will be very difficult for us. We will have to go with the next-woman-up philosophy.”
Friday’s win against High Point was also the first regular-season game for the team’s freshmen, who were the driving force in the team’s victory. Combining for more than half the team’s points, the freshmen gave Ryan a reason to be optimistic about the future. Guard Ariana Moorer led the group with 19 points, five assists and seven steals.
“I felt confident tonight, and my teammates were out there helping me and encouraging me,” Moorer said.
Moorer, whom Ryan said will start for the Cavaliers at point guard, not only put up big numbers but played efficiently. She was one of two Cavaliers to have an assist-to-turnover ratio greater than 1.0 on the game.
Other freshmen who stood out during the game were forward Whitny Edwards, who tallied 14 points and 12 rebounds, and forward Chelsea Shine, who put up 10 points, six rebounds and a block. Shine in particular fired up the crowd with a high-energy defensive presence.
The team’s veterans played well, too. Junior guard Monica Wright — despite missing five of her first six shots — put up 16 points and seven steals, while senior center Aisha Mohammed provided the game’s other double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Senior guard Britnee Millner started but rolled her ankle part of the way through the game, returning midway through the game to play a few more minutes.
The Cavaliers hope their starters’ high level of play will continue in a big game at Tennessee tonight. The Volunteers are No. 7 and are the reigning national champions.
“I think we need to play within ourselves,” Millner said. “This will be a game where we can gauge where we need to be for our ACC season.”
The game at Tennessee will see a matchup between two of the most decorated coaches in collegiate women’s basketball: Ryan and Pat Summitt, who leads all NCAA basketball coaches, men or women, in career wins.
The game, which Wright said she has had circled since the beginning of the season, will determine whether the Cavaliers can compete at the elite level their poll rankings indicate.
“One thing were going have to do is be able to handle their defensive pressure,” Ryan said of Tennessee. “They will be very aggressive. We have already started preparing a little, but we will prepare these next two days and be ready for their pressure.”
Following Monday’s game in Knoxville, the Cavaliers face another ranked team Friday in No. 20 Old Dominion. The Lady Monarchs ousted the Cavaliers from the NCAA Tournament last year.
With their first win behind them, the Cavaliers will see if they can leave a big impression against some national powers this week.
Before they can worry about returning to Norfolk, though, Virginia has a huge, potentially season-defining match in front of them. The Cavaliers have never won a game at Tennessee. Tonight they will try to prove there’s a first for everything.
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