Coming off a closely fought loss against top-ranked Duke last Sunday, the Virginia women's basketball team now will pack its bags for a two-game weekend trip. The Cavaliers tip off in Tallahassee today before heading back up the coast to face the Clemson Tigers in a Sunday matinee.
Virginia (8-8, 2-3 ACC) looks to even its conference record in its first meeting of the year with the Seminoles. Long considered an automatic win for the Cavaliers, Florida State (10-7, 3-2) has recently begun to turn the tide in the overall series, winning three of the last seven games to bring the overall tally to 24-3.
Missing from the Cavalier attack has been star junior forward Brandi Teamer, who has missed the last three contests -- all ACC games. Virginia coach Debbie Ryan refused to comment on the reason for Teamer's absence, citing only that she has returned to the practice floor. Ryan hastily declined any timetable for her return.
Going 2-1 since Teamer's suspension, Virginia has not missed a beat in the absence of its leading scorer, who had been contributing 12.1 points per game. Picking up the slack against the Blue Devils was junior point guard LaTonya Blue. Blue tossed in 15 points in the sole double-digit effort of the night for the Cavaliers. Senior guard Anna Prillaman chipped in with eight, going 2-4 from beyond the arc. Prillaman, long considered Virginia's best shooter, has shot at a .439 clip from three this season.
Going into the half with a 29-28 lead, Virginia seemed poised to avenge a heartbreaking 60-59 loss in U-Hall to the Blue Devils a year ago. But the team who halted UConn's record home-win streak earlier this year was not to be stopped, as Duke turned up the heat in the second half to the tune of 35 points en route to a 63-52 victory.
The true surprise from the Duke contest came from junior forward Jocelyn Logan-Friend. The 6-foot-1 defensive specialist has come on strong of late after missing the beginning of the season while recovering from a torn ACL last spring. Against the Blue Devils, Logan-Friend made herself acquainted with the No. 1 team by rejecting five Duke shots and corralling 10 boards.
"She was an excellent defender last year," Ryan said of Logan-Friend. "Lateral movement is one of the last things you get back after an ACL tear. Slowly, she got it back. [Defense] is where we were the weakest, and now we're one of the best because of Jocelyn."
Florida State is currently one spot ahead of Virginia in the ACC standings at fifth, and harbors a legitimate scoring threat in senior forward Tasheika Allen. Allen, leading the 'Noles with 14.6 ppg, was named last week's ACC Player of the Week after clocking 46 points and nine rebounds in their two games.
The Seminoles lie in wait on their home court for Virginia, where they will play four of their next five. FSU coach Sue Semrau likes their chances.
"Home court is really important," Semrau said. "We need to take advantage of things that help you at home -- sleeping in your own bed, having a routine, not having to sit on an airplane. We'll have time to settle in."
Virginia, on the other hand, will have no time to get settled before they head north to Clemson, S.C. The Tiger team that awaits them has not lost on its home court in seven tries this year and has already knocked off the Cavaliers at U-Hall in a 58-55 nail-biter. When the Cavaliers return to Charlottesville late Sunday night, their status in the ACC could range from 4-3 to 2-5. Although not yet halfway finished with conference play, a crucial weekend lies ahead for Debbie Ryan's troops.
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