If you take a quick glance at the Atlantic Coast Conference women's basketball standings, you would probably surmise that Virginia Tech doesn't even belong on the same floor as the cream of the crop in the league.
With four teams ranked in the national top 12 -- No. 4 Maryland, No. 8 Duke, No. 11 North Carolina and No. 12 Florida State -- the ACC has proven to be one of the toughest conferences in the country. Out of the league's 12 clubs, the Hokies are 2-12 in conference play and rank 11th in scoring offense, 11th in scoring margin, 11th in rebounding and 10th in turnover margin.
One of their two conference wins this season was against fellow bottom-dweller Clemson, who is likewise 2-12 in ACC competition. The other, and most recent, was against Wake Forest, who was 5-9 and finished 9th in the final regular season standings.
But when you analyze the Hokies' resume a little closer, it's easier to see that the numbers aren't always what they appear to be. While the team may not have racked up ACC wins this season, they showed a knack for playing most teams on their brutal schedule close, especially the premiere ones.
"We have got a little down this year just because of our record and stuff," said junior Lindsay Biggs. "But we just have to keep in mind that we can play with anyone in this conference, which means anyone in the country because, in my opinion, it's one of the best in the country."
Against teams in the top half of the conference, Tech lost by 11 points or less almost 50 percent of the time. In just 23 days, the Hokies lost four games against current top-25 ranked squads by an average of five-and-a-half points. After falling to Florida State by just four points Jan. 8, Tech suffered a five-point defeat at the hands of then-No. 4 Duke eight days later, followed the next week by a six point loss to then-No. 16 Virginia.
"We try to draw on how close we have been, and we need to do just a little bit more to turn that corner and turn an 'L' into a 'W,'" said head coach Beth Dunkenberger.
The Hokies enter the 2009 ACC Tournament aiming to make amends for their disappointing regular season campaign. Their quest begins Thursday night at 8 p.m. in Greensboro, N.C., when they face their rival and sixth-seed Cavaliers.
"You can look at it as a fresh start because we are capable of beating anyone in this league," Biggs said. "So if we get on a roll, we can do some good things there."
To start the tournament with a victory against Virginia, the Hokies know they need to try and slow down the Cavs' potent offense -- ranked third in the conference while averaging over 73 points per game. UVa. is led by junior guard Monica Wright, who is leading the ACC in scoring with 21.1 points per game, and senior center Aisha Mohammed, who has tallied 12.8 points a contest while leading the league with an average of 9.9 boards. The most dangerous scorer on Virginia, however, is Lyndra Littles, who torched the Hokies for a combined 51 points in the teams' two meetings this season. The senior forward is averaging 21.4 points per ball game, which would be highest in the ACC if she had qualified to be included in ACC statistical rankings. She missed more than a quarter of her team's games when she sat out much of the beginning of the season for "personal reasons," thus making her ineligible for the rankings. Dunkenberger has the team focused on trying to contain the trio's offensive onslaught.
"We're focusing on defense and rebounding right now," Dunkenberger said. "Beating people to every loose ball, whether it's coming from a defensive steal standpoint or whether it's trying to get a rebound."
In the two games played this season, the Littles-Mohammed-Wright connection has combined to average over 60 points and 19 rebounds a match. Despite this enormous contribution from Virginia's stars, the Hokies have competed tough in their match-ups with the Cavs, having lost by only a combined 13 points. Junior Utahya Drye thinks the Hokies need to do all the small things well to defeat the 'Hoos.
"To come out with a win against UVa., we need to work on the little things," Drye said. "As far as boxing out, coming up with the loose balls, just playing aggressive and being more aggressive getting to the foul line."
The winner of the first round match-up is slated to play third-seed and No. 8 Duke on Friday at 8 p.m.