February 23, 2002

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Villanova used an early three-point shooting flurry and clutch free throw shooting in the final minutes to defeat Virginia Tech 76-64 Saturday afternoon at the Pavilion on the Villanova campus. The loss was the seventh in the last nine games for the Hokies.

Villanova (17-9, 11-4) came out hitting on all cylinders to jump to a 24-7 lead eight minutes into the game and Tech never fully recovered. The hot-shooting Wildcats connected on three treys during the streak en route to shooting 55.6 percent (15-27) in the first half. Meanwhile the Hokies struggled in the first half from the field hitting on only 38.8 percent (8-23) and trailed 39-25 at the intermission.

Tech (17-9, 8-7), ranked No. 24 in both the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches polls, opened the second half with a 14-6 run to cut the Villanova lead to 47-41 with just under 12 minutes left in the game. Chrystal Starling (Jr., Syracuse, N.Y.) made a free throw at the 9:22 mark to complete a three-point play that narrowed the gap to 53-47. That would be as close as the Hokies would come for the remainder of the contest.

Villanova iced the game at the free throw line connecting on 16-of-17 over the final eight minutes including nine in a row by Mimi Riley. In fact, Riley scored 13 of Villanova's final 17 points and ended the game with a career-high 34 points which is also the most points by a BIG EAST Conference player this season.

The Hokies received yet another outstanding performance from Ieva Kublina (6-4, So., C, Riga, Latvia) who scored 24 points and pulled down eight rebounds. In her last three games Kublina is averaging 25.7 points and 8.6 rebounds a game and is shooting 72.5 percent (29-40) from the field and 76.4 percent (26-34) on shots inside the arc.

Sarah Hicks (Sr., Roanoke, Va.) added 14 points for Tech while Starling chipped in with 12 points.

The Hokies will host Rutgers (8-18, 5-10) Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the regular season finale. The Tech seniors will be honored immediately following the game. Tech will travel to Piscataway, N.J. on Friday and will play an undetermined opponent in the first round of the BIG EAST Conference Tournament on Saturday. Pairings will be released by the BIG EAST Conference on Tuesday night following the completion of play.