Share
Staff Writer
Virginia Tech women?s basketball team got off to a healthy start this season, continuing its dominance on the court with a 13-5 (4-3, Big East) record.
The Lady Hokies have had wins against University of Virginia, No. 23 Rutgers University and West Virginia University. Despite its recent success, the team took some tough early road losses to No. 2 University of Connecticut and No. 22 Villanova.
The team may not have been as prepared as they would have liked for these games, said head coach Bonnie Henrickson, but they are continually playing better basketball.
In honor of their big road win against WVU a week and a half ago, better basketball on the road may be the main focus for the final nine games of the season ? the Lady Hokies are 9-0 in Cassell Coliseum, yet 4-5 on the road.
?To play teams on the road, you must play much better than they do,? Henrickson said. ?Playing at home is like a 10-point cushion, and we have only been making up eight or nine of those points.?
A disappointing loss came last week in Miami, although the team looks to bounce back Saturday in a home game against a Providence team that is much better than its record shows us.
Providence has great perimeter shooting with a very athletic point guard who could give Tech some problems.
They also have racked up some quality wins against Pittsburgh and WVU, and have proved they can play on the road.
The Hokies? would like to control the tempo of the game and have more perimeter shooting, Henrickson said.
The team?s advantage is on the inside, so they need to use that to create some more open outside shots. This inside advantage has come from the skills of Ieva Kublina and Erin Gibson.
Kublina is just a few points away from 1,000 points in her career at Tech, and she was named the Big East player of the week last week. She leads the team with 14 points per game and 32 blocked shots so far this season.
?(Kublina) has given us big shots in the paint, and she is arguably the best post defensive player we have ever had here,? Henrickson said.
Chrystal Starling and Davina Simmons are two more upperclassmen leading the way for the Hokies. Starling hit six points in overtime last week against Rutgers, including the final two free throws to seal the victory. Her outstanding play in that game earned her Big East player of the week honors.
Simmons has been a nice surprise, adjusting very well to her new position and has been another key player on the inside.
?If you came into practice and watched (Simmons), you would never know that we had just moved her to that position this season,? Henrickson said. ?She always comes in and gives great energy.?
The upperclassmen on the team will be the key to Tech having a successful finish and making the NCAA tournament. They will lead the way into these final nine games that all are against Big East opponents.
?The more consistent they are,? Henrickson said, ?the more success we will have.?
Leave a comment 0 Comments Write a letter to the editor
All letters to the editor must include a name, e-mail, daytime phone number and affiliation to Virginia Tech. Affiliation includes: year and major for students; position and department for faculty and staff; current city for alumni and parents.