March 19, 2006
NORFOLK, Va. (AP) - Staying home didn't help Old Dominion end an NCAA tournament losing streak, and going on the road didn't intimidate George Washington a bit.
Sarah-Jo Lawrence scored 20 points and the Colonials held off a desperate rally by the host Lady Monarchs 87-72 Sunday in the first round of the Cleveland Regional. No. 7 seed George Washington (23-8) advanced to play Tennessee on Tuesday night.
The loss was the fifth in a row in the tournament for 10th-seeded Old Dominion (21-9), and marked the second time it couldn't end the skid with the first round at the Constant Convocation Center. The Lady Monarchs also lost here 73-72 to Boston College in 2003.
This time, the 15-time Colonial Athletic Association champions did it to themselves, or at least served as far too generous hosts for the Atlantic 10 regular-season champions, turning the ball over 15 times in a disastrous first half.
The sloppiness started with George Washington leading 12-11, and ended with the Colonials ahead 40-18 and the Lady Monarchs in desperation mode.
That didn't change after the break as Old Dominion was forced to push the ball inside against the taller, stronger Colonials and got mixed results.
With the crowd trying to help, Old Dominion trimmed its deficit to single digits for the first time since the first half with 5:06 left. It got as close as seven twice in the final 2:13, but the Colonials held onto the ball, and the victory.
Old Dominion finished with 20 turnovers leading to 23 Colonials points. George Washington also shot 58 percent and scored 56 of its points close to the basket.
Kimberly Beck added 15 points and 13 assists for the Colonials, Whitney Allen had 13 and sisters Jessica and Jazmine Adair both had good afternoons. Jessica had 14 points on 5-for-5 shooting, and Jazmine had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Shahida Williams led Old Dominion with 19 points, Lawona Davis had 17, with all but two coming in the second half, and Sherida Triggs 15 and seven rebounds.