Jan. 15, 2000
Box Score
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - On the eighth anniversary date of one of women's college basketball's most memorable games, it didn't matter that it wasn't top-ranked Virginia hosting No. 3-ranked Maryland. Proving the longtime rivalry between the schools is still hotly contested, the Cavs and Terps waged a 40-minute battle including 15 lead changes and 10 ties before Virginia outlasted Maryland 76-68.
Junior forward Svetlana Volnaya scored 17 of her 28 points in the second half to lift Virginia. Volnaya was 6 of 7 from the field and hit two 3-pointers all in the second half. Maryland senior guard Tiffany Brown sank six 3-pointers to lead the Terps with 25 points.
Virginia (12-4 overall, 4-1 ACC) trailed by four points at half-time 36-32 before Volnaya ignited a 7-2 run to start the second half. Her jumper at 18:16 put Virginia ahead by one, 42-41 for Virginia's first lead since the 10:06 mark of the first half. The lead changed hands on nearly every possession for the next 10:18 of the second half before Volnaya's running jumper at the 7:58 mark put Virginia in the lead for good.
Maryland's Renneika Razor hit a 10-foot jumper in the lane to bring Maryland within one, 64-63, with 7:03 left, but Maryland connected on only 2 of 6 free throws during the 10-minute stretch which saw the Cavaliers begin to take control. Virginia, meanwhile, was 8 of 9 from the line during that stretch and hit 22 of 25 free throws overall.
After Maryland (10-6, 2-4 ACC) opened the game with a 14-4 lead and Virginia did a turnabout with a 16-4 run of its own, neither team ever led by more than four points until Lisa Hosac's pair of free throws gave the Cavs a 70-64 advantage with 4:01 remaining. Maryland twice drew within four on jumpers from Razor and Deedee Warley, but never closer.
Warley and fellow sophomore Rosita Melbourne each had 11 for the Terrapins who rode Brown's sharp-shooting most of the afternoon.
Brown, the ACC leader with 4.3 treys through six league contests, scored a 3-pointer on the game's first basket and netted five bombs in the first half, alone, to break her own UM season mark. She and Marche Strickland combined for eight triples on the afternoon, helping shatter the team record for season 3-pointers. For the season, Brown has hit 52 of Maryland's 86 3-point baskets, beating old records of 48 and 77 in just the 16th game of the year.
For Virginia, freshman forward Schuye LaRue added 13 points for the Cavaliers, and Hosac had 10 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Dean'na Mitchelson came off the bench and scored 11 points.
Virginia meets N.C. State on Monday, Jan. 17 at 7:30 p.m. for a regionally televised game. Maryland travels to Wake Forest on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. before returning to College Park to host Georgia Tech in a regionally-televised game at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 23.
