Wake Forest University
Virginia Tech
VT Edges Deacs 61-56 in Regular Season Finale
3/2/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 2, 2008
BLACKSBURG, Va. - After trailing by as much as 12 points in the second half, a three-point basket from Christen Brown with four seconds in regulation brought Wake Forest within one-possession of taking Virginia Tech to overtime in the regular season finale, but the Demon Deacons came up just short