DATE: Sunday, November 23, 1997             TAG: 9711230140

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   59 lines

UP-AND-COMING ILLINI TO TEST LADY MONARCHS LARRY CALLS ILLINOIS ODU'S TOUGHEST OPENING FOE IN HER 10 YEARS AS COACH.

In many ways the first test for the Old Dominion women's basketball team will be like looking in a mirror.

An old mirror.

When the third-ranked Lady Monarchs meet seventh-ranked Illinois this afternoon (3 p.m. on ESPN) in the State Farm Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic in Champaign, Ill., they'll see an upstart team much like they were two years ago when they lost to Virginia in the Sweet 16.

The highlights for the Illini last season included a Big Ten championship, a first-ever Sweet 16 appearance, a nationally recognized superstar in Ashley Berggren and a 24-8 record, the best ever for Illinois. Illini coach Theresa Grentz, the eighth-winningest coach in NCAA history, earned WBCA District IV Coach of the Year honors.

``Old Dominion is ahead of us by at least two years at this point,'' said Grentz, in her third season at Illinois. ``They lack that anxiety Illinois is going to have this season. . . . The thing that makes them so good is they've been doing what they do so long. They're on another mission.''

The mission is the national title that eluded the Lady Monarchs by nine points in last March's NCAA title game loss to Tennessee. Ticha Penicheiro, Nyree Roberts and Mery Andrade return from the team that finished 34-2. Likely to join them in the starting lineup are senior guards Amber Eller-Paul and LaToya Small, although coach Wendy Larry has also worked with a bigger lineup that uses Natalie Diaz and Emmora Keenan.

``We have a big lineup and a small lineup and we probably won't determine until we get off the plane in Illinois which one we're going to use,'' Larry said.

The Lady Monarchs are coming off a sub-par effort last week when they were outscored in the second half in a victory over the Hungarian national team. One of their biggest challenges of the season will be looking to fill the void in scoring and rebounding left by the departure of All-American Clarisse Machanguana, now with the ABL's San Jose Lasers.

``We've asked four or five people to step up, and so far we've had three do that,'' Larry said. ``We have not gotten to the point consistently where our work ethic matches what we had last year. When we do, I think this basketball team can play deep into March.''

The other trouble spot against the Hungarians: transition defense, traditionally a trademark for the Lady Monarchs.

``The couple of exhibition games were not indicative of where this team needs to be,'' Larry said. ``They know they have to be a lot more aggressive. I was very disappointed in our defensive transition and that's something we've really stressed last week in practice. That was really our savior last year.''

Larry said the Illini is ODU's most difficult opening opponent in her 10-year tenure as head coach.

Berggren, an All-America candidate and Big Ten Player of the Year last season, led the Illini in scoring (17.8), assists (135) and steals (60) a year ago. Illinois returns all of its starters, including Nicole Vasey and Tauja Catchings, both 6-1, and Alicia Sheeler, 6-3, from the squad that gave Connecticut a scare in the regional final. The game is the first of four this week for ODU, which also plays Purdue on Wednesday before hosting the Dial Classic next weekend.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu