Nov. 16, 2007
Old Dominion vs. Charlotte Game Notes in PDF Format
ABOUT THE LADY MONARCHS: Old Dominion is looking to open up the season 3-0 and improve to 2-0 at home in Saturday's Homecoming contest against Charlotte. The Lady Monarchs have put together back-to-back wins to open the season for the first time since the 1999-2000 season. The Lady Monarchs are led by sophomore Jessica Canady, who has come off the bench the last two games to average 15.5 points, including a career-high 18 in Old Dominion's victory over East Carolina Tuesday night. In all, four Lady Monarchs are averaging double figures. On the boards, senior Shahida Williams leads the way with 8.0 rebounds per game.
ABOUT CHARLOTTE: Charlotte, who advanced to the second round of the WNIT, enters Saturday's game looking for its first win of the 2007-08 season. The 49ers are 0-4 with losses to #20 Pittsburgh (85-68), Penn State (73-67), and Arizona (86-77 overtime) in the WBCA Classic as well as a 56-62 setback to Wake Forest Thursday night. Saturday's game will be the fifth straight game on the road for the time, who will not take to the hardwood on their home court until this coming Wednesday against Hampton. Charlotte is led by Danielle Burgin, who comes to Norfolk averaging a double-double with 13.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. Sabrina Gregory is second on the 49ers in scoring averaging 9.0 points per contest. Gregory is also leading a team that is struggling from the line through the first four games of the season. While Charlotte as a whole is shooting 54.2 percent, Gregory has hit all 10 of her free throws attempted this season.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST:
ODU-CHAR
82.0 - Scoring - 66.0
.471 - Field Goal Percentage - .372
.400 - 3PT Field Goal Percentage - .273
.755 - Free Throw Percentage -.542
39.5 - Rebounds Per Game - 42.0
21.5 - Assists Per Game - 13.0
24.0 - Turnovers Per Game - 16.6
15.5 - Steals Per Game - 7.0
7.5 - Blocks Per Game - 1.0
SERIES WITH CHARLOTTE: Old Dominion is 7-3 all-time with the 49ers. The two teams have faced each other the last three straight seasons. Although the Lady Monarchs won the first two in the recent rivalry, Old Dominion fell 68-64 in their last meeting at Halton Arena in Charlotte.
LAST TIME VS. CHARLOTTE:Charlotte overcame a 16-point first half deficit and saw Old Dominion commit 32 turnovers as the Lady Monarchs fell 68-64 to the 49ers at Halton Arena on December 17, 2006. The win was Charlotte's 15th straight home victory that begun after Old Dominion defeated them in December of 2005. T.J. Jordan and sophomore Tiffany Green both posted double-doubles in the loss. Jordan added 11 points and 10 rebounds. Shahida Williams was the other Lady Monarch in double figures with 14. For the 49ers, Sabrina Gregory went 10-of-15 and a perfect 6-of-6 from the line to capture a game-high 26 points. Traci Ray was the other 49ers in double figures collecting 16. Old Dominion held a 16-point edge, 30-14, with 4:47 remaining in the first half and entered the locker room with a 34-26 lead. The second half saw the 49ers open on a 10-2 run and tie the game at 36-36 within the first three minutes of the second half. The lead quickly returned in favor of Old Dominion as the Lady Monarchs scored seven unanswered points. The Lady Monarch run started by two fast break lay-ups by Jazzmin Walters gave ODU a 43-36 edge with 13:56 remaining in the game. During the next four minutes, Charlotte would cut the Old Dominion to two, 46-44. After a 49ers miss, Old Dominion look to have regained momentum. The Lady Monarchs came down the court and had four opportunities for a bucket, but managed to retain possession after three of those misses. Jordan missed a three-point and grabbed her own rebound. Megan Pym missed two jumpers, but was able to grab her missed shot back. Then Jordan missed on another three-point attempt. After Charlotte finally managed a defensive board, Traci Ray missed a three-pointer and Old Dominion capitalized as Jordan found Sherida Triggs for a lay-up. Triggs' two points had Old Dominion up by four, 48-44, with 7:23 to go. However, momentum then swung the other way. The 49ers' Ray didn't miss her next time down the court and a fast break by Danielle Burgin erased ODU's four-point lead and gave Charlotte its first lead since early part of the first half. On the following play, Triggs would go to the line and hit two free throws, but the 50-49 lead would be the final Old Dominion would see.Charlotte scored eight points in the span of a minute to take control of the game for good. Ray would hit two more three's during that span as the 49ers held on to a 57-50 lead with 4:46 remaining. Down the stretch, Charlotte went 2-of-4 from the field and 7-of-8 from the line as the Lady Monarchs fouled to stop the clock from winding down. Old Dominion meanwhile would get no closer than four points and go 6-of-11, including three misses from downtown. Williams, who at times struggled from the line, hit two free throws to cut the ODU deficit to 64-60 with 31 seconds left. Old Dominion held a tremendous advantage on the boards, outrebounding Charlotte, 56-29, resulting in 20 second chance points for the Lady Monarchs.
