February 08, 2008 02:15 pm
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Morehead State sophomore Brandi Rayburn scored a career high 17 points Monday night, but it came in a losing effort as host the University of Virginia Cavaliers - ranked 24th in the latest Sagarin ratings, were too much for MSU, defeating the Eagles 88-43 at John Paul Jones Arena. MSU fell to 7-14 overall.
Rayburn had one of a few bright spots on the stat sheet for the Eagles. She was 7-of-15 from the field, and she also led the team with six rebounds in her fourth straight double figure scoring performance. The Eagles also got eight points from Anitha Smith-Williams and seven from Chynna Bozeman. But, Virginia's tough defense was all it had been advertised as. UVa forced 20 MSU turnovers and turend that into 23 points. The Cavaliers also dominated in the paint, outscoring the Eagles, 40-14.
On the glass, Virginia also held the edge, 49-25. Moncia Wright had 17 points to lead five UVa athletes in double figures. Lyndra Littles posted 15, Aisha Mohammed netted 12, and Britnee Millner scored 10. Virginia also took advantage of its athleticism and outscored the Eagles 21-8 at the free throw line.
"I thought Brandi had a great game, and Anitha and Brittany (Pittman) did about all they could," said head coach Mike Bradbury. "I am actually pretty happy with our rebounding effort. I thought we may not get any, but I was happy were able to get 25 tonight. Virginia is a great team, and this game was what it was. We really just couldn't keep up with them."
Morehead State kept the game close and actually led 14-13 with 13:27 left in the first half after a Rayburn trey. But, Virginia turned on the pressure after that and went on a 18-4 run, capped by a Littles' three-pointer at 7:24, to take a 31-18 advantage. At the half, Virginia led 48-26.
In the second half, MSU misfired on its first eight field goal attempts and didn't get its first field goal until the 13:28 mark.
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