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March 22, 2000
NCAA Tournament
Sweet Sixteen – Mideast Region
March 25 & 27, 2000
The Pyramid (20,142)
Memphis, Tenn.
Radio: WINA 1070 AM
TV: ESPN
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Cavaliers surprised basketball pundits by advancing to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since the 1997 season with their 74-70 win over 17th-ranked Boston College on Sunday. Most predictors gave the nod to Boston College to advance to the Sweet Sixteen in Memphis. The Cavaliers won on the strength of their defense, shutting down the Eagle’s strong perimeter play and allowing only 14 points from the top two scorers who averaged a combined 29.5 points per game.
This is Virginia’s 12th trip to the Sweet Sixteen. Virginia will face second-ranked and number one seed Tennessee in the Regional semifinal game. This will be the 11th meeting between the two teams, the ninth in postseason tournament action. Virginia has not been to the Sweet Sixteen since they lost to Stanford in the West Region semifinal in Missoula, Mont. in 1997. The Cavaliers have not won a regional semifinal game since 1996 when they defeated Old Dominion 72-60 in East Region in 1996 and then faced Tennessee and subsequently lost to the Volunteers in the East Region championship game played on the Cavaliers’ home court.
Virginia vs. Tennessee
Virginia and Tennessee will meet for the 11th time and the eighth time in postseason play. The Vols hold a 9-1 advantage in the series and are 7-1 vs. the Cavaliers in AIAW and NCAA Tournament play.
Three games in particular stand out in the memories of both programs the 1990 East region final in which the Cavaliers posted their only win over the Vols, 79-75 in overtime, to advance to the Final Four in Knoxville, the 1991 national championship game in New Orleans in which Tennessee defeated Virginia 70-67 in overtime to win the title, and the 1996 East Region championship game in which Tennessee stormed back from a 17-point deficit to defeat the Cavaliers on their home floor and advanced to the Final Four.
The series dates back to the 1981 season and the teams have played five games on neutral courts with Tennessee holding a 4-1 advantage at neutral sites. Only two games have been played during the regular season.
Tennessee has knocked Virginia out of the NCAA Tournament seven times and have won four of their six national championships when playing Virginia in the tournament.
Saturday, March 25
#1 Tennessee vs. #4 Virginia 11:00 a.m. (Central time)
#2 Notre Dame vs. #3 Texas Tech to follow
Monday, March 27
Regional Championship Game TBA
Virginia In The NCAA Tournament
Virginia makes its 17th straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Only Tennessee and Louisiana Tech have more consecutive appearances in the Big Dance 19 straight years. The Cavaliers have competed in the NCAA Tournament every year since 1984. Two other teams, Georgia and Old Dominion, have been to the NCAA Tournament 17 times, but not in consecutive years.
This is the fourth time that Virginia has been placed in the Mideast Region. Virginia was the number six seed in 1985 and the third seed in 1987 and 1994. When playing in the Mideast Region, the Cavaliers are 5-3 and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen once (1994).
All-Time NCAA Record
Virginia is 29-16 in the NCAA Tournament (.644). Below is the breakdown of how the Cavaliers have fared round-by-round:
| first round: | 6-4 | ||
| second round: | 12-1 | ||
| regional semi’s | 7-4 | (Sweet Sixteen) | |
| regional finals | 3-4 | (Elite Eight) | |
| semifinal game | 1-2 | ||
| championship game | 0-1 |
Matching Up Virginia vs. Tennessee
| Virginia | Tennessee | |||
| Scoring | 72.6 | 81.3 | ||
| Points Allowed | 65.0 | 63.3 | ||
| Rebounds | 36.9 | 41.8 | ||
| Rebound Margin | -1.3 | +9.0 | ||
| FG % | .440 | .460 | ||
| FG% defense | .381 | .419 | ||
| 3-pt FG % | .333 | .374 | ||
| 3-pt FG/game | 5.3 | 5.2 | ||
| FT % | .693 | .694 | ||
| Assists | 14.4 | 15.2 | ||
| Turnovers | 17.3 | 16.8 | ||
| Blocks | 3.5 | 3.1 | ||
| Steals | 8.8 | 11.5 |
Volunteer Connection at Virginia
The Cavaliers have a Tennessee connection on their bench this season. Assistant coach Nikki Caldwell is in her first year with the Virginia program and is a former player and administrator for the Tennessee Vols. She joined the Virginia staff last summer.
