The Virginia women's basketball team will seek to continue its post-season run tonight when it takes on Pittsburgh in the third round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). The Panthers are 21-10 overall and 9-7 in the Big East. The Cavaliers are 20-11 overall and 5-9 in the ACC.
The Panthers boast two marquee players that are likely to give the Cavaliers problems. Sophomore center Marcedes Walker leads Pittsburgh in scoring and rebounding, averaging 16.9 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game. Additionally, junior guard Mallorie Winn presents a significant offensive threat; she averages 15.5 ppg.
Virginia will have about one and a half days to prepare for the Panthers. The lack of preparation might make the game a difficult endeavor; however, Virginia coach Debbie Ryan is familiar with Pittsburgh coach Agnus Berenato's style of play.
"I don't know anything about Pittsburgh," Ryan said. "[Pittsburgh coach] Agnus Berenato was in the ACC for many seasons, so I know some tendencies. But other than that, I have absolutely no knowledge of who's there or who their players are."
Berenato coached Georgia Tech from 1989-2003 and faced Ryan's Cavaliers many times. Ryan's teams are 28-6 overall against Berenato's.
"We'll be ready," Ryan said. "My players know how to get ready for games and they're good at getting ready for games on the fly because the ACC gave us great experience with games on Friday and Sunday during the regular season."
Luckily, Virginia enjoyed a long break in-between their last regular season game and the start of the WNIT. The team is relatively well-rested and in good health and will need to draw on that rest Saturday.
"Now we have to turnaround and play again on Friday," Ryan said. "This isn't going to be any different than the road game we had after we played Maryland [Jan. 20]. It will be a very short scouting report, and our players are going to have to key in and execute well. We're going to have to really focus on what we're about to do."
One of the team's main driving forces this season has been Tiffany Sardin. Sardin is the team's only senior and undisputed leader. Her contributions on and off of the court have held the team together and have inspired the late season run. All of Virginia's players want to send Sardin out on a great note -- with a championship.
"We don't want to go out and lose Tiffany [on a down note]," junior forward Siedah Williams said. "We want to get her a championship before she leaves. We're all pretty close, and that's one thing we've focused in on as a team."
Virginia's 2005-2006 season has been an up and down affair. The team's youth and inexperience was exploited earlier in the season during a tough six-game losing streak. However, the young Cavaliers have turned their season around, winning seven out of their last eight games.
"We gained some confidence from those games," sophomore guard Sharneé Zoll said. "We learned that we could play with the best teams in the country. If we do all the little things coach tells us to, we can be a pretty good team.That's where we learned a lot and gained confidence because those little things can make a big difference."
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