When the Virginia women's basketball team returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005 this weekend, it will be fortunate enough to play in its own backyard. The Cavaliers earned a four-seed in the Greensboro Region and will face 13-seed University of California Santa Barbara Sunday night at 9:30? at the Ted Constant Convocation Center in Norfolk, Va.
Selection Monday was very good to Virginia (23-9, 10-4 ACC), as the Cavaliers were projected as a six-seed by ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme in his final field before the selections were announced. Not only did the Cavaliers receive a surprise in their seeding, but they are also playing only a short bus trip away from Charlottesville.
"I thought it was a great draw for us simply because of location and the fact that we get to stay fairly close," Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said. "I am just really proud of the team and what we accomplished."
Leading the Cavaliers into the Big Dance will be senior point guard and captain Sharneé Zoll. Zoll and fellow senior guard and captain Tara McKnight are the lone Cavaliers left from the 2005 Virginia team that advanced to the second round before falling to Minnesota.
"We can't take possessions off," Zoll said. "Every possession is going to matter because if you lose, you're done. There is no tomorrow."
The scoring effort will be led by sophomore guard and second-team All-ACC member Monica Wright, whose 18.2 points per game scoring average tops the ACC. Wright enters the tournament playing perhaps the best basketball of her young career. In the team's last three games, Wright is averaging 25.3 points per game and has twice set a new career-high in scoring, the most recent occasion being a 31-point performance against ACC champion North Carolina.
If Virginia is to make a run, the front court of junior forward Lyndra Littles and junior center Aisha Mohammed must also figure prominently in the Cavaliers' offense. Littles is second on the team in scoring, with 16.3 points per game, and is coming off two straight double-double performances at the ACC Tournament. Mohammed goes to Norfolk averaging 12.9 points and a team-high 9.1 rebounds per contest.
UC Santa Barbara (23-7, 15-1 Big West) has won 19 of its last 20 games and has played a more than formidable non-conference schedule. The Gauchos defeated Southern California in overtime earlier in the year and nearly took down Maryland, the top seed in the Spokane Region, at home in a 75-71 loss. Virginia is certainly in for a fight in its opening round contest.
Leading the way for the Gauchos is Big West Player of the Year Jessica Wilson. The senior guard leads the team in scoring with 12.8 points per game and in rebounds with 4.8 boards per contest. Junior center Kat Suderman, a second-team All-Big West selection, is the only other player averaging double figures, adding 10.6 points per game.
With a possible second-round matchup against in-state rival Old Dominion looming, Virginia cannot afford to overlook a dangerous UC Santa Barbara team. Just four years ago, the Gauchos made a run into the Sweet 16.
"You can't look any farther than one game," Ryan said. "There is absolutely no guarantee in the NCAA Tournament. I don't care whether you are playing at home, away, upside down, or inside out ... You have to take your time and be ready to play."
The game, televised nationally on ESPN2 , will start 30 minutes after the conclusion of the contest that will decide Virginia's possible second-round opponent, between No. 5 seed Old Dominion and No. 12 seed Liberty.
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