Jan. 17, 1998

Virginia Hosts Wake Forest

Wake Forest at #15 Virginia
Jan. 18, 1998 * 7:30 p.m. * WINA Radio 1070 AM
University Hall (8,457) * Charlottesville, Va.

#15 Virginia (12-3, 3-3)
The Cavaliers got a much-needed win on Thursday when they upset seventh-ranked North Carolina 105-100 in triple overtime. The win over the Tar Heels was Virginia's first victory over a ranked opponent and the first conference win on the road this season. The Cavaliers needed the win to even its conference record at 3-3. Mimi McKinney set a several school records with her 48-point performance in that game.

McKinney, who now leads the team in scoring with 16.5 ppg, set the school record for points in a game (48), three-point field goals in a half (5, second half) and tied the school record with seven three-point field goals. Her 48 points was the most points in an ACC game, but that total ranks second all-time in the ACC behind Andrea Stinson's 50-point performance vs. Providence on Dec. 3, 1989.

Head Coach Debbie Ryan, in her 21st season, brings a career record of 474-160 (.748) into tonight's game. Ryan is the ACC's leader in conference wins (194) and winning percentage (.748).

The Cavaliers are a young team this year with only one senior. Seniors Monick Foote and Tiffany Bower are out for the season with injuries.

Series Record With Wake Forest
This is will be the 41st meeting between Wake Forest and Virginia. The Cavaliers hold a 39-1 advantage in the series. The only Wake Forest victory came on Jan. 13, 1978 when the Demon Deacons pulled out a 60-59 win in University Hall.

Wake Forest Head Coach Charlene Curtis makes her first appearance in U-Hall as coach of the Demon Deacons. Curtis served as an assistant to Debbie Ryan in 1982 and 1983. 

Probable Virginia Starters
Pos No. Player          Cl.   Ht.   Stats
F   20  Lisa Hosac      Jr.   6-2   7.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg
F   40  Kate Mooney     Jr.   6-0   4.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg
C   22  DeMya Walker    Jr.   6-2   15.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg
G   21  Mimi McKinney   Sr.   5-9   16.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg
G   5   Renee Robinson  So.   5-6   4.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg

Off the Bench
Pos No. Player             Cl.   Ht.   Stats
G   3   Erin Stovall       Fr.   5-9   11.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg
G   12  Katie Tracy        Fr.   5-5   1.1 ppg, 0.4 rpg
F   4   Lesley Brown       Jr.   6-0   6.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg
F   30  Chalois Lias       Fr.   6-0   3.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg
F   00  Dean'na Mitchelson Fr.   6-2   2.3 ppg, 1.9 rpg
C   14  Elena Kravchenko   Fr.  6-10   1.6 ppg, 1.0 rpg

Home Sweet Home
The Cavaliers are 279-50 during the last 24 years at home and are 117-9 in University Hall since 1990. 

How the Teams Match Up

                Virginia   Wake Forest
   Points           70.9   60.1
   Points Allowed   62.8   67.8
   Rebounds         40.2   36.4
   Rebound Margin   +0.8   -3.0
   FG %             .425   .399
   FG% defense      .380   .414
   3-pt FG %        .304   .297
   FT %             .635   .292
   Assists          14.5   12.4
   Turnovers        21.1   21.2
   Blocks            6.5   2.1
   Steals           12.7   7.1

McKinney Makes Mark
The hot hand this week belongs to Mimi McKinney who became the first woman in Virginia history to record a 40+ game. She was 16-27 from the field, 7-12 from three-point range and 9-13 from the charity stripe in her 48-point performance against North Carolina in triple overtime (Jan. 15). She had 35 points at the end of regulation. The 48 points is the most ever by a men's or women's Virginia player against a Division I opponent. McKinney's 48 points ranks second all-time in Virginia basketball history behind Barry Parkhill's 51 points vs. Baldwin-Wallace (Dec. 11, 1971) and ties with Buzzy Wilkerson's 48-point game vs. Hampden-Sydney (Dec. 1, 1954).

She eclipsed the women's single game scoring record of 39 established by Wendy Palmer vs. Maryland (Jan. 25, 1995).

Points From the Pine
The Cavalier reserves are contributing a total of 24.5 points per game this season, which is 35.0 percent of the total offense. Erin Stovall is the top reserve, averaging 11.0 points from the bench.

The bench crew contributed 50 points in the Cavaliers 86-60 win over Maryland on Jan. 8.

Hitting The Three's
Mimi McKinney has 32 three-pointers this season which ties her season high total for three's. She had 25 treys last year for her best year from behind the arc.

Double Figures
DeMya Walker is one of three Cavaliers who have scored in double figures in 10 or more games this season. Walker leads the team in double-figure games with 13, followed by Erin Stovall with 11 and Mimi McKinney with10.

ACC Leaders (as of Jan. 13)
DeMya Walker leads the league in blocked shots (3.8]). Walker also ranks fourth in field goal percentage (.580).

Mimi McKinney ranks third in scoring (16.5)second in three-point field goals per game (2.3), third in free throw percentage (.763), fifth in steals (2.4]) and ninth in assists (3.9).

As a team, Virginia leads the league in steals (12.6) and blocks (6.5). The team ranks second in field goal percentage defense (.380).

ACC Season-Highs
Mimi McKinney's 48 points vs. North Carolina is the ACC's season high in points. She also holds the season-high in field goals made (16) and three-point field goals made (7). DeMya Walker's eight blocks is a season-high for the conference, tied with Florida State's Brooke Wyckoff.

