WVU Battles Marquette
February 14, 2009 06:02 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
February 14, 2009
GAME NOTES
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Coming off two straight conference victories, the West Virginia University women’s basketball team looks to continue its solid play against Marquette on Sunday, Feb. 15, in Milwaukee, Wis. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET.
The Mountaineers (14-9, 3-7 Big East) appear to be playing their best basketball since conference play began on Jan. 4, defeating then-No. 5 Louisville and Providence in their last two matchups. Setting the tone on defense, where WVU is giving up 64.2 points in Big East play, will be the key once again against a Marquette squad that should be energized on its fourth annual PINK OUT.
“They are a very good team with a great atmosphere,” Coach Mike Carey said of the Golden Eagles (13-11, 4-6). “They’ll have a great crowd there. They have some post players inside who are aggressive, but their guards do most of their scoring. Their guards take at least 60 percent of their shots. We’ll have to defend the perimeter and keep their big post players off the boards.”
Shouldering the scoring load for the Mountaineers is versatile guard Sarah Miles. The reigning Big East Player of the Week merited her recent honor by scoring 19 points and grabbing eight boards in a 59-50 victory over the Friars last Tuesday. Also stepping up in the backcourt is senior Ashley Powell, who is averaging 11 points and seven assists in her last two games.
Adding to WVU’s valuable backcourt are perimeter players Liz Repella and Takisha Granberry. Repella and Granberry are tied for the team lead with 15.4 points per game, while Miles rounds out the double figure scorers with 12.7 points.
Against Providence, center Natalie Burton showed a strong post presence as she grabbed eight rebounds. The Mountaineers will rely on her and a host of other players to keep the Golden Eagles off the glass.
“We believe we can run with their big girls. To do that, you have to keep them off the foul line and we have to rebound. If we can do that then we can run with them,” Carey added.
The Golden Eagles have been competitive in the Big East. They boast two double figure scorers in Angel Robinson (14 points) and Krystal Ellis (12.5), while averaging 66.6 points as a team.
Marquette owns two resume-building home wins this season, defeating both No. 22 Notre Dame (85-75) on Jan. 13 and Gonzaga (80-77) on Nov. 28. The Golden Eagles have lost two straight games entering Sunday’s contest, recently falling to Villanova in a low-scoring 46-45 affair.
One key advantage for Marquette is its depth. It has 10 players averaging above 13 minutes per game, with Robinson topping the list at only 27.6 minutes. Plagued by four season-ending injuries, the Mountaineers continue with their eight-player rotation and have received tremendous efforts from guards Alex Sanabria and Dominique Dixon as well as forward Cynthia Fullard.
“They play about 9-10 people,” Carey said of Marquette’s depth. “They’ll rotate them in and out of there. They have two freshmen starting at the post. Even at the guard positions they have a lot of shooters come in.”
With a limited amount of players available, Carey took advantage of WVU’s four-day break by giving his team more time away from practice than usual.
“We gave them two days off this week. During the year, if we have a period of time where we’re not playing, I’ll give them two days off,” Carey admitted. “I was looking at the schedule and this was the perfect time. Friday was the first day we’ve practiced since the last game. It still gives us two days to prepare for Marquette.
“We should some have some confidence. We’re playing better as a team, and even if someone isn’t making their shots, we have other people stepping up right now.”
With only six games left before the start of the Big East Tournament, Carey admits that the team has focused on what it needs to do to gain eligibility for the postseason and better its seed for the Big East Tournament. Although some coaches prefer to look at it game by game, Carey believes the team needs to channel its focus on putting itself in the most favorable position as the regular season ends.
“We have to worry about the postseason right now,” Carey stated. “We can’t wait until the last two games or the start of the Big East Tournament. These next six games are very important because we need to get some wins. We’re going to go into every game trying to win, and hopefully we can get some more wins.”