Caldwell, a stand-out guard who played for the Vols from 1990-94, served as Graduate Assistant for Administration for the Lady Vols program. She was a member of the Tennessee NCAA Championship team that defeated Virginia in 1991. As a freshman, she was named to the All-SEC Rookie team and during her career and was a two-time recipient of the Gloria Ray Leadership Award.
Quarles Leads Cavs in NCAA First and Second Rounds
Telisha Quarles sparked Virginia to its victories in the first and second round NCAA tournament games last weekend. Quarles, who averaged 12.0 points per game coming into the tournament, paced Virginia with 18 points vs. Pepperdine and then scored a career-high 24 points against Boston College.
For the tournament, she is averaging 21.0 ppg and is shooting 56.2 percent from three-point range (9-16).
Cavaliers vs. Ranked Teams
Virginia is 4-0 against teams ranked in the Top 10 and 1-2 vs. teams ranked 10 through 25.
This weekend’s competition poses a formidable task for the Cavaliers. Virginia enters Saturday’s game ranked 19th in the AP poll while its opponent, Tennessee is ranked number two. The other two competitors, Notre Dame and Texas Tech, are ranked fifth and 11th respectively in the AP poll.
Virginia Looking For More Neutral Success
The Cavaliers will be looking to improve upon its 9-10 record at neutral sites in NCAA tournament play this season when it faces Tennessee in Memphis.
Virginia last won an NCAA tournament game at a neutral site in 1997 when it defeated Southern Methodist 77-68 in Tuscon, Ariz. in the first round of the West region. Last year, Virginia lost to Penn State in the first round of the West region in Ruston, La.
Virginia is 3-2 in games played at neutral sites this season.
Virginia vs. Tournament Field
Virginia faced eight teams that made it to the NCAA Tournament this year. Against those eight teams, the Cavaliers were 6-7. Four of those opponents were ACC Teams and Virginia posted a combined record of 6-3 against North Carolina State, Duke, Clemson and North Carolina.
Virginia was 0-4 vs. non-conference opponents that made it in the 64 NCAA field (St. Joseph’s, Texas, Old Dominion and Kent.).
The Long Rangers
Telisha Quarles set a new Virginia single season record for three-point field goals made when she hit her final long range bomb in the Boston College game on Sunday night. Quarles has 62 for the season and passed Tora Suber who set the single season record of 61 in 1996. She also set the record for most three-pointers by a sophomore.
Svetlana Volnaya has 52 three-pointers for the season which is the fifth-highest single season total in Cavalier history.
With the combination of the two deadly shooters along with Lisa Hosac, Renee Robinson and Schuye LaRue, the Cavaliers eclipsed the team record for three-point field goals made this season, by registering a 174 treys. The old record of 158 was set in 1997 and 1996. The team has also set the school record for three-point attempts with 522 for the season. The old record was 509 set in 1998.
In the polls
Virginia remained at number 19 in both the AP and USA Today polls this week. Virginia has been ranked for eight straight weeks. The Cavaliers entered the polls for the first time this season on Jan. 24 and were ranked 24th in the USA Today poll and 25 in the AP poll.
Cavalier History in the Polls
The Cavaliers had previously been ranked a total of 281 consecutive weeks in at least one or both of the polls before falling out of the Top 25 at the beginning of the 2000 season.
Virginia holds the longest active streak of any ACC team in the AP poll 182 weeks.
