Following a tough loss to a down-and-out North Carolina team Monday, the Cavalier women's basketball squad hopes to get back into the win column tonight at home against Florida State.
The Seminoles (9-12, 2-8 ACC) may appear to be an easy target, but they threw a scare into N.C. State, a team tied for the ACC lead, in Raleigh Sunday and lost to the Cavaliers by only three points at home Jan. 9. Following the overtime loss to the Tar Heels, the Cavaliers (17-6, 9-2) aren't taking anything for granted.
"Everybody is upset over the game," first-year forward Schuye LaRue said. "We thought we should have won. We'll just go back to practice and work on the things we did wrong today, and we'll be fine."
LaRue will need to play well against the Seminoles after tallying 16 points and 12 rebounds against the Tar Heels. Guard Telisha Quarles led the Cavs with 19 points.
Cavalier Coach Debbie Ryan thinks the team will bounce back from the North Carolina loss.
|
  |
"We'll regroup," Ryan said. "We're a good team. We have not gotten too high with the wins or too low with the losses. We're a good team, and we know we're a good team. We'll get back together again. I'm not worried about that. We'll be ready for Thursday."
After North Carolina's Nikki Teasley scored 24 points Monday night, the Cavaliers face another daunting offensive performer in the Seminoles' Latavia Coleman, who scored 21 points against the Wolfpack. The Cavaliers, who used three different players to defend Teasley, hope they can keep Coleman in check tonight.
The Cavs will counter Coleman and fellow Seminole standout Brooke Wyckoff with offensive stars LaRue, Quarles and Svetlana Volnaya. Volnaya had a rough shooting night against the Tar Heels, but she has come through in the clutch in the past, including a pair of game-winning free throws last Thursday against Georgia Tech.
The Seminoles have two other performers, Katelyn Vujas and April Traylor, who can hurt the Cavaliers.
Ryan thinks the team's upcoming stretch of home games will help them regroup going into the ACC Tournament. Four of the team's final six games are at home.
"Out of the next six games, two of them are road games and the rest are at home, so that helps," Ryan said. "Our last four out of five games have been road games, which has been difficult."