Virginia Tech stuns UNC

On a night when the CAA schedule was full, Virginia Tech stole the thunder with a monster win over 10th-ranked North Carolina.

Virginia Tech 79, No. 10 North Carolina 64:
Rank this as the defining victory of the Beth Dunkenberger era. Tech (11-5, 1-1 ACC) hadn't beaten a ranked team since 2006, hadn't beaten a Top 10 team since 1998 (Duke) and hadn't beaten the Tar Heels since 1984 (Dunkenberger was 0-7 vs NC). Five Hokies scored in double figures led by Lindsay Biggs' 19; Nikki Davis added 11 assists. NC didn't resemble the traditional Tar Heels, producing just eight fastbreak points. Perhaps it was UConn hangover (Tar Heels fell by 41 to Huskies on Saturday), but UNC had an abysmal night. Tar Heels shot 12-of-24 from the foul line and Cetera DeGraffenreid's connected on 1 of 11 shots.

William and Mary 74, Northeastern 65:
Katherine DeHenzel starts the game with a pair of 3s and buries three more en route to a career-high 20 points (makes us forgive those seven turnovers on her stat line). God love Taysha Pye, too (she scored 14), but she matched DeHenzel in giveaways. Tribe (9-6, 2-2 CAA) comes up big on the boards, though (plus 11) and Tiffany Benson records the 28th double-double of her career. Loss spoils a terrific night from Kenda Walton, who nailed 7 of her 9 three-pointers, tying a single-game school record. Walton, who averages 11.4 ppg, scored a career-best 23.

Old Dominion 79, George Mason 49:
ODU wins CAA game by 30. That's not exactly stop the presses. But it is this season when winning large hasn't been a luxury for the Lady Monarchs (5-9, 3-1 CAA), but tonight a season-low 11 turnovers and a pair of 11-0 runs in both halves helped the cause. Jasmine Parker battled foul trouble all night but scored five points with five assists. But ODU's balance made up for it. Shadasia Green and Tia Lewis returned to form, combining for 25 points. And what a confidence boost for rookie point Carolann Cloutier, who came off the bench to score 11 (3-of-4 from behind the arc). ODU might be getting the hang of this, but wait. They're headed to James Madison on Sunday. GMU, meanwhile, drops to 7-8, 0-4 CAA.

James Madison 72, Towson 68 OT:
Down seven with 2:39 left in regulation, Dukes claw their way back with the obvious - Dawn Evans hits a pair of 3s to bring them back, including the one to tie it with 54 seconds left. Shanae Baker-Brice was the high scorer of the night with 32, but Evans' 30 (that's 30 for the 13th time in her career) got the job done for JMU. (An aside, Evans had a career-high nine rebounds.) Baker-Brice became the Tigers' all-time leading scorer with 1,557 career points.


Virginia Commonwealth 76, Georgia State 60:
Call this the "we won it for La'Tavia Rorie" game. The senior ended her collegiate career in devastating fashion Sunday with the all-too-common ACL tear. In her absence, Kita Waller and D'Andra Moss combined for 46 points to keep VCU perfect in the CAA (11-4, 4-0). The Rams shot better from 3 (62 percent) than from the field (52 percent). Panthers, meanwhile, shoot even better from the field (53 percent) but fail to hit a 3. Rams score 30 off 22 turnovers to win their sixth straight.