The Cavaliers are only one of two ACC teams to to achieve the number one ranking during the season. The Cavaliers were ranked number one in the AP poll for a total of 24 weeks in 1991 and 1992. Maryland, the other ACC top ranked team, held on to the top sport for four weeks in 1992. North Carolina also achieved the number one ranking but was achieved after after winning the National Championship in 1994. They did not get top billing during the regular season.
Rising to the Occasion
Both Renee Robinson and Telisha Quarles have risen to the occasion when playing ranked opponents this year. Robinson is averaging 13.4 ppg vs. ranked opponents while Quarles is getting 16.7 ppg vs. ranked opponents. Below is a comparison of what they’ve done overall and against top teams:
| season | vs. ranked | vs. ranked | |
| average | opponents | ACC opponents | |
| Quarles | 12.5 ppg | 16.7 ppg | 14.8 ppg |
| Robinson | 9.7 ppg | 13.4 ppg | 15.0 ppg |
LaRue Named ACC’s Top Rookie
Forward Schuye LaRue was named the ACC Rookie of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sportswriters Association. She is the first Virginia player since Tora Suber (1994) to earn the league’s top honor for freshmen. LaRue also earned All-ACC second team honors and was named to the ACC All-Tournament second team.
During the regular season, LaRue led the ACC in field goal percentage (58.1) and was co-leader in blocked shots (1.4 bpg). She was the top scoring rookie (14.6 ppg, sixth overall) and tied N.C. State’s Kaayla Chones as the top rebounding rookie (7.9 rpg, fourth overall). The 6-3 freshman earned a total of five ACC Rookie of the Week honors and led the ACC with nine double-doubles.
Three Cavaliers Honored By Conference
Svetlana Volnaya, Renee Robinson and Schuye LaRue were all-named to the ACC All-Conference team. Volnaya, who led the ACC in three-point shooting percentage and scoring in ACC games, was named to the first team and extended Virginia’s streak of having at least one first team selection every year since the award began in 1984. Robinson and LaRue were named to the second team.
Robinson was also named to the ACC’s first ever All-Defensive Team as voted on by the coaches and LaRue was the leading vote getter for the ACC All-Freshman team.
ACC Regular Season Title Goes To Virginia
Virginia closed out the regular season by winning five of its last six games and captured the top seed in the ACC Tournament for the seventh time in the last 10 years. The Cavaliers won 18 of the last 21 games in the regular season after experiencing its worst start in 23 years.
In early December, Virginia had a 4-4 record and learned they would be without its top returning scorer Erin Stovall who left the team for personal reasons. The Cavaliers put their troubles behind them and won 85 percent of its remaining games which included a 10-game winning streak and four wins over Top 10 teams. Virginia climbed back into respectability when it appeared in the polls for the first time on Jan. 24 and steadily moved to its highest ranking of number 16 in both of the polls on Feb. 28. The Cavaliers ended the regular season with a 14-game winning streak at home.
Virginia earned the top seed in the tournament on the last day of the regular season when they beat Wake Forest 77-71. UVa has been the number one seed in the ACC Tournament a total of 11 times in the 22-year history of the tournament.
The Cavaliers also notched a 20-win season for the 16th time in the last 17 years. Head Coach Debbie Ryan has won 20 or more games 18 times in her 23-year career.
Every Class A Winner
Since the 1990 season, every class that has come through the Virginia program has won either an ACC regular season title or a tournament title. This year was the final chance for seniors Renee Robinson, Lisa Hosac and Lauren Swierczek to win any type of ACC title and get the year 2000 sewn on the ACC banner which hangs in University Hall. The seamstress had been idle for three years.
Winning the Close Ones
The Cavaliers are 12-4 in games which are decided by 10 points or less and 6-4 in games decided by five points or less.