STARTING ON THE RIGHT FOOT: Old Dominion has opened the season with two consecutive wins for the first time since the 1999-2000 season when the Lady Monarchs defeated Hampton as well as Clemson in the Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament in Hartford, Connecticut. The Lady Monarchs will be looking to make it three in a row Saturday night against Charlotte, a feat Old Dominion has not done since the 1998-99 season when the Lady Monarchs opened the year with five straight wins en-route to the Sweet 16.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP: Jessica Canady has shined in the first two Lady Monarch games of 2007-08 season debut. Against Middle Tennessee in the season and home opener, the lone ODU sophomore came off the bench and played a career-high 23 minutes. Netting a then career-high 13 points, she also added three steals and three blocks. Canady did not have to wait much longer to reset her career mark in points as she lead all scorers with 18 in ODU's victory at East Carolina. To date, she is averaging a team best 14.5 points per game.
HOME COURT STREAK: The Lady Monarchs have 11 straight home contests dating back to the Dec. 20, 2006, 72-55, victory over national runner-up Rutgers, ODU's last loss at the Ted Constant Convocation Center was against national champion Tennessee, 59-75, back on Dec. 22, 2006.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE:Senior T.J. Jordan has only one double-double under her belt and that came in the last game at Charlotte as Jordan collected 16 points and 10 rebounds in a
MOVING ON UP: With 19 points against the Blue Raiders in the season opener against Middle Tennessee on Nov. 10, senior guard T.J. Jordan moved into 21st on the all-time Old Dominion scoring leaders list. She currently has with 1,123 career points.
FREE POINTS: Old Dominion went to the line 35 times against Middle Tennessee in the season opener, sinking 27 shots and shooting 77.1 percent from the charity stripe. Two Lady Monarchs showed that working on free throws over the summer can certainly pay off. Junior Tiffany Green,who hit only 51 percent a year ago from the line, went 8-of-9 and senior Shahida Williams, who connected for just 49 percent last season, netted 5-of-6. Also sinking shots from the free throw line against the Blue Raiders was senior T.J. Jordan, who went 6-of-7.
REJECTED: The Old Dominion women's basketball team collected 12 blocks against Middle Tennessee on Nov. 10 to set a new team record at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. The previous record of 11 occurred against East Carolina on Nov. 21, 2006 and conference rival UNC-Wilmington on Feb. 24, 2005. Senior Shahida Williams and junior Tiffany Green led the rejections with four apiece. Williams set a new career mark in the block category while sophomore Jessica Canady tied her career mark with three swats.
WELCOME TO THE TED: Since the doors opened at the Ted Constant Convocation Center in 2002, the Lady Monarchs have enjoyed a 66-12 record.
Ranked Wins At The Constant Center:
11/25/03 - #7 Penn State - W, 75-68
12/7/03- #12/13 UNC - W, 73-68
12/5/04- #16/19 Rutgers - W, 69-61
2/25/07 - #22/25 James Madison- W, 62-57
Losses At The Constant Center:
11/22/02 - Virginia - L, 55-63
1/7/03 - #5 Tennessee - L, 63-91
1/31/03- Rutgers - L, 59-67
3/22/03- Boston College (NCAA) - L, 72-73
1/2/05- #8 Tennessee - L, 58-68
1/9/05- Delaware - L, 70-73
11/20/05 - #1/2 Duke - L, 56-93
12/4/05- #19/20 Vanderbilt - L, 77-82
12/29/05 - #5 North Carolina - L, 80-88 (OT)
3/19/06- George Washington (NCAA) - L, 72-87
11/18/06 - #21/24 Kentucky - L, 55-69
12/22/05 - #5 Tennessee- L, 59-75
TOP WBB ATTENDANCE AT THE CONSTANT CENTER
1. Tennessee 1/7/03 - 7,758
2. Virginia 11/22/02 - 7,316
3. Tennessee 12/22/06 - 7,108
4. Tennessee 1/2/05 - 7,063
5. George Washington (NCAA) 3/19/06 - 6,847
6. Rutgers 1/31/03 - 6,384
SEASON OPENERS: The Lady Monarchs are 26-13 in season openers including the 2007-08 season opening victory over Middle Tennessee on Nov. 10, 76-68. It was the Lady Monarchs first season opening victory since the 2001-02 season., a 82-26 victory over Towson welcoming the Tigers to the CAA in their first conference meeting following a move from the America East Conference. In between this year's victory over the Blue Raiders and the 2001-02 win against the Tigers, Old Dominion has fallen to Virginia (2002: 55-63; 2006: 92-72) to open up the Ted Constant Convocation Center in 2002 and the John Paul Jones Arena in 2006, #20 Colorado (2003: 67-84) at the WBCA Classic, at Georgia Tech (2004: 64-71),and #1 Duke (2005: 56-93).
HOME OPENERS: In home openers, the Lady Monarchs are 28-11 including a 3-3 mark at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Old Dominion defeated Middle Tennessee on Nov. 10 to open up the home slate with a 76-68 victory.
CAA OPENERS: Old Dominion is 16-0 in CAA openers and will open the conference season on Jan 6 at George State in a televised game. Here's how the Lady Monarchs have done in all their 16 CAA openers.
91-92 - at William & Mary W, 70-51
92-93 - at George Mason W, 81-48
93-94 - VCU W, 80-49
94-95 - at VCU W, 71-54
95-96 - at Richmond W, 79-36
96-97 - Richmond W, 89-53
97-98 - at William & Mary W, 94-53
98-99 - at UNC-W W, 104-60
99-00 - at UNC-W W, 84-65
00-01 - at UNC-W W, 74-59
01-02 - Towson W, 82-26
02-03 - UNC-WW, 71-58
03-04 - at William & Mary - W, 75-58
04-05 - at James Madison - W, 70-58
05-06 - at VCU - W, 82-62
06-07 - at VCU - W, 81-70
CAA HOME OPENERS: Old Dominion is 15-1 in CAA openers including a 3-1 mark at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Here's how the Lady Monarchs have done in their last 16 CAA home openers:
91-92 - James Madison - W, 64-62
92-93 - Richmond - W, 75-51
93-94 - VCU - W, 80-49
94-95 - James Madison - W, 68-64
95-96 - American - W, 94-39
96-97 - Richmond - W, 89-53
97-98 - Richmond - W, 80-58
98-99 - VCU - W, 80-48
99-00 - Richmond - W, 108-67
00-01 - American - W, 86-41
01-02 - Towson - W, 82-26
02-03 - UNC-W - W, 71-58
03-04 - Towson- W, 87-34
04-05 - Delaware - L, 70-73
05-06 - Hofstra - W, 71-57
06-07 - Drexel - W, 70-45
FROM DOWNTOWN: Look at the three-point records section in the ODU history book and you'll see senior T.J. Jordan's name nearly everywhere! Last season Jordan ranked fourth nationally in three-point field goals per game hitting an average of 3.1 per contest. She hit 10 three-pointers against Northeastern late last February to not only set a new ODU record for three's in a game, but it was the most three's by a Division I women's player last season. Jordan also reset the school record for three-pointers attempted in a game (22), made in a season (101), attempted in a season (283), and attempted in a career (666). The ODU three-point record left for her to break is three-pointers made in a career. The record is currently held by Aubry Eblin (1995-99) with 250 made in a career. Jordan is catching up with 241 to date.
SO WE MEET FOR THE FIRST TIME: The only team on the 2007-08 schedule the Lady Monarchs have never faced is Michigan State. The Spartans come to Norfolk on Dec. 2.
SO WE MEET AGAIN: The Lady Monarchs continue annual rivalries with Tennessee and Penn State while taking on Middle Tennessee, East Carolina, Delaware State, and Kentucky for the second straight season. It marks the third straight season ODU and Charlotte will meet on the hardwood while the Lady Monarchs return a game to Vanderbilt from the 2005-06 season.
HI MOM - I'M ON TV!: Seven Lady Monarch games will be aired, beginning on Nov. 23 with a Comcast Sportsnet broadcast with nationally ranked Connecticut from the Virgin Islands on tape delay at 11 p.m.. Old Dominion's conference games at Georgia State on Jan. 6, at Delaware on Jan. 27, and at James Madison on Mar. 2 will also be aired on Comcast Sportsnet, available on channel 35 in the Hampton Roads area. Lady Monarch games with Penn State on Nov. 29, James Madison on Jan. 13, and William and Mary on Feb. 10 will be available on WSKY-4. John Castleberry will provide the play by play along with former Lady Monarch and ODU Hall of Famer Jan Trombly on color for all the WSKY games.
THINK PINK: The annual HOOPS FOR A CURE game is slated for Feb. 10 against CAA rival William & Mary.
NEXT UP: The Old Dominion women's basketball team heads to Paradise...the Paradise Jam that is. The Lady Monarchs will be apart of a three-game tournament in St. Thomas over Thanksgiving. Play opens up against Connecticut on Friday, Nov. 23. It will be the first meeting between the Lady Monarchs and Huskies since the 2002 Elite Eight match-up. On Saturday, Nov. 24, Old Dominion will square off against Stanford, the first time these two teams have faced each other since the thrilling over time national semifinal game in 1997. One more game will await the Lady Monarchs in St. Thomas against either Duke, Purdue, or Temple, on Sunday, Nov. 25.