Jan. 26, 2003
NORFOLK, VA - The Old Dominion women's basketball team defeated the Hofstra Pride 81-49 this afternoon on a Superbowl Sunday showdown at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.
The Lady Monarchs improve to 10-6 overall and 7-0 in the CAA having won their last 33 straight conference games. Old Dominion has been in the win column in six of its last seven games. The Pride fall to 4-12 on the year and 1-6 in the CAA, dropping their fourth straight contest.
The Lady Monarchs broke open the game at the 12:35 mark as two free throws by Okeisha Howard (Va. Beach, VA) tied the game at 10-10. From that point, Old Dominion proceeded on a 12-3 run to end the half and enter the locker rooms with a 32-13 lead. The 13 points scored by the Pride was the lowest point total at intermission by an ODU opponent this season with the previous low of 18 against Virginia Tech (33-18) on December 21st and N.C. State (35-18) on December 30th. During the final 12:35, Hofstra connected on just one field goal and went 1-for-6 at the free throw line.
It took Hofstra just five minutes to match their first half output, coming within 22 points with the score at 48-26 with 14:51 remaining. However, ODU would build a 30-point lead, 56-26, after a Howard free throw at 12:46. The rest of game would continue in the Lady Monarch's favor as their advantage grew to as much as 40 down the stretch.
The home team shot 75 percent (18-24) in the second period en route to the 32-point blowout victory. The 32-point win was the largest victory in "The Ted" for the Lady Monarchs this season. Hofstra shot 27.8 percent from the field for the game and was 0-for-18 from beyond the arc.
Howard led all scorers with 17 points to go along with five assists. Junior forward Monique Coker (Bronx, NY) and sophomore guard Shareese Grant (Va. Beach, VA) both added 14 points as senior forward Kim Giddens (Painter, VA) had a game-high nine boards and five blocks. As a team, the Lady Monarchs had eight blocked shots and eight steals and owned a 46-37 rebounding advantage.
The Lady Monarchs eclipsed the 70-point mark for the third straight game and it is the second time this season Old Dominion has scored 80 or more points. ODU scored a season-high 90 against Hampton in the third game of the Paradise Jam back in November.
With her 17 points, Howard moved up on the ODU all-time points leaders list into 16th position, surpassing Lady Monarch legend Tichia Penicheiro (1994-98). Howard, a senior point guard, currently has 1,311 career points.
The Pride had two members in double figures. Junior guard Staceyann Claxton had a team-high 13 points along with six assists and seven steals. She was 5-of-16 from the field and shot .500 from three-point land. Hofstra's leading scorer, senior guard Jen Brickey, had 12 points.
The Lady Monarchs return to action on Friday, January 31st as they take to the court in the final non-conference match-up against the BIG EAST's Rutgers on Donna Doyle Day at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.