Unable to overcome a one-point deficit with 7:23 remaining, the Virginia women’s basketball team failed to upset No. 7 Florida State and lost its third straight game Sunday afternoon at John Paul Jones Arena, 65-56. The game was the Cavaliers’ third straight against a ranked opponent.
"I think it's really important to start in practice,” freshman forward Aliyah Huland El said of playing three straight top-25 teams. “We hustled, we worked hard and we competed a lot more in practice the last two days and that really made the difference today. We didn't get the win, but it was a much more hard-fought game for us."
The Cavaliers started off strong as sophomore guard Breyana Mason opened the scoring with a 3-pointer after Virginia’s opening tipoff, but Florida State came right back with three of its own. A jumper by senior center Sarah Imovbioh gave Virginia the lead again, but Florida State pulled away yet again with another bucket from beyond the arc and three layups to lead 13-5.
Despite missing their next eight shots, the Seminoles still held a 13-9 advantage before junior center Adut Bulgak hit a layup to restart the Florida State engine, which wouldn’t stop until halftime.
The Seminoles extended their lead to 12 with 6:02 remaining for their largest of the game, but the Cavaliers made six of their last eight shots of the half, including four straight 3-pointers from freshman guard Mikayla Venson, to cut the lead down to five, 36-31, going into halftime.
Both teams ended the half shooting more than 40 percent despite going stretches of five minutes without a bucket.
Mason, who finished with six points, also began the second-half scoring with a three-point play — this one on an and-one — after turning the ball over on the Cavaliers’ first possession of the half.
Turnovers would be a problem for both teams as Virginia gave the ball away on five of eight possessions following Mason’s free throw. Florida State also had four turnovers in that span, and a 3-pointer by Huland El with 11:29 to go reignited the Virginia offense and cut the Florida State lead to three at 42-39.
With Imovbioh and freshman forward Lauren Moses on the bench due to foul trouble, Venson unable to get off a shot in the second half and leading scorer junior guard Faith Randolph out with a heel injury, Huland El stepped up, scoring 12 second-half points to help bring her team within one with 7:23 to go.
“I think with Faith being out, I think not only me but everyone has to step up for [the] team — the guards especially,” Venson said. “Faith is a huge part of our team, but I think everyone who stepped in today did a great job — we knocked down some shots, we stayed in and we hustled. We just got to get the next one.”
After Virginia missed a 3-pointer, the Seminoles called a timeout to talk things over, and their revised strategy seemed to work — Florida State scored five straight points out of the timeout. The two teams traded turnovers before the Seminoles hit another three to bring their lead back up to nine with 3:47 to go.
Huland El followed with a jumper as the shot clock expired, and Imovbioh made a layup on the Cavaliers’ next possession, but Virginia ended the game missing four of five shots.
“We talked about it in the locker room,” coach Joanne Boyle said. “When you're in a tight game like that, you have to be able to control the things you can control. Part of that is running end-of-game situations correctly. I think that really hurt us. Not that we would have made the basket, but it would have given us the best shot."
The Cavaliers attempted nine threes in the second half but only made two of them. Venson scored only three points after halftime to pace her team with 15, while Huland El finished with a career-high 14.
The Cavaliers were outrebounded 33-21 for the game but didn’t give up any second-chance points in the second half.
Florida State’s leading rebounder, Bulgak, only secured one rebound after halftime and finished the game one board shy of her usual double-double. She and sophomore forward Ivey Slaughter scored 14 points to lead their team, while sophomore guard Leticia Romero added nine assists.
The Cavaliers return to action Thursday against Pittsburgh. Tip-off at Petersen Events Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Read More
Mel Josephson and women’s lacrosse prepare to take center stage
By Xander Tilock | 18 hours agoJosephson's ability to perform throughout a game's biggest moments is crucial for the Cavaliers.
Virginia schools can pay players through NIL, but the University should proceed with caution
By Emory Huffman | 2 days agoGiven the unique academic and athletic opportunities Virginia is able to offer its athletes, it is not shocking that Virginia has been resistant to extravagant, NIL-induced changes.
Record-setting weekend for Virginia track and field at Penn Relays and Virginia High Performance
By Tanmayi Patil | 2 days agoThe Cavaliers took down records across two events over the weekend.
