Two wins for Virginia in two nights

We're still marveling over what might be the best women's basketball game of the season Monday night when Virginia snagged away a nailbiter from North Carolina. (Following that up with a dressed-in-pink arena in Oklahoma, where the Sooners gave UConn a scare wasn't too shabby, either.) It seems that so many games this season we've looked forward to have disappointed due to shooting numbers that linger around 30 percent. UNC/Virginia was a riveting back-and-forth game that wasn't in the bag until the final, final, final buzzer. It was the kind of event that could turn non-traditional women's basketball fans into loyalists.

Tuesday's result:



No. 18 Virginia 81, Longwood 40
Yes, you do remember correctly. Virginia (20-6) has played 90 minutes of basketball in a little over 24 hours. Fresh off a double OT win over North Carolina, the Cavaliers were back at it again against the Lancers (7-18). Noted Virginia forward Telia McCall, “We need to get ready for the tournament and we might have to play back-to-back games, so we needed this.” Monica Wright had a breather for most of the night (13 points in 16 minutes) as, no surprise, the Cavaliers shot 51 percent. A nod to Longwood freshman Chelsea Corward for her 18-point effort.