Clutch Fourth Quarter Gives Virginia Hard-Fought 73-66 Win at Boston College
This Virginia women's basketball season has been about a search for consistency. Coach Mox and her players have spoken about it being one of their main goals all year long. Failing to sustain a high level of play for four full quarters has been the primary culprit in the team's struggles this season.
In order to get a win on the road against a team that came in with a 10-3 record at home this season, nothing less than four full quarters of quality basketball were required. The Cavaliers did just that and were especially sharp down the stretch, winning the fourth quarter 19-12 as Virginia (11-12, 3-9 ACC) came away with a hard-fought and well-earned 73-66 victory at Boston College (11-14, 3-9 ACC) on Thursday night in Chestnut Hill. The win also gave UVA head coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton her 100th career victory.
As has been the case too many times this season, Virginia conceded an early run, as Boston College scored seven unanswered to take an 18-8 lead, resulting in the habitual first quarter timeout from Coach Mox. The main cause of the rough start was ball security, as the Cavaliers turned the ball over six times in the first seven minutes of the game and the Eagles scored nine points off of those takeaways.
Out of the timeout, Virginia stormed back with an 8-0 run to close the quarter. Boston College got sloppy with the ball as well and both teams ended up with seven turnovers at the end of the period. Paris Clark, who had eight points in the first quarter alone, ended the period with back-to-back layups to narrow Boston College's lead to 18-16 at the end of one.
That run became a 12-0 run for Virginia to take the lead, but Kaylah Ivey responded with a contested three-pointer that just barely beat the shot clock to end UVA's run. The Cavaliers, who were already thin in the front court with both Camryn Taylor and London Clarkson not available for the game, faced a significant challenge as two of they key available forwards - Sam Brunelle and Edessa Noyan - picked up two personal fouls in the first half. Virginia was at a significant disadvantage in fouls and free throws, as the Eagles were 12/14 from the free throw line and were called for just four fouls in the first half, while the Cavaliers were called for 11 fouls and went to the foul line only four times.
That disparity in free throws was too much for UVA to overcome despite outshooting Boston College by a significant margin. The Cavaliers shot 56.0% from the floor as compared to 36.7% for the Eagles. Olivia McGhee scored six points in the second quarter and Yonta Vaughn, who returned to the floor after missing the last five games with a concussion, scored 10 points in the second frame to keep the Cavaliers in it.
Boston College was gifted two points at the end of the half, as the shot clock buzzer went off a full second after Kaydan Lawson collected a defensive rebound. Thinking play was stopped, Lawson picked up the ball and was called for a travel, giving possession back to the Eagles with a couple of seconds left on the clock. Brunelle was then called for a questionable foul and T'Yana Todd converted both times at the free throw line to give Boston College a 37-34 lead at the half.
Fouls continued to be an issue for the Cavaliers in the second half, but the free throws were a little more even in the third quarter, with UVA going 7/8 and Boston College 8/10 from the free throw line. The Eagles led by as many as six points, but Virginia battled back thanks to seven third-quarter points from freshman Edessa Noyan, who made her first start since the season-opener. Noyan and Brunelle both picked up their third personal fouls, but remained on the floor out of necessity, while McGhee picked up her fourth personal foul in the third quarter. Kymora Johnson, who was held quiet with just two points in the first half, drew a foul with 0.3 left on the clock and made both free throws to tie the game at 54-54 heading to the fourth.
It was a brand new game to open the final period and Virginia proved to be the better team over the final 10 minutes. A layup and a transition three from Sam Brunelle gave up the Cavaliers the lead with six minutes to go and they never relinquished it. Kymora Johnson came alive in the fourth quarter and scored back-to-back buckets to cap a 7-0 Virginia run.
Boston College got back within four with two minutes to go, but Paris Clark responded with a runner to give UVA some breathing room. With 33 seconds to go, the Eagles pulled back within three on a free throw. Virginia broke the Boston College press and Sam Brunelle made two clutch free throws to push the lead back to five.
After UVA had trouble with turnovers all night, it was Boston College who committed a crucial turnover on its ensuing possession. The Cavaliers seized possession and Johnson salted the game away with a pair of free throws to seal the 73-66 victory.
Andrea Daley led all scorers with 18 points, three other Eagles scored in double figures, and Boston College scored 28 points off of 24 Virginia turnovers. But the Cavaliers' execution on the offensive end, when they weren't turning the ball over, was enough to overcome those obstacles. UVA shot 49.1% from the floor, held Boston College to 31.3% shooting, won the rebounding battle 41-33, and outscored the Eagles 38-26 in the paint.
Five UVA players scored in double figures, led by Yonta Vaughn, who had 16 points and three assists and made both of her three-point attempts. Paris Clark had 14 points and two steals and Edessa Noyan nearly had a double-double, posting a career-high 13 points on 6/8 shooting and nine rebounds. Noyan also had two blocks and two steals in what was by far the best game of her freshman season. Sam Brunelle had 10 points and eight rebounds and Kymora Johnson also had 10 points, six of which came in the fourth quarter.
Virginia will look to make it two in a row on the road when the Cavaliers travel to Winston-Salem to take on Wake Forest on Sunday at 2pm on ACC Network Extra.
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