- January 28th, 2007, 2:18 am
#56632
From Chris:
LU women move into a tie for firsthttp://newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellit ... th=!sports
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
January 28, 2007
No one could blame Radford for talking a big game heading into Saturday's showdown with Liberty at Vines Center. The Flames have looked vulnerable of late, and Radford was unbeaten in Big South games. Maybe it was time for the Highlanders to earn some respect, they reasoned. Knock off the Flames on their home floor. Take control of the conference race.
Or maybe not.
After withstanding an early second-half Radford rally, Liberty looked like its usual dominant self in a 79-66 win over the Highlanders. Liberty moved into a first-place tie with UNC Asheville, a matter that will be solved next Saturday when the teams meet at UNCA's Justice Center.
"It was a statement that this flower has not withered away," LU coach Carey Green said. "The Lady Flames are still a pretty good team."
Liberty (12-8, 4-1 Big South) didn't exactly struggle to beat young Winthrop here Monday night, but the Flames didn't look good in doing so. They turned the ball over 27 times and played sloppy, uneven basketball, leaving Radford players and coaches confident they had a good shot to snap a 14-game losing streak to the Flames.
They said as much in a Roanoke newspaper story earlier this week. Green made sure his players knew, clipping out the story and posting it on the bulletin board in the LU locker room.
"We just realized that we need to play our game," said Flames guard Megan Frazee, who scored 27 points and had seven rebounds and five steals. "Overall, I think we have a better team and I think we showed that tonight."
Frazee hit the game's biggest shot with 13:27 left, a 3-pointer that halted a Radford rally and put the Flames back in control. LU led 41-26 until Johnette Walker hit a 3-pointer to beat the halftime buzzer. The Highlanders (11-7, 3-1) opened the second half on a 12-2 run and had Liberty momentarily on its heels.
But the Flames ran a play with three options, including one with Frazee open on the left wing, and her teammates in position to rebound a miss.
"That option was open, and she did what she was supposed to do," Green said. "That's what I'm talking about there. You've got kids who stay cool, calm and collected and execute with competency."
Rebecca Lightfoot set a career high with 13 points and Moriah Frazee and Michelle Parker each scored nine for the Flames. Allyson Fasnacht, who started at point guard in place of Parker, left the game with a sprained thumb, and Green said she'd be re-evaluated next week.
Other than the opening five minutes of the second half, Liberty was pesky and sound defensively. The Flames forced 20 turnovers, scored 20 points off those miscues and led by as many 18 points late in the second half.
Liberty limited Corrie Fertitta, Radford's leading scorer and rebounder, to three points on 1 of 7 shooting and six rebounds. Kelli Darden led RU with 19 points and seven rebounds.
The loss snapped Radford's seven-game win streak and ended a 10-game run in which RU had held its opponents to less than 60 points.
"I thought in the first half, we didn't play very smart," Radford coach Jeri Porter said. "We tried to penetrate the middle a lot and there were always a lot of white jerseys standing in there. We turned it over too much.
"We just didn't make good decisions with the ball. In the second half, we played much better. We just didn't hit shots."
- By Purple Haize