The closest game this season was on Feb. 3 when Virginia defeated Georgia Tech by one point when Svetlana Volnaya sank two free throws with three seconds remaining in the game to lift Virginia to the win.
New and Improved Renee Robinson
Renee Robinson worked hard over the summer to get ready for her senior season and the hard work has paid off. She led the ACC for most of the season in assists and currently ranks third in the league with a 4.8 average. Robinson has had six or more assists in 12 games this year. She matched her career-high of nine assists in the N.C. State win (Jan. 17).
“I have never had a player improve from one year to the next as much as Renee,” said Head Coach Debbie Ryan. “She went from someone who was not a leader to become a leader of this team. She is making big plays at the end of games. She has done it in almost every game in one way or another.”
Robinson is also averaging 9.7 points per game this season which is 6.7 points over her career average coming into this season. She netted a career-high 24 points in the win over ninth-ranked North Carolina (Jan. 6) and produced 19 points in the win over sixth-ranked N.C. State. She also led the Cavaliers with 15 points in the upset over ninth-ranked Duke.
In her previous three seasons, she had only recorded double figures in scoring twice but this year alone has scored in double figures in 16games.
The Schuye’s the Limit
If Schuye LaRue continues to lead the Cavaliers in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage, she will will match Cathy Grimes (1982) as the only other freshman in Virginia history to achieve the feat. Grimes and Dawn Staley (1989) were the only other freshmen to lead the team in scoring while Chrissy Reese (1980), Grimes and Heather Burge (l990) all were the top rebounders as rookies.
Robinson Moving On Up In Assists and Steals
Renee Robinson has 386 assists for her career which puts her in 7th place in Virginia history. Below is ranking of Virginia’s Top 10 assist leaders:
| 1. | Dawn Staley (1989-92) | 729 | |
| 2. | Donna Holt (1985-88) | 561 | |
| 3. | Dena Evans (1990-93) | 528 | |
| 4. | Tora Suber (1994-97) | 504 | |
| 5. | Nancy Mayer (l984-87) | 420 | |
| 6. | Jenny Boucek (l993-96) | 397 | |
| 7. | Renee Robinson (1997-present) | 386 | |
| 8. | Tammi Reiss (1989-92) | 380 | |
| 9. | Melissa Mahoney (l979-82) | 312 | |
| 10. | Kim Silloway (1983-86) | 310 |
Robinson also is in the Top 10 in steals, holding onto eighth place. Below is the ranking of Virginia’s Top 10 steals leaders:
| 1. | Donna Holt (1985-88) | 529 | |
| 2. | Dawn Staley (1989-92) | 454 | |
| 3. | Tonya Cardoza (1987-91) | 375 | |
| 4. | Nancy Mayer (1984-87) | 240 | |
| 5. | Daphne Hawkins (1985-88) | 228 | |
| 6. | Tora Suber (1994-97) | 223 | |
| 7. | Wendy Palmer (l993-96) | 219 | |
| 8. | Renee Robinson (1997-present) | 208 | |
| 9. | DeMya Walker (1996-99) | 192 | |
| 10. | Heather Burge (1990-93) | 185 |
Robinson Is Cavs’ Clutch Player
Renee Robinson has been Virginia’s most consistent player and has provided true leadership on floor this season. She has been Virginia’s go-to player as evidenced by her play in the following games:
- hit four crucial free throws down the stretch in upset of N.C. State, was named the HTS Player of the Game
- hit the winning shot with 57 seconds left in double-overtime win vs. Clemson, played 48 minutes in that game
- her only block of the season came on desperation three-pointer in win at Florida State
- hit winning free throws with .4 seconds remaining in Arkansas State game, scored Virginia’s last six points in that game
- had career night in upset win of ninth-ranked North Carolina
- led team with 15 points in upset of ninth-ranked Duke
- hit five points within a 20-second span in the final 1:30 of the game to tie game with North Carolina 63-63 in ACC semifinal
- scored nine points in a 14-4 run that sparked Virginia’s comeback win over Pepperdine in NCAA first round
Unbeatable at Home
The Cavaliers extended its home winning streak to 16 with the two victories in the NCAA first and second round games last weekend. Virginia has not lost at home since losing its season opener on Nov. 21 to St. Joseph’s.
