Walters stands tall against Virginia

Something about the University of Virginia's navy blue and orange uniforms seems to bring out the best in Old Dominion women's basketball player Jazzmin Walters.

Walters, at 5-2 the smallest player on the floor, scored a career-high 24 points and handed out four assists last night as the Lady Monarchs jolted the No. 16-ranked Cavaliers 78-70 and scrubbed considerable luster from Virginia's Monday night conquest of No. 5-ranked Tennessee.

"It's nothing about Virginia, really," Walters said. "I approach every game the same. It's just that sometimes I'm a little more effective on the offensive end -- and tonight was one of those times."

Walters' previous career high, 17 points, occurred against Virginia in last season's NCAA Tournament. The tiny point guard from nearby Lake Taylor High School buried a 3-pointer with 4.8 seconds remaining in that game to lift the Lady Monarchs to an epic 88-85 overtime victory.

"I thought about that game" prior to last night's contest, Walters said. "I thought back to how bad I wanted it then and I thought about how bad I wanted this one tonight."

Her teammates must have shared her thoughts. Post player Tiffany Green and forward Jessica Canady delivered formidable double-doubles for the Lady Monarchs (3-1). Green rang up 20 points and 12 rebounds; Canady, 16 and 14. Green harvested 10 of her rebounds beneath the offensive glass.

Cavaliers coach Debbie Ryan said her club's performance, at times listless, at other times out of focus, may have been a function of a lingering hangover from Monday's 83-82 victory on Tennessee's home floor. Virginia led only once, at 2-0, after scoring on its first possession. The Cavaliers hurt themselves by committing 21 turnovers and sending the Lady Monarchs to the free-throw line 40 times.

Said Ryan: "They were coming off a 30-point loss (to Texas) and we were coming off a win over Tennessee and that explains a lot, right there. They were very, very well-prepared. They were out to prove something, and they did. Us?" She shrugged. "We used a lot of young players tonight and we just didn't get the same hard, cohesive, energetic play that we got the other night."

Green was asked if the No. 25 Lady Monarchs did, in fact, compete with a something-to-prove mindset. Her smile was sly.

"Did it look like we did?"

The Cavaliers (2-1) trailed by eight at intermission. They rallied in the second half behind junior guard Monica Wright, who scored 19 of her 23 points after the break. Virginia closed to two behind on three occasions, the last with 41/2 minutes remaining, but was never able to finish the job.

Two culprits -- inconsistent perimeter defense and frantic decision-making -- were largely responsible.

Said Ryan: "We just didn't have it tonight. We made decisions (with the ball) that I've never seen us make before -- not even in practice."

Old Dominion, boisterously aggressive from start to finish, outworked and outhustled the Cavaliers beneath the backboards. Virginia senior Aisha Mohammed, one of the ACC's most physical post players, finished with 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting, but did not leave an imprint on the game. She was limited to 23 minutes by foul trouble. When she played, she attracted ODU defenders the way a magnet attracts iron filings. She finished with only four rebounds, only one of which came beneath the offensive glass.

Virginia plays host to Colorado on Monday. ODU visits Michigan State on Wednesday.
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