UVa.'s Wright pours in 33 against Tar Heels

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Awaiting a pass from Ariana Moorer in the first overtime, Virginia’s Monica Wright looked ready to put the finishing touches on a sterling performance against North Carolina.

Wright slipped, and the ball glanced out of her hand and out of bounds. If the assist had been completed, the Cavaliers would have taken a three-point lead with just more than a minute left in the first overtime on an uncontested layup.

That was about the only thing Wright did wrong in carrying the Cavaliers to a 82-78 victory on Monday night.

Wright ended up with 33 points, six short of her career high of 39.

Whenever Virginia needed a basket, No. 22 was quick to deliver. The consistency of her scoring, despite all of the defensive pressure on her, seemed to dishearten UNC.

“Our focus was on her, but she’s a great player,” junior Cetera DeGraffenreid said. “On any given night, she can go out there and score 30 points. It’s really hard to stop her.”

After Wright’s performance, North Carolina was singing her praises, and everyone volunteered that she is a “great player.”

“There’s no doubt about that,” UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. “I think she’s probably the player of the year in the conference. I don’t know of anybody else that’s better than her.”

With her 17th point of the game, Wright passed N.C. State’s Genia Beasley for third place in career points in the history of the ACC.

This was Wright’s sixth 30-point performance on the season. Her 22.7 points per game average entering the game gave her the title of the ACC’s leading scorer.

“She’s pretty doggone good, because if you take her off that team, a lot of things change,” Hatchell said. “I mean, she had 33, and they only had one other kid in double figures with 11.”

UVa.’s offense was clearly designed to give Wright scoring opportunities. On virtually every possession, the 5-foot-11 guard would snake through a labyrinth of picks and screens, all in hopes of springing for a single second to get a shot off.

Freshman Tierra Ruffin-Pratt drew most of the job of covering Wright. Ruffin-Pratt often passed her off to another defender, only to end up back on her later in the possession.

“It’s definitely tough,” guard Italee Lucas said. “That’s when you have to have your help defense, because picks — especially that third one — are the ones that catch you.”



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