This streak is the longest home court winning streak for the Cavaliers since the 61 home-court winning streak that spanned five seasons, 1992-1996.
The 16-game win streak includes wins over three Top 10 teams, ninth-ranked North Carolina on Jan. 6, ninth-ranked Duke on Jan. 30 and seventh-ranked N.C. State on Feb. 20 and one win over 17th-ranked Boston College.
The Cavaliers were undefeated at home vs. ACC opponents.
Defense Winning Games For Virginia
Not one team has shot better than 50 percent against the Cavaliers this season and Virginia is 16-1 when holding opponents to under 40 percent from the field. Overall, the Cavaliers have held their opponents to an average of 64.9 points per game and 38.1 percent from the field.
Virginia’s defense has been quite impressive in their 25 wins this season, holding opponents to an average of 37.0 percent from the field, 26.3 percent from beyond the arc and 61.2 points per game.
In their eight losses, Virginia has allowed teams to shoot 41.7 percent from the field, 32.5 percent from three-point range and score an average of 76.8 points per game.
Conference Stats Show Teamwork
A testament to how well this squad played as a “team” was found in the ACC stats. For a majority of the season, five different Cavaliers led the ACC in some type of statistical category. As the regular season ended, two Cavaliers were the conference leaders with three more ranking in the top 10.
Schuye LaRue was the conference leader in field goal percentage the entire season with 58.1 percent. She also was the league’s top scoring rookie and ranked sixth overall in scoring. In addition, she was the leader in blocked shots and ranked fourth in rebounds.
Svetlana Volnaya was the league’s top three-point shooter with 43.0 percent and she ranked seventh in free throw shooting, eighth in scoring and seventh in three-point field goals made. Volnaya led all players in scoring in ACC games (15.5 ppg).
Telisha Quarles ranked 11th in scoring (11.5 ppg) and fifth in three-point field goals made (1.7)
Ryan Holds Advantage vs. Current ACC Coaches
Debbie Ryan holds a 153-73 (.677) record against the current coaches in the ACC and holds a winning record versus every coach in the conference. In her 23-year career, she holds a record of 251-105 vs. ACC opponents.
Ryan vs. current ACC coaches
| Jim Davis, Clemson | 21-11 | |
| Gail Goestenkors, Duke | 10-7 | |
| Sue Semrau, Florida St. | 6-0 | |
| Agnus Berenato, Georgia Tech | 25-3 | |
| Chris Weller, Maryland | 32-20 | |
| Sylvia Hatchell, North Carolina | 23-12 | |
| Kay Yow, N.C. State | 27-20 | |
| Charlene Curtis, Wake Forest | 9-0 | |
| 153-73 (.677) |
The Cavalier’s record when they:
| led at half-time | 19-1 |
| trailed at half-time | 4-5 |
| were tied at half-time | 2-2 |
| went into overtime | 1-1 |
| shot 60% or better | 0-0 |
| shot 50% or better | 7-0 |
| shot less than 50% | 18-8 |
| shot less than 40% | 6-4 |
| opponent shot 50% or better | 0-0 |
| opponent shot less than 50% | 24-8 |
| opponent shot less than 40% | 16-1 |
| had higher FG% than opponent | 22-4 |
| had lower FG% than opponent | 3-5 |
| out-rebounded opponent | 11-3 |
| were out-rebounded by opponent | 13-5 |
| had same rebounds as opponent | 1-0 |
| had more offensive rebounds | 10-4 |
