Nov. 18, 2006
NORFOLK, Va. -- The Old Dominion women's basketball team fell to 0-2 on the season falling, 55-69, to No. 21 (AP)/24 (ESPN/USA Today) Kentucky on Homecoming Saturday at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. The Wildcats are the first of four Top 25 teams the Lady Monarchs will face during its non-conference schedule.
The Wildcats improved to 2-1 on the season and picked up their first victory in Norfolk in five trips to Hampton Roads. Old Dominion still leads the all-time series, 7-3.
In the first half, neither team enjoyed more than a five-point lead. Old Dominion led for much of the first half holding on to a 15-12 edge with 8:19 left in the half. From there Kentucky took a 7-0 run to take over a lead they would never relinquish. Old Dominion did managed to tie the game up late in the half. A T.J. Jordan (Portsmouth, Va.) lay-up with 1:36 remaining tied the game at 23-23 and the Lady Monarchs ended the half down only 27-23.
Kentucky had a hot hand in the second half. After the Lady Monarch defense held the Wildcats to just 27.3 percent shooting in half number one, Kentucky ignited for 15-of-23 to hit 65.2 percent from the floor in the second half.
Old Dominion cut the Kentucky edge down to one twice in the opening minutes of the second half, but the Wildcats bumped up their margin to eight, 27-39, with 13:16 remaining. The Lady Monarchs would only manage to widdle the Wildcat lead down to five. On the next two plays, a Jordan free-throw and a Sherida Triggs lay-up, Old Dominion got as close to the Kentucky lead, 47-42, as it would get the rest of the game.
Guards Carly Ormerod and Samantha Mahoney helped Kentucky take a 6-0 run to give the Wildcats a double digit lead it would hold on for almost the rest of the game. Senior forward Jennifer Humphrey hit two free throws giving the Wildcats its largest lead of the game, a 16-point 65-49 advantage.
Jordan was the team's leading scorer for the second straight game and the lone Lady Monarch in double figures. Jordan netted 11 with six points coming from the line. Sophomore Jazzmin Walters (Norfolk, Va.) added in nine.
Kentucky's Jenny Pfeiffer came off the Wildcat bench to lead all scorers with 22 points. The senior guard went 6-of-13 from the floor, 5-of-12 from beyond the arc, and 5-of-5 from the free throw line.
Two other Wildcats joined Pfeiffer with double digit scoring. Ormerod added in 18 points, while Mahoney poured in 12.
Old Dominion won the battle of the boards by one, 42-41. Junior Megan Pym (Newfield, N.Y.) hauled in seven rebounds in just six minutes, but missed the rest of the game will an injury. Senior Sherida Triggs (Norcross, Ga.) and Jordan each pulled down six.
Humphrey grabbed 10 boards for the Wildcats and Lydia Watkins collected 11.
Old Dominion returns to action in two home games next week. The Lady Monarchs host former CAA rival East Carolina on Tuesday, November 21st with a 7:00 p.m. tip and Delaware State on Saturday, November 25th with tip-off at 4:00 p.m.