Dec. 28, 2009

Box Score

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Samford women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought contest at 20th-ranked Virginia, 69-60, Monday evening in the first round of the Marriott Cavalier Classic at John Paul Jones Arena.

"I was very pleased with the way our team played tonight," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "We competed, we got tougher and we became more competitive today against the 20th-ranked team in the country. I was pleased with our team's effort, attitude and toughness today."

Samford drops to 8-5 with the loss, and the Bulldogs will take on Cornell in the consolation game of the tournament Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. (CT). Virginia improves to 8-3 with the win, and the Cavaliers will take on Liberty in the championship game Tuesday at 6 p.m. (CT).

"I think this is one of the first games, besides the Chattanooga game, that we played the way we are capable of playing," Morris said. "Even though we made mistakes, we competed, we battled and we were mentally tough. I hope this is the start of how we are going to approach and play the rest of the season."

Samford was led by junior guard Emily London with 18 points and six rebounds. Senior guard Monica Maxwell had 14 points and five rebounds, while senior guard Megan Wilderotter scored 11 points in the loss.

Virginia was led by Monica Wright with 28 points and nine rebounds. Chelsea Shine and Simone Egwu added nine points apiece for the Cavaliers.

In the first half, Virginia jumped out to an early 9-2 lead with 15:17 to go in the half. With the Cavaliers leading, 16-8, Samford went on an 8-0 run to tie the score at 16-16 with 8:37 to go in the half after a three-pointer by Maxwell.

Virginia answered with a 12-0 run of its own to take a 28-16 lead with 5:47 to go in the first half. With Virginia leading, 32-18, Samford went on a 13-1 run to cut the lead to two at 33-31 with 22.1 seconds to go in the half after a pair of free throws by Paige Anderson. A late jumper by Virginia's Wright gave the Cavaliers a 35-31 lead heading into halftime.

Virginia pushed its lead out to 11 early in the second half at 45-34 with 16:51 to go in the game. With the Cavaliers leading, 49-41, Virginia scored the next six points to push its lead out to 14 at 55-41 with 11:53 to go in the game.

Samford answered with an 8-0 run to cut the Virginia lead to six at 55-49 with 10:04 to go after a three-pointer by Savannah Hill. After the Cavaliers pushed their lead back out to 10 at 59-49, Samford went on an 11-4 run to cut the lead to three at 63-60 with 3:27 left in the game after a three-pointer by London. Virginia, however, scored the final six points in the game to come away with the 69-60 win.

For the game, Samford out-rebounded Virginia, 32-31. The Bulldogs committed 27 turnovers to Virginia's 16 turnovers.

Samford's consolation-game matchup with Cornell is scheduled for a 3:30 p.m. (CT) start. Fans can follow the game live on the internet via Live Stats and the following link: Live Stats for Marriott Cavalier Classic