Cold-Shooting ODU Women's Basketball Falls to UMass, 58-52, in Season Opener

By Harry Minium

NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion women’s basketball team was stone cold in its season opener Monday night, missing 50 of its 70 shots, and fell to UMass, 58-52, in the Mid-American Conference/Sun Belt Challenge at Chartway Arena.

The Monarchs missed 12 of their first 15 layups and shot just 28.6 percent for the game, and although they managed to rally to cut the lead to three in the final minutes, UMass hit some key shots down the stretch to pull away.

The game matched teams with four of their top scorers returning and each picked to finish in the upper division of their respective leagues.

If UMass had an advantage, it was that the Minutewomen had an exhibition game last week that allowed them to work out some kinks in a game that didn’t count.

ODU played no exhibition and at times, the Monarchs looked out of sorts.

“They looked like a well-oiled machine,” said DeLisha Milton-Jones, ODU’s head coach. “And we did not.”

ODU’s best player on the night was a transfer from ULM who came off the bench.

Laila Walker, a 6-foot-4 senior from Gulfport, Mississippi, who played at Jackson State and Louisiana-Monroe before transferring to ODU, made seven of eight shots to score 14 points and had nine rebounds in less than 15 minutes of playing time.

She averaged just 4.4 points and 5.8 rebounds at ULM.

“She really is,” Milton-Jones said when asked if Walker is that good.

“Sometimes in your career you can be placed in situations that almost tear away your confidence,” Milton-Jones added. “What we’re trying to do is build her confidence up here. We’re hoping she can believe in herself because she really is capable of doing that every night.”

En’Dya Buford, a first-team choice on the Preseason All-Sun Belt team, led ODU with 15 points and Simone Cunningham, a third-team choice, had seven points and 11 rebounds, including seven offensive rebounds.

Even so, ODU was outrebounded, 47-40, and lost in spite of having 20 more possessions than UMass.

ODU’s man-for-man, pressing defense was at times excellent. The Monarchs forced 22 turnovers, and when the Monarchs were particularly active, the Minutewomen simply could not find good shots.

UMass appeared on the verge of breaking the game open when Yahmani McKayle, last year’s Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Year, made a driving layup with build the lead to 18 with 2:57 left in the third quarter.

ODU then slowly fought its way back into the game.

Walker made back-to-back layups, the second off a steal, to trim the lead to 45-40 with 4:46 left in the fourth quarter. Then, with 2:55 left, Buford made a floating jump shot inside the lane to trim the lead to three, 49-46.

ODU trailed by four with 1:03 left when UMass guard Allie Palmieri, who transferred from Seton Hall, made a three-pointer that salted the victory away.

ODU had superior depth as the Monarchs used 14 players while UMass used eight.

Milton-Jones was particularly disappointed with the first half, in which the Monarchs scored 19 points. ODU had 22 points in the third quarter alone.

“To score 19 points in a half, that’s something we should be able to do in a quarter,” Milton-Jones said. “And we did it in the third quarter.

"For us to have 20 more possessions than our opponent and not convert on it, that's a problem for me. 

"But it was satisfying to see that we were down by 18 and able to get back into the game. I'm impressed that our defense can do what it does.

"We'll learn from this game and get better."

ODU next hosts Elizabeth City State Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Chartway Arena and then hosts Delaware on Wednesday, Nov. 12.