By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
Missing two guards in the rotation, William & Mary had little room for error against the University of Virginia Thursday night. After a promising start, the Tribe made too many mistakes to keep pace.
Done in by a stretch of nearly 18 minutes in which it scored only six points, W&M saw its three-game winning streak end with a 60-44 loss in Charlottesville. The Tribe (4-3) shot 26 percent from the floor and went 5-of-21 from deep with only 10 available players.
The Tribe trailed 28-18 at halftime but gave up the first 12 points of the third quarter. U.Va. led 60-34 before W&M closed with a 10-0 run.
"They're bigger and more athletic than we are, and they took us out of any sort of rhythm offensively," W&M coach Ed Swanson said. "I was real proud of our defensive effort … but unfortunately, basketball has another side of the court. They did a good job of speeding us up.
"Our halftime thought was that we didn't play well offensively and we're down 10. Unfortunately, at the start of the third quarter, they went on a run that we needed to get back in the game."
The Tribe was playing without starting guard Riley Casey and backup Chaniqwa Gilliam. Casey, the team's leading scorer at 14 points a game, missed her second consecutive game with a lower body injury. Gilliam was injured in Monday's home win over Hampton University.
"They're two guards who can handle the basketball, and that was huge," Swanson said. "Kate Sramac played the point a little bit, and that was her first time doing that. Hat's off to her. We had her playing the four against George Mason, and she's playing the one tonight.
"Rhythm offensively is a huge part of any team's success. When you're missing some key pieces, that hinders it."
Four players scored seven points each to led the Tribe — freshmen Ruthie Montella and Dani McTeer, sophomore Rebekah Frisby-Smith and junior Bre Bellamy. Ava Stevenson and Sydney Wagner had six each.
With two starters listed at 6-foot-2, Virginia used its size well. Camryn Taylor and London Clarkson combined for 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting and 17 rebounds. But it was 5-10 guard Amandine Toi who did the most damage with 18 points, 12 coming on 3-pointers in seven attempts.
The night started well for William & Mary, which made four of its first eight shots and took a 12-11 lead on Montella's free throw with 4:21 remaining in the opening quarter. But the Tribe missed its final seven shots, went 2-of-13 in the second quarter, and trailed 28-18 going into halftime.
Even with 21-percent shooting and 11 turnovers, W&M was hanging around. Until, that is, the Cavaliers scored the first 12 points of the third quarter and took a 40-18 lead less than 3½ minutes in.
NEXT UP: William & Mary will return to Kaplan Arena to host Old Dominion (5-2) Sunday at 2 p.m. The Lady Monarchs have won three in a row, the latest a 61-51 victory at Stetson.