As a team, Virginia has achieved the league high in four categories: field goal percentage defense (.183 vs. Mt. St. Mary's), free throw percentage (.875 vs. Santa Clara), steals (25 vs. California), blocks (14, vs. Mt. St. Mary's).

Tracy Added To Roster
Katie Tracy, a 5-5 freshman point guard from Richmond, Va., was added to the Virginia roster on Dec. 12. Tracy, who started all 21 games for the Virginia women's soccer team this past Fall, will bolster the Cavalier roster that has been hit hard with injuries. UVa began the season without guards Tiffany Bower and Monick Foote who are out for the year with injuries.

Tracy was a three-time Dominion District Player of the Year and a two-time Central Region Player of the Year in basketball as well as the Virginia High School League State Player of the Year. Tracy led James River High School to the the state finals last season and averaged 14.0 points for her prep career. She was also the Richmond Times Dispatch Player of the Year as a junior and a senior and a three-time All-State selection in basketball.

As a midfielder for head coach April Heinrichs and the nationally ranked UVa soccer team, Tracy was the team's fourth leading scorer with four goals and four assists. The soccer team posted a 14-5-2 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. During her prep soccer career, she was a NSCAA and Parade All-American.

Out For The Season
The Cavaliers will be without the services senior guard/forward Monick Foote and junior guard Tiffany Bower this season. Foote made the decision to redshirt this season due to a chronic ankle problem (right) and a stress fracture in the same leg that developed during the summer. Foote wants to take the time to properly rehab the leg and comeback for a healthy senior year in 1998-99.

Bower suffered a torn left achilles tendon on the third day of practice and will not play this season. Bower worked extremely hard over the summer to come back from a torn right achilles tendon which she suffered on the eve of the NCAA Tournament last March and was cleared to play this season.

Double-Doubles
Lisa Hosac recorded the first double-double of the season with her 12 point-12 rebound performance against Kent on Nov. 21. Last season, she recorded two double-doubles.

DeMya Walker has four double-doubles for the season. She recorded her first double-double of the year with her 13 point-14 rebound performance vs. VCU on Nov. 29. She recorded her second one against Mt. St. Mary's on Dec. 8 with 19 points-17 rebounds. Her third came on Jan. 2 vs. Florida State with 21 points-13 rebounds. She recorded 16 points-13 rebounds on Jan. 8 vs. Maryland for her fourth double-double.

Out-Rebounded
The Cavaliers have been out-rebounded in nine of their 14 games this season, but are 6-3 in those games. The Cavaliers had been out-rebounded in the six games prior to the North Carolina game, but broke that streak by claiming a 53-52 margin on the glass against the Tar Heels.

Walker Sets Another Blocked Shot Record
DeMya Walker set a new UVa single game record for blocked shots with eight blocks in the Florida State game on Jan. 2. She broke the old record of seven which was held by Walker (twice), Heidi Burge and Jacki LaBerge. she ranks fifth in ACC history in blocked shots.

Walker's first block of the season, which came in the 13:06 mark in the second half of the William & Mary game (Nov. 16), established her as the Virginia's all-time blocks leader, eclipsing the mark of 152 set by Heather Burge (1990-93). Walker ended the night with three blocks.

Gardner Leaves Team
Senior Tammy Gardner ended her college career when she decided not to return to UVa for the Spring semester. Gardner, who graduated last May with a degree in psychology, saw action in three games this season. She was a graduate student in the Curry School of Education at UVa and has plans to enter physical therapy school.

Wendy Palmer's Number Retired
Number 31, worn by two-time All-American Wendy Palmer, was retired in a ceremony on Jan. 2, prior to the game with Florida State. Palmer hails from Timberlake, N.C. and graduated from Person Senior High School.

Palmer, who became the first women's player in UVa history to record over 1000 points and 1000 rebounds, was a two-time ACC Player of the Year and a three-time All-ACC First Team selection.

At Virginia, Palmer ranks first in career rebounds (1221), second in career field goals made (780), third in career scoring (1918), seventh in career steals (219), seventh in career free throws made (327) and ninth in games played (126).

After she graduated in 1996 with a degree in history, Palmer played professional basketball in Europe and was selected in the elite draft by the Utah Starzz of the WNBA.

Cavaliers on Radio
All of the University of Virginia women's basketball games are broadcast on WINA Radio 1070 AM. Rob Shaffer calls the play-by-play with color commentary provided by Robbie Robinson. In addition to WINA's broadcast of all the games locally, seven of the remaining 12 regular season games will be broadcast state-wide on the Virginia Sports Radio Network. The network games will also be picked up by AudioNet on the internet (www.audionet.com). 

   The network broadcasts are:
      Jan. 30 vs. Georgia Tech 7:30 p.m.
      Feb. 5 vs. Clemson 7:30 p.m.
      Feb. 9 at Maryland 7 p.m.
      Feb. 12 at N.C. State 7 p.m.
      Feb. 15 vs. North Carolina 4 p.m.
      Feb. 19 at Wake Forest 7 p.m.
      Feb. 22 vs. Duke 2 p.m.

Public Television To Air Games
Fans of UVa women's basketball can now watch the Cavaliers on public television. Central Virginia's Public TV, WHTJ-TV 41 will broadcast the Jan. 30 game vs. Georgia Tech on tape delay at 11:30 p.m. and the Feb. 5 game vs. Clemson on tape delay at 11:00 p.m. Both games will be broadcast live in northern Virginia on public television station WNVT Falls Church.

Production funding for the public television broadcast of these UVa women's basketball games is made possible, in part, by grants from Nike and by the University of Virginia Continuing Education Centers in Northern Virginia and Richmond.