Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 28, 1994 TAG: 9402280050
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Nobody can remember Ryan predicting an ACC championship in November.
The Cavaliers haven't won the title yet - that will be decided at the conference tournament this weekend in Rock Hill, S.C. - but they haven't had many accomplishments more impressive than a 15-1 ACC regular-season record.
"We weren't supposed to do this," said Ryan, who is in her 17th season as the Cavaliers' coach. "We've proved a lot of people wrong. A lot of skeptics wrote us off before the season."
The Cavaliers finished a distant second in the ACC preseason poll behind North Carolina, which received all 36 first-place votes. Even when the teams had identical records and UVa had beaten the Tar Heels twice, Carolina was ranked higher by USA Today.
"It's a lack of respect," Ryan said. "That's fine. I watch other teams and sometimes I wonder myself how we do it."
Ryan obviously loves being the underdog after dominating the ACC during the early 1990s. The Cavaliers came up one victory short last year in their bid for a fourth consecutive final four appearance, but not before winning their third ACC championship in four years.
Many felt a rebuilding year was in order, however, after the graduation of Dena Evans, the ACC Tournament's most valuable player, and 6-foot-5 twins Heather and Heidi Burge. Also, freshman guard Kristen Somogyi elected to transfer to Rutgers when Ryan could not assure her of a starting job.
To make matters worse, top recruit Konecka Drakeford was arrested Dec. 17 on felony charges after taking a bank card belonging to her roommate and using it to obtain $400 in cash. Drakeford, the Cavaliers' second-leading scorer at the time, was convicted of reduced charges and never played for UVa again.
Few programs have recruited as well as Virginia, but of the six Parade All-Americans signed by Ryan between 1990 and the fall of 1993, only three remain on the roster. This clearly is one of UVa's least talented - or least-heralded - teams in the past decade.
"I've got no problem saying that," Ryan said.
That is not to say the Cavaliers are without talent. Sophomore center Wendy Palmer, averaging 17.3 points and 10.0 rebounds, is a leading candidate for player of the year. Freshman guard Tora Suber, who scored 21 points in the first half Sunday in UVa's 81-58 victory over N.C. State, could be the rookie of the year.
"Tora has been a godsend," Ryan said. "I wanted to bring her along slowly, but after we lost Konecka, I had to put [Suber] in 35 minutes per game. She's just a godsend. I'd compare her to Dawn [Staley] in her sense for the game. She knows when we're not playing well and when we need a basket."
There could be worse players to be compared to than Staley, the national player of the year for the Cavaliers in 1991 and '92.
Palmer was an ACC All-Rookie selection in 1993, when she averaged 11.7 points, but she was plagued by a leg injury that limited her to 18 minutes per game. She's averaged more than 30 minutes this season, including 47 Wednesday in Virginia's 83-80 double-overtime victory at Maryland.
It's hard to believe that there would be a turning point in a 23-3 season, but that's what happened Dec. 30, after the Cavaliers lost to St. Joseph's 71-56 to fall to 7-2.
"There were times when I wondered, `How are we going to get through?' " Ryan said. "They had to overcome some adversity at that point and I didn't know if they had it in 'em."
In UVa's first game after the holiday break, Ryan played a hunch and put seldom-used Chris Lesoravage in the starting lineup in place of junior Charleata Beale. Lesoravage responded with a career-high 15 points and, while she hasn't hit double figures since, the Cavaliers are 16-1 with her as a starter.
"I've had just about every role there is," said Beale, who had started 41 consecutive games. "There's a lot of pressure starting. You feel like you've got to produce every night. I just basically watch for a while and give the team what it needs."
It was Beale's three-point play with 20 seconds remaining against Maryland that provided the winning margin as the Cavaliers clinched the No. 1 seed in the ACC Tournament.
"I don't think we've gotten a lot of respect," said Beale, the only active UVa player to have received significant playing time for the Cavaliers' last final four team in 1992. "It's a little different from what we've experienced in the past but, to tell the truth, I like it a little better."
by CNB