December 3, 2008

RAMS’ FIVE GAME WIN STREAK SNAPPED WITH 73-60 LOSS AT UNC WILMINGTON
Moss pours in career-high 21 points
Box Score

WILMINGTON, N.C. – There is a banner that hangs in Trask Coliseum that reads “The Toughest Place to play in the CAA.”

The Virginia Commonwealth University women’s basketball learned that the hard way as the Seahawks of UNC Wilmington used a zone defense to stifle the Rams offense en route to a 73-60 victory over the Black and Gold on Sunday afternoon in Colonial Athletic Association women’s action.

The loss snaps the Black and Gold’s five-game winning streak and drops VCU’s record to 15-4 on the year and 5-2 in CAA play, while the Seahawks improve to 9-9 overall and 3-4 in conference action.

UNC Wilmington controlled right from the start as the Rams never held a lead in the contest.

A lay-up from senior Quanitra Hollingsworth (Chesapeake, Va.) and a jumper from classmate Radoslava Bachvarova (Varna, Bulgaria) brought VCU within one at 9-8 with 15:33 to play in the contest.

The Seahawks took over from there thanks to an 18-7 run capped off by six straight points from Treasure Johnson to give UNC Wilmington a commanding 27-15 advantage with 5:13 to play.

The lead would continue to grow as the Rams struggled with the zone defense of the Seahawks and another three-pointer from Johnson as time expired in the half gave the home team a 38-19 lead at the break.

UNC Wilmington would not stop coming out of the break as a three-pointer from Greta Luksyte gave the Sehawks their biggest lead of the day at 57-33 with 11:28 to play.

VCU would instill a full-court press and started to chip away at the lead with a three-pointer from junior D’Andra Moss (Atlanta, Ga.) bringing the Rams within 13 at 63-50 with 5:14 remaining in the contest.

The Seahawks would not allow the Black and Gold within single-digits thanks in part to 55.0% field-goal percentage in the second-half.

In VCU’s recent winning streak, the Rams had been holding their opponents under 55 points per game. UNC Wilmington blistered the nets all afternoon long with 53.1% from the field en route to the most points that the Black and Gold had given up since a 77-65 loss to fourth-ranked North Carolina.

Moss was the offensive star for the Rams with a career-high 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and a perfect 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. Bachvarova chipped in 16 points, while freshman Jennifer Lane (Wichita, Kan.) poured in 10 points and dished out six assists for VCU.

Johnson was the leading scorer for the Seahawks with 16 points off the bench on 4-of-7 from the field. Brittany Blackwell tallied a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Luksyte added 13 points and Sheronda McLean chipped in 10 for UNC Wilmington.