ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 24, 1996 TAG: 9603250068
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
THE CAVALIERS USE a balanced attack to set up a meeting Monday with top-seeded Tennessee.
Like an industrial giant fighting to keep control of its market, Virginia massed all of its forces Saturday in thwarting Old Dominion's takeover bid.
In what was billed as the biggest women's basketball game ever involving two in-state teams, UVa defeated the Lady Monarchs 72-60 and advanced to the final eight of the NCAA Tournament.
Third-seeded Virginia (26-6) will meet top-seeded Tennessee (29-4) in the East Regional championship game at 5 p.m. Monday at University Hall. Tennessee led by 32 points Saturday en route to a 92-71 victory over Kansas.
The Lady Vols defeated Virginia 78-51 when they played in Knoxville, Tenn., in the opening game of the season.
Old Dominion (29-3) entered Saturday's game with a 19-game winning streak during which its average margin of victory was more than 34 points. What's more, the Lady Monarchs were fueled by the perception UVa was unwilling to play them.
``The first time I heard about the rivalry was a couple of days ago,'' said UVa guard Tora Suber. ``I was like, `Wow, they didn't want to play here and Coach [Debbie Ryan] didn't want to play there.'
``There were just a lot of things that I didn't know about. I personally don't get caught up in it because I don't know what's going on. All I do is play ball.''
That's what Suber has been doing for the past month, a seven-game span in which she has averaged 25 points. She had 26 on Saturday to lead four UVa scorers in double figures.
Ryan had fretted Friday because she felt the Cavaliers needed a third scorer to go with Suber and All-ACC center Wendy Palmer, but she got more than she wanted. Palmer was the only Cavaliers starter not in double figures.
``If you had told me that we'd only get eight points out of Wendy and that she'd go 2-for-13 from the field, I would have thought we would have lost,'' Ryan said. ``We just couldn't get the ball to her in good position.''
Freshman forward DeMya Walker helped pick up the slack with 14 points, all but two in the second half. Sophomore Monick Foote scored 13 and senior Jenny Boucek added 11 - her first double-figure game since Feb.19.
Also, Boucek had the defensive assignment on 5-foot-11 Old Dominion point guard Ticha Penicheiro, the player of the year in the Colonial Athletic Association. Penicheiro had five points on two field goals, one in the first 37 minutes.
``I can be very annoying,'' Boucek said. ``Debbie told me this morning that she knew I was really focused on Penicheiro, but she didn't want me to be a non-factor on offense. She needed me to score a little bit.''
After Old Dominion had overcome a 10-point deficit to take a 52-49 lead, Boucek hit a 10-foot baseline jumper as the shot clock ran out, then converted a three-point play that enabled UVa to take the lead for good with 7:14 remaining.
It turned into a 16-2 run for the Cavaliers, who led 65-54 before the Lady Monarchs ended a 71/2-minute, one-field goal dry spell when Penicheiro scored with 2:50 left. ODU got no closer than nine the rest of the way.
Mery Andrade, the CAA's rookie of the year, led the Lady Monarchs with 17 points before fouling out. Shonda Deberry added 10, but 6-5 Clarisse Machanguana was surprisingly quiet in finishing with seven points and three rebounds.
``We're somewhat disappointed in our [inability] to get the ball in the hands of the people that have brung us here,'' said Wendy Larry, ODU's coach. ``As for Ticha, she's been sick for a couple of days, which is no excuse, but she was really tentative.''
The Lady Monarchs had great support from their fans, who actually were louder than a much larger UVa contingent for parts of the game. However, the late run awakened the Cavaliers' following.
``My concern is that we'll go to a facility to play on a neutral floor and play in front of an empty gym,'' said Larry, referring to the NCAA's practice of allowing women's teams to play on their home floors. ``There was a great deal of emotion out there. At times, the crowd became a sixth man.''
VIRGINIA(26-6)-
Foote 5-9 1-1 13, Walker 6-9 2-3 14, Palmer 2-13 4-7 8, Boucek 4-7 3-7 11, Suber 7-17 10-12 26, Mooney 0-1 0-0 0, Gausepohl 0-1 0-0 0, Bower 0-0 0-0 0, McKinney 0-2 0-0 0, Brown 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-59 20-30 72.
OLDDOMINION(29-3)-
Andrade 7-15 3-5 17, Machanguana 3-5 1-2 7, Roberts 3-6 3-3 9, Deberry 4-7 2-2 10, Penicheiro 2-7 1-1 5, Willyerd 0-5 2-2 2, Benjamin 2-6 2-3 6, Eller 0-2 0-0 0, Himes 2-5 0-0 4, Liston 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-59 14-18 60.
Halftime-Virginia, 33-28. Three-point goals-Virginia 4-11 (Suber 2-3, Foote 2-4, Mooney 0-1, McKinney 0-1, Palmer 0-2), Old Dominion 0-7 (Deberry 0-1, Andrade 0-2, Willyerd 0-2, Penicheiro 0-2). Fouled out-Andrade. Rebounds-Virginia 44 (Walker, Palmer 12), Old Dominion 39 (Andrade, Deberry, Penicheiro 7). Assists-Virginia 4 (Boucek 2), Old Dominion 14 (Penicheiro 7). Total fouls-Virginia 17, Old Dominion 23. A-7,860.
LENGTH: Medium: 95 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Virginia players gather around coach Debbie Ryan toby CNBcelebrate their victory over Old Dominion on Saturday. color.