Villanova Leads Syracuse Women's Hoops, 31-22, at Halftime
1/26/2004 2:42:57 PM | Women's Basketball
VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Orangewomen basketball team is attempting to stop a two-game losing streak at Villanova, but the Wildcats lead, 31-22, at halftime.
All of Syracuse's scoring has come from three players. Junior Chineze Nwagbo and senior Julie McBride each have eight points, and freshman Lauren Kohn has six points.
Villanova held a 10-9 edge midway through the half. The Wildcats went on an 18-5 run, including three triples, over the next 4:43 to take a 28-14 lead. McBride scored all eight of her points, and SU's last eight points, over the final 2:30 of the half, including a 26-foot jumper with 0.3 seconds on the clock.
After starting the conference season 3-1, the Orangewomen have lost two straight games at home to Notre Dame and West Virginia. Syracuse is currently 2-0 on the road in BIG EAST play, winning games at Pittsburgh and Providence. The Orangewomen have not won their first three conference games away from Manley Field House since the 1989-90 season. SU has won three consecutive road league games only four times in school history, including last year’s stretch of victories at Boston College, Miami and St. John’s. Villanova currently has an eight-game home winning streak, including seven straight victories this season.
Senior guard Julie McBride made history in SU’s last game versus West Virginia, taking over first place on the Syracuse all-time assist list. McBride now has 534 career assists, passing Raquel Nurse’s total of 530. McBride scored a game-high 19 points and had seven assists, five rebounds and a steal against the Mountaineers. Junior center Chinze Nwagbo recorded her fourth double-double in six league games, racking up 17 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Rochelle Coleman added nine points and six boards.
More records may be in the future for McBride. She moved into second place on the SU career free throws made ledger with 310. She is only 10 more freebies away from bumping Shannon Perry’s total of 319 out of the top spot. McBride is also within shouting distance of the Orangewomen’s all-time career scoring and three-pointers made records. She currently has 1,440 career points, just 87 short of passing Felisha Legette (1,526) for the all-time lead. Her 214 career threes is 13 shy of passing Jaime James (226) for most ever by an Orangewoman.
McBride is among the BIG EAST scoring leaders at 17.3 points per game. She also leads the Orangewomen with 4.6 assists per contest and 23 steals. McBride has keyed SU’s two conference road wins, averaging 19.0 points, 5.5 assists and shooting 15-of-27 from the floor (55.6 percent). Nwagbo is SU’s second-leading scorer at 9.4 points per game. She leads the team in rebounding at 7.3 per contest. The 6-0 junior has been a force in BIG EAST play, averaging a double-double of 15.2 points and 10.0 rebounds in SU’s six conference games. Nwagbo has scored in double figures in a career-best seven consecutive games. She has already surpassed her career double-double total this season with five. She had three in her first two seasons of play. Freshman guard Lauren Kohn, a two-time BIG EAST Freshman of the Week, is scoring 9.3 points per contest. Kohn leads the Orangewomen with 38 three-pointers, the third-most ever by a Syracuse freshman. She is also SU’s most accurate long-range shooter at 36.2 percent. Coleman and junior Sarah Wegrzynowicz round out SU’s top scorers at 7.7 and 6.1 points per game, respectively. Coleman ranks fifth on SU’s all-time three-point shooting chart and is just four away from reaching the 100 mark for her career.
After a 10-1 start, including a 10-game winning streak following a season-opening loss versus LSU, Villanova has split its six league games. The Wildcats lost their last time out, 38-36, at Notre Dame. Harry Perretta’s squad has won eight straight home games, including seven this season, and are 3-0 at home during BIG EAST play with wins against Miami, Rutgers and Seton Hall.
Liad Suez leads the squad, averaging 13.3 ponts per game. She is the Wildcats’ biggest threat from behind the arc, hitting 36 three-pointers. Point guard Courtney Mix is socring 7.8 points per game and handing out a team-best 4.6 assists per contest. Mix is very efficient with the ball, amassing an amazing 5-to-1 assist to turnover ratio (78 assist/15 turnovers). In fact, the Wildcats as a team lead the nation in fewest turnovers at 9.5 per game. Mix is also the Wildcats’ leading rebounder at 7.6 boards per game.
The number 60 will play a big role in determining the outcome of this matchup. Villanova is 9-0 this season when scoring at least 60 points in a game, while the Orangewomen are 6-0 this season when holding opponents to less than 60 points. SU and Villanova also rank 1-2 in the BIG EAST in three-pointers attempted at 25.8 and 20.1 per game, respectively.
Villanova leads the all-time series with the Orangewomen, 32-11, including a 27-9 advantage in BIG EAST regular-season play. The Wildcats have won four of the last five meetings overall and seven straight on their home floor versus Syracuse. SU’s last win at Villanova was on February 27, 1994. The Wildcats won last year’s meeting, 71-44, at Manley Field House.
