The Lady Hokies took a first step to get out of the cellar of the ACC yesterday afternoon, taking down Boston College 70-63 in overtime. They did so without their top player, Uju Ugoka in the game. Not exactly sure why she sat out, but she was dealing with an MCL issue earlier in the season which may have played a factor.
Tech was led by Monet Tellier and Vanessa Panousis, with seventeen and eighteen points respectively. Maddison Penn contributed a surprising fifteen points coming off the bench. Tellier hit a free throw (don't be shocked that someone in the basketball program can actually do this) with four seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game and Boston College choked away a layup at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. Hannah Young also contributed a double double, with eleven points and ten rebounds on the day.
This was the second time the Hokies have faced BC this season, and it gave them a nice little taste of revenge, as Tech fell 70-63 in the previous match up. Panousis scored the last nine points for the Hokies in overtime, going seven for seven from the line in the last three minutes to close out the win. All in all, a great way for the ladies to get off the schnide in ACC play with their first conference win of the season.
The Lady Hokies next play at Syracuse on Thursday night, 7pm and host NC State on Sunday at 2pm. The home game will help to support the Play4Kay organization with all pink uniform components, so dress for the game accordingly.
Comments
Looking at the roster and the coach that was being considered for the men's team, I honestly thought the lady hokies would be a bit better this year.
This is an especially buzzsaw year for talent in the ACC. I think Wolfe did really well going 10-3 in the OOC schedule, with the exception of the loss to Richmond (10-12). Only other losses were to Indiana (16-6) and Hampton (17-4), both of whom are probably bound for the NCAA tournament. The ACC though has probably 8 to 10 of the top 50 teams this year. Even Florida State at 15-6 is only 3-5 in the ACC. Three other ACC teams have losing records at this point and two more are 12-10, so sitting at 11-10 isn't so bad this year. I anticipate that next year will be a big season for Tech although they lose two of their three top scorers in Tellier and Ugoka. Ugoka has a real shot at getting drafted into the WNBA if her knee is healthy, which would be great for recruiting.
If Tellier hit the first of her free throws, the game would have been won in regulation. Ugoka was out with knee problems. The biggest problem this year has been closing out games. Coming in to ACC all they need to do was win 5 to qualify for postseason play. The first three games were all winnable and they squandered two of them at home by not finishing the game. They have two winnable games at home and then will likely have to steal two on the road from WF and UVA to qualify now. Maybe now that they have the taste of winning they can finish strong.
On the whole, I think they look much sharper and crisper than last year. Their defense is greatly improved. The first three conference games were very close scores and yesterday's game was fun to watch. I think they are on the right track, and I believe next year will be a wonderful year for them in spite of loosing Uju and Monet. Hoping they can finish strong, looking forward to the next 3 home games!