Searching for No. 20
January 29, 2010 06:07 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
January 30, 2010
WEST VIRGINIA GAME NOTES | LOUISVILLE GAME NOTES
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The 11th-ranked West Virginia University women’s basketball team will attempt to do something it has never done before on Saturday evening – earn its 20th victory of the season before February arrives.
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| Korinne Campbell has been WVU's top 3-point shooter this year.
Dale Sparks/All-Pro Photography |
In a season full of feats, perhaps none is more indicative of the way this year’s team has played than the aforementioned stat. In order to achieve the 20-win milestone at the earliest point in school history, WVU will have to get past reigning national-runner up Louisville tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the WVU Coliseum.
“When we get to 15 wins I know we’re going to have a winning season – that’s the first mark I like to get at,” WVU coach Mike Carey said. “Then the second one is the 20, and anything over 20 is great, but you’ve got to get it to 20 wins, especially in the Big East. If you get it to 20 in the Big East then you’ve got opportunities hopefully for the postseason.”
The contest will air on West Virginia PBS (channel 699 in Morgantown; channel 10 in Charleston/Huntington; channel 203 in Clarksburg/Wheeling/Weirton; and channel 209 in Martinsburg). It will also air on MSN women’s basketball affiliated stations with play-by-play announcer Travis Jones and color commentator Jay Jacobs on the call.
West Virginia will try to become just the third team this season to reach the 20-win plateau, with top-ranked Connecticut (20-0) and No. 4 Ohio State (21-2) already in the club. Ironically, WVU is the only team in the country with 19 wins.
WVU also looks to extend its 15-game home win streak that dates back to last year, which is currently the 11th longest in the nation. It could be a challenging task against a Cardinals (11-9, 3-4) team that undoubtedly remembers when the Mountaineers (19-2, 6-1) shocked them, 79-70, in last year’s meeting at Freedom Hall.
“There’s no doubt in my mind (coach Jeff Walz) be talking about that,” Carey said of WVU’s stunner last season. “They’re going to come in here fired up. I saw them on tape against Georgetown and it was a very physical game. That’s the way they play. He’ll have them ready to go, and we’re going to have to play much better than we did the other night against Seton Hall. Hopefully we can hit some shots and stay even with them on the boards. We’ll look to create some turnovers and get some easy opportunities on the other end.”
Louisville entered the season picked to finish third in the Big East Preseason Coaches Poll, and debuted at No. 19 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. But early in the season, the Cardinals were dealt a blow when junior Deseree’ Byrd was lost for the year due to a knee injury that had bothered her since the 2009 Big East Tournament.
“They’ve had some injuries at the guard position and they’re playing some people that normally wouldn’t be playing,” Carey added. “Their 3, 4 and 5 really concern me. They’re physical and much of their offense runs through them. We’re going to have to do a good job getting physical in the paint and rebounding.”
The Cardinals’ most consistent force has been sophomore guard Becky Burke, who is averaging a team-leading 15.8 points and has canned 48 3-pointers this season. Fellow sophomore Monique Reid, a Louisville native, has also stepped up with averages of 15.7 points and 9.1 rebounds.
“They have Burke who is a big-time shooter,” Carey mentioned. “We need to attack them also inside, because of their injuries they aren’t as deep as they have been in the past. But I’ve tried to warn our players that they are going to be very physical.”
West Virginia, which is 4-0 all-time against Louisville in regular season play, is coming off its best defensive result in school history against a conference opponent. WVU held Seton Hall to just 31 points, allowing the Mountaineers to tie for the best conference start in school history under Carey.
Junior guard/forward Korinne Campbell led WVU with 17 points and nine rebounds last game, and is 10 of 22 over her last four games from 3-point distance. Junior point guard Sarah Miles, tied for sixth nationally in assists per game, added 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a stat-stuffing performance.
Saturday's game is a "Dairy Mart Dollar Day" as fans can visit any Morgantown-area Dairy Mart to pick up a coupon good for one dollar admission to the game.
