Women’s Basketball: Virginia Tops Old Dominion in Overtime, 56-53

The Virginia women’s basketball team (3-3) picked up a 56-53 overtime victory over Old Dominion (3-1) on Sunday (Nov. 24) at John Paul Jones Arena.

Freshman guard Kylie Kornegay-Lucas (Camden, Del.) had a breakout performance, scoring 31 points, going 10-of-18 from the field and 10-of-11 from the free throw line. Lucas also logged her first career double-double by grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds. Old Dominion’s Victoria Morris scored 26 points, going 8-of-18 from three-point range.

Old Dominion led by 11 points in the third quarter and held a five-point lead heading into the final minute of play, but the Cavaliers battled back, with senior guard Jocelyn Willoughby (East Orange, N.J.) hitting a game-tying three with 10.8 seconds remaining in regulation. In overtime, Virginia held a 54-50 lead with 11 seconds remaining, but a three-pointer from Morris cut the lead to one. After an immediate foul, Virginia made one of two free throws to go up 55-53, before Kornegay-Lucas stole the ensuing inbound pass with 3.0 seconds remaining to give possession back to UVA and seal the victory.

Old Dominion scored the first five points of the game, but three different Cavaliers each hit a field goal during a 6-0 Virginia to put UVA ahead 6-5. The Monarchs pulled out to a 9-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter, UVA’s defense held the Monarchs to 0-of-9 shooting to start the period while Kornegay-Lucas went on a personal 5-0 run, draining a three and following with a layup, to give UVA a 13-11 lead. Old Dominion scored the final five points of the quarter to take a 19-15 lead into the break. The Monarchs used a 9-0 run to build up a 28-17 lead in the third quarter.

Kornegay-Lucas began chipping away at the deficit, twice driving towards the hoop and drawing a foul to make it a 28-21 game. An and-one from freshman guard Carole Miller (Alexandra, Va.) followed by another Kornegay-Lucas jumper made it a three-point game, 29-26, with 1:18 remaining in the third. Back-to-back three-pointers from ODU’s Morris dampened UVA’s momentum, but Kornegay-Lucas closed the period with a layup to make it a 35-29 Monarch advantage. Virginia pulled to within four five times in the fourth quarter, finally breaking through with a pair of Kornegay-Lucas free throws following a jumper from senior guard Dominique Toussaint (Staten Island, N.Y.), but Morris hit another three, her seventh of the game, to put ODU ahead 46-41 with 1:52 remaining. Kornegay-Lucas hit two free throws with 45 seconds remaining. Virginia got a defensive stop and had the ball with 14.9 seconds remaining. Willoughby hit a three-pointer with 10.8 seconds remaining to tie the game at 46 and force overtime.

The game was tied 48-48 in the extra period when Kornegay-Lucas converted an and-one on an inbounds play to give UVA a 51-48 lead. Toussaint scored a wide-open fastbreak layup to extend UVA’s advantage to 54-48. Another three-pointer from Morris made it a one-point game, 54-53, with 6.7 seconds remaining. After an immediate foul, Virginia made one of two free throws to go up 55-53, but Kornegay-Lucas stole the ensuing inbound pass with 3.0 seconds remaining. She went 1-of-2 from the line to make it 56-53. Old Dominion tossed up a desperation half-court shot at the buzzer, but it was well off the mark and the Cavaliers held on for the victory.

“Thank goodness for Kylie [Kornegay-Lucas],” UVA coach Tina Thompson said. “We started that game horribly. My team wasn’t recognizable in that first half. We just did so many things that were not reminiscent or familiar of who we are. Of course, you have games like that, and you expect it to happen maybe for a quarter or a few minutes but for it to happen for a whole half and then half of a quarter? You do a whole lot of things – substitutions, changing plays, changing personnel and putting people in positions to do what they do individually to give us a spark. Kylie did an awesome job of stepping up and doing what she does, especially for a first-year player. We expect so much from our first-year kids, but Kylie was above and beyond that today. Without the effort that she had today…I don’t think we get back in that game.”