Orange Women's Hoops Concludes Regular Season at Georgetown
2/28/2005 8:54:38 PM | Women's Basketball
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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Syracuse women's basketball team will finish the 2004-05 regular season at Georgetown on March 1. The Orange will be trying to avenge a 70-56 loss at Manley Field House on Feb. 2. Tip-off at the McDonough Arena is set for 7:30 p.m.
Both teams are trying to move up in the BIG EAST standings prior to the conference tournament. SU is tied for 10th place with Pittsburgh at 4-11, while the Hoyas are tied for eighth with Seton Hall at 6-9. Syracuse took one step closer to improving its postseason position with a 51-38 win against the Pirates in its final home game of the campaign. Sophomore Lauren Kohn led a balanced SU offensive attack with 11 points, including three three-pointers. Six players scored at least five points in the win. The SU defense also had its best effort of the season, holding the Pirates to 38 points and 21.5 percent from the field, both season-lows for the Orange. Kohn is nearing a milestone at Syracuse. She is only four three-pointer shy of becoming the sixth SU player to make 100 in her career. Seniors Chineze Nwagbo and Rochelle Coleman each had solid games in their last appearances at Manley Field House. Nwagbo tallied eight points and eight rebounds, while Coleman had six points, a team-high five assists and a career-best 10 rebounds. Nwagbo is second on the Orange in scoring at 9.8 points per contest and leads the team with 7.4 rebounds per game. Coleman is SU’s third-best scorer at 7.9 points per game and is the team leader with 94 assists. Freshman Jessica Richter is SU’s top scorer at 9.9 points per contest and 12.3 points in league play. Richter has cooled a bit in the last two games with a combined six points after averaging 15.4 points per game in the Orange’s previous five. Richter and classmate Vaida Sipaviciute are the seventh and eighth SU rookies to record at least 200 points and 100 rebounds in the same season. It is the first time two players have done it in the same season since Marva Cook and Mary Schiavetta in 1979-80. Sipaviciute, the league’s top shot blocker (62), is scoring 7.7 points per game overall and 10.3 points in BIG EAST play.
Georgetown has won five of its last eight games, including its last two outings at St. John’s and versus Villanova. The Hoyas had four players score in double figures, led by Kate Carlin’s 14 points in its 62-60 win against the Wildcats. Varda Tamoulianis had a double-double fo 13 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Kieraah Marlow is the Hoyas top scorer overall and 12.8 points per game. She also leads the team with 8.6 boards per game. In BIG EAST play, the rookie is second on the team at 10.7 points per game. She notched a double-double of 20 points and 13 rebounds against SU on Feb. 2. Tamoulianis is Georgetown’s top scorer during league play at 11.1 points a game. She did not play in the first meeting with Syracuse because of a violation of team rules. Bethany LeSueur is Georgetown’s third-leading scorer at 9.4 points per game overall and 10.6 per BIG EAST contest. The Hoyas have three threats from long range, led by Carlin’s 39 three-pointers. Kristin Heidloff has made 33 and is shooting 42.9 percent from deep. Mary Lisicky, who scored 14 against the Orange in February, has 29 three-pointers and leads the team with 99 assists.
The Orange and Hoyas have split 42 all-time meetings, 21-21. SU holds a slight 19-18 advantage during BIG EAST regular season play. The Hoyas have won four straight in the series and five in a row at McDonough Arena. Ten of the last 13 meetings have been decided by less than 10 points, including three overtime games.
BIG EAST PICTURE STARTING TO COME INTO FOCUS
After Saturday’s results, it has been determined that the Orange will either be the 10th or 11th seed in next weekend’s conference tournament. If SU defeats Georgetown, the Orange will be 10th regardless of Pittsburgh’s outcome. The Orange owns the tiebreaker with the Panthers because of its victory against Villanova. If both Syracuse and Pittsburgh lose, SU will still be the 10th seed. If SU loses and Pittsburgh wins, Syracuse is the 11th seed. Syracuse's opponent in the first round is still up in the air. There are a number of scenarios in which SU could play one of four teams - Georgetown, Seton Hall, St. John'sor West Virginia. Those four teams are all within one game of each other and will occupythe sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth seeds in some order.
ROOKIE DUO REACHES MILESTONES
Freshmen Jessica Richter and Vaida Sipaviciute have accomplished something no two Orange rookies have done in 25 years. Richter and Sipaviciute are the first two SU freshmen to each score at least 200 points and grab at least 100 rebounds in the same season since Marva Cook and Mary Schiavetta in 1979-80. Richter has 258 points and 111 rebounds, while Sipaviciute has 200 points and 118 boards. In all, only eight Syracuse freshmen have reached the 200/100 marks.