| had fewer offensive rebounds | 12-3 |
| had same offensive rebounds | 3-1 |
| had fewer turnovers than opponent | 16-1 |
| had more turnovers than opponent | 7-5 |
| had same amount of turnovers | 2-2 |
| shot more FTs than opponent | 18-1 |
| shot fewer FTs than opponent | 6-7 |
| shot same number of FTs as opponent | 1-0 |
| had game decided by 10 points or less | 12-4 |
| had game decided by 5 points or less | 6-4 |
| scored 100+ points | 1-0 |
| scored 90-99 points | 0-0 |
| scored 80-89 points | 6-0 |
| scored 70-79 points | 12-3 |
| scored 60-69 points | 4-5 |
| scored 59 or less points | 2-0 |
| leading scorer is Hosac | 3-0 |
| leading scorer is LaRue | 5-5 |
| leading scorer is Quarles | 6-3 |
| leading scorer is Stovall | 2-0 |
| leading scorer is Volnaya | 6-0 |
| leading scorer is Robinson | 2-0 |
| leading scorer is Mitchelson | 1-0 |
Virginia’s record on:
| Sunday | 7-3 |
| Monday | 4-2 |
| Tuesday | 1-0 |
| Wednesday | 1-0 |
| Thursday | 8-1 |
| Friday | 3-1 |
| Saturday | 1-1 |
TV 5-2
In the Polls
| Week of | AP | USA Today |
| Preseason | 25th | |
| Jan. 24 | 25th | 24th |
| Jan. 31 | 24th | 23rd |
| Feb. 7 | 22nd | 21st |
| Feb. 14 | 21st | 22nd |
| Feb. 21 | 16th | 16th |
| Feb. 28 | 16th | 17th |
| Mar. 6 | 19th | 19th |
| Mar. 13 | 19th | 19th |
1999-2000 Individual Honors
| Schuye LaRue | |
| ACC Rookie of the Year | |
| ACC All-Conference Second Team | |
| ACC All-Tournament Second Team | |
| Rainbow Wahine Classic All-Tournament Team | |
| Nationwide Cavalier Classic Most Valuable Player | |
| ACC Rookie of the Week (Nov. 30) | |
| ACC Rookie of the Week (Jan. 3) | |
| ACC Rookie of the Week (Jan. 31) | |
| ACC Rookie of the Week (Feb. 21) | |
| ACC Rookie of the Week (Feb. 28) | |
| HTS Player of the Game (Jan. 30) | |
| ESPN2 Player of the Game (Feb. 20) | |
| Telisha Quarles | |
| ACC Player of the Week (Feb. 21) | |
| Renee Robinson | |
| ACC All-Defensive Team | |
| ACC All-Tournament Second Team | |
| Richmond Times-Dispatch State Player of the Year | |
| HTS Player of the Game (Jan. 17) | |
| Svetlana Volnaya | |
| ACC All-Conference First Team | |
| Nationwide Cavalier Classic All-Tournament Team | |
| ACC Player of the Week (Jan. 17) | |
| ACC Player of the Week (Jan. 31) | |
| Debbie Ryan | |
| ACC Coach of the Year | |
| ILKON/WBCA District Coach of the Year | |
| Richmond Times-Dispatch State Coach of the Year |
By The Numbers
1
Virginia’s seed in the ACC Tournament
2
Number of times this season that Virginia swept the ACC Player and Rookie of the Week Awards
4
The number of wins Virginia has over Top 10 teams. The Cavaliers are 4-0 vs. Top 10 opponents
5
The number of times Schuye LaRue was named the ACC Rookie of the Week
7
The number of different players who led Virginia in scoring this season
8
The number of different starting line-ups used by Virginia
11
The school record for three-point field goals made which the Cavaliers tied in the Clemson game
17
The number of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances by Virginia
29
The most points scored by a Virginia player this season Schuye LaRue vs. Butler and Svetlana Volnaya vs. Georgia Tech
174
The number of three-pointers made by the Cavaliers which set a new school single season record