Singletary Gives Virginia Comeback Win Over ODU in CBI
by Jay Pearlman
In last week’s article about Old Dominion’s CBI win over Rider, we noted that while nominally more for seniors (Virginia’s Craig Littlepage called UVA’s participation in the tournament a “reward”), this tournament is really more of an opportunity for freshmen and sophomores. Not so Monday night.
Yes, freshman big man Keyon Carter did progress nicely for ODU (9 points on 4-9 shooting, and 7 rebounds in 16 minutes), freshman Frank Hassell showed developing consistency (10 points on 5-6, 5 rebounds in 26 minutes) and sophomore center Gerald Lee limped less on his hyperextension and contributed more (16 points on 5-10, 4 rebounds in 33 minutes). But from start to finish, Monday night’s game was a battle between two senior guards, Brian Henderson of ODU and Sean Singletary of Virginia. And while Henderson’s shooting, particularly from behind the arc (26 points on 10-17, including 5-9 in treys) built ODU an eight-point halftime lead, and rebuilt that lead to 4 with under two minutes to go, in the end it was Virginia’s star senior who raised his play and determined the outcome.
All season long for the injury-depleted Cavaliers, and all night long on this night, Singletary juggled his dual role as distributor/primary scorer, his play bringing UVA back from early 10-0 and halftime 37-29 deficits, to gain a four-point lead mid-way through the second stanza. But when ODU didn’t follow Coach Dave Leitao’s script, and Ben Finney slammed home an offensive rebound, ODU was up four in the last two minutes. After a Virginia basket and ODU free throw made it a three-point game with 35 seconds to go, predictably Leitao placed the game in the hands of his senior guard. Calmly Singletary dribbled up against ODU’s primary and most effective defense this night, a 2-3 zone. Already with 10 assists and a double-double in hand, this trip was not going to bolster his assist total. Instead, Singletary dribbled down the middle, launched a straight on trey from two steps behind the arc, and banked it in, tying the game with under 30 seconds on the clock.
Then, when it appeared ODU was guaranteed no worse than overtime, Singletary pressured ODU senior guard Brandon Johnson. When Johnson – himself best known for steals – attempted a cross-over dribble just past the midcourt line (an attempt baited by Singletary), Singletary calmly stripped Johnson, and then sprint-dribbled the length of the court for a contested bucket/traditional three-point play. A teammate’s late free throw made the final score 80-76 Virginia. Singletary finished with 22 on 7-12 shooting, 2-7 in treys (including that late monster), 6-7 from the line, 10 assists and 3 rebounds, and as his name suggests “Single-handedly” propelled UVA into the semi-finals of the CBI.
For ODU, this was a harsher loss than any of us would have imagined two weeks ago. First, after being seeded fourth in the CAA Tournament and a quarterfinal loss to William and Mary, it was a long shot that the Monarchs would get any post-season bid. Then in the CBI, after a home-win against Rider, Monday night a road game in Charlottesville against a Virginia team ODU hadn’t faced in ten years. But with a strong start, late four-point lead, three-point lead in the last minute, and then when possession seemingly guaranteed no worse than overtime, this loss became difficult, particularly on Brandon Johnson. As for the rest, next year’s sophomore class of Darius James, Finney, Hassell and Carter, along with star junior Lee, should make ODU competitive again in an improved CAA in 2008-09.
CAA News and Notes
- In Wednesday’s first CBI semi-final at 7 p.m., Virginia will host Bradley, which rallied from 14 points down in the second half to defeat Ohio University tonight. Wednesday’s 9 p.m. semi-final will be Houston at Tulsa, as Houston defeated Valparaiso on Monday night, while Tulsa defeated Utah.
- It will likely be announced today that the new head coach of Basketball at James Madison University is Matt Brady, formerly of Marist College. Prior to his four years in Poughkeepsie, Brady spent eleven as an assistant at St. Joseph’s, the last 9 beside Phil Martelli, including that memorable undefeated regular season in 2003-04.
- Five days having past since VCU’s elimination from the NIT, nothing has been released in Richmond, Baton Rouge or Columbia, South Carolina about contact between Anthony Grant and any SEC school. VCU Athletic Director Norwood Teague – a terrific all-morning radio co-host on Richmond’s 950-ESPN last Wednesday – may yet be able to keep Grant in Richmond, at least for a little while longer.
- While this writer’s CAA duties for 2007-08 are now completed – pending a season wrap-up – I’ll be in Detroit this weekend, reporting from the Midwest Regional (better known as the “Davidson Regional”).
