Jan. 1, 2013
MIDWEEK RUNDOWN
Wednesday, Jan. 2 - 3:00 p.m.
Pittsburgh (8-4) at Old Dominion (9-2)
Ted Constant Convocation Center (8,600) - Norfolk, Va.
94.1 ESPN Radio
Play-by-play: Tony Mercurio
Color: Susan Montgomery
Wednesday Live Stats: Gametracker
Wednesday Live Audio/Video: ODUSports.com
ODU Game Notes
Pittsburgh Game Notes
NORFOLK, Va. - The Old Dominion University women's basketball team wraps their non-conference slate on Wednesday as they square off with Pittsburgh in their first game of 2013 at 3 p.m. at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.
WRAPPING UP 2012
Old Dominion closes out 2012 with a 9-2 record and is ranked in the top 25 nationally out of 343 teams in the following categories: 19th in Three-Point FG % Defense (.240), 20th in Turnover Margin (6.45) and 23rd in Assists Per Game (17.0).
The Lady Monarchs sit atop the CAA standings at 9-2 on the season. Following ODU is Delaware (8-3) and Georgia State (8-3) along with Drexel (7-4).
The Lady Monarchs are off to an 9-2 start for the first time since the 1998-99 season.
LEAGUE LEADERS
The Lady Monarchs were ranked atop the CAA in the following categories per game on Dec. 30: Scoring Offense (67.4), Scoring Margin (+14.0), Assists (17.0) and Turnover Margin (+6.5) while ranked second in Assist/ Turnover Ratio (1.0), Blocked Shots (4.6) and Field Goal % (.425). The Lady Monarchs have forced 263 turnovers in 11 games this year (23.9 per game).
SERIES HISTORYWednesday’s meeting will be the fourth meeting ever between Old Dominion and Pittsburgh. The teams last met in 1984 with ODU coming out on top 98-64 in the Wildcat Inviational. In their only previous meeting in Norfolk, ODU won 97-55 in 1979.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Pittsburgh comes in at 8-4 overall following a 91-77 win on Dec. 29 at Buffalo. Head Coach Agnus Bernato is in his 10th year at the helm of the Panther program and became Pitt’s all-time winningest coach with a win over Mount St. Mary’s with her 159th win with the Panthers on Dec. 20.
Junior Asia Logan powers the Panthers with 15.8 points per contest and 7.7 rebounds per game. Sophomore Brianna Kiesel averages 14.3 points per game while adding 35 assists and 21 steals. The win at Buffalo was Pittsburgh’s first on the road this season. The Panthers dropped three of their first four games in December before winning their last two contests. Wednesday’s game is their final non-conference contest.
Pitt enters its 2012-13 season as one of the youngest teams in NCAA Division I, fielding a squad comprised of no seniors. Pitt returns four starters and nine letterwinners from a team that held the distinction as being the youngest squad in NCAA Division I last year. Pitt finished with an 8-22 overall record in 2011-12.
In a vote of the league’s 15 coaches, Pitt was voted tied for 13th with Seton Hall, with 31 total points each in the BIG EAST preseason poll.
LAST TIME OUT
ODU rode Shae Kelley’s second career double-double along with an 11-0 run to start the second half to defeat South Carolina State on Dec. 29 in their final game of 2012.
After holding just a five point halftime lead, Kelley took over in the second half as she scored 20 points while putting up career highs of 14 rebounds and four blocks to power the Lady Monarchs.
After holding a 34-29 advantage at half, ODU went on a quick run to open the lead up to as many as 25 points midway into the second half as the Lady Monarchs shot 48.5 percent from the field after halftime.
ODU raked in a season-high 48 rebounds and scored 49 points in the paint against South Carolina State while earning a 21-3 advantage in fast break points. The Lady Monarchs got points from 10 of the 11 players that saw action on Saturday.
BAREFOOT PRINTS
ODU head coach Karen Barefoot enters her 14th year as a head coach in 2012-13 and 200 plus wins in her career as she leads the Lady Monarch program in year two. As head coach at the Apprentice School in 2001, she led the Builders to a National Championship in the school's first ever women's sport while taking Lenoir-Rhyne the NCAA Tournament in the 2002-03 season. In 2010-11 while at Elon, she led the Phoenix to the WBI, the schools first ever women's basketball tournament appearance. The last time that ODU made the NCAA Tournament was in 2008 when Barefoot was an assistant coach for the Lady Monarchs and helped them make the Sweet 16.
HOLIDAY SPIRIT
The team paid a visit just before Thanksgiving to the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughter (CHKD) to spend time with patients. In addition, the Lady Monarchs are also participating in the Operation Christmas Child project this year.
Redshirt senior Mairi Buchan is the Vice President of SAAC at ODU and spearheaded the campaign for the upcoming holiday period that all student-athletes could help people less privileged by filling a minimum of two boxes that included anything from toys to bath soap (items that children in underprivileged areas or war-torn countries may not have easy access to). The goal is to give the children something to smile about in what may be a difficult time for them.
KAREN BAREFOOT SHOW
The Karen Barefoot Coach's Shows continue to pack the house at YNot Pizza in the Village behind the Ted. Joined by host Doug Ripley, Barefoot reviews the previous week's game and gives insight into the upcoming Lady Monarch matchups all season long. The next show is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 8th at 6 p.m.
LADY MONARCHS INK TWO
Coach Barefoot announced the addition of Odegua Oigbokie and Destinee Young who signed letters of intent to play for the Lady Monarchs next fall on Nov. 14.
Oigbokie is a highly touted forward from Ridgeway High School in Memphis, Tenn., while Young is a power forward out of Hoffman Estates High School in Hoffmann Estates, Ill.
Oigbokie, who is 6-foot-1, averaged 18 points and eight rebounds as a junior and has been named all-district and all-region for Ridgeway the past two seasons. Young, who is also 6-foot-1, averaged 15.4 points and 11 rebounds as a junior at Hoffman Estates High School, where she already is the record holder for career rebounds and single-season blocks.
Out of the five recruits that second-year head coach Karen Barefoot has landed at ODU, four have been rated as three stars or better by ESPN. The other three were local freshmen guards Galaisha Goodhope out of Norfolk and LaQuanda Younger of Newport News and forward Chelisa Painter from Chesapeake who is sitting out this season after transferring from George Washington.
NEWCOMERS
Head Coach Karen Barefoot added three freshmen this season in local talented guards Galaisha Goodhope and LaQuanda Younger along with center Brittany Martin out of the New York. Transferring in are forward Shae Kelley and Miami (FL) transfer guard Stephanie Gardner. The incoming class is ranked the best in the CAA and No. 42 in the country overall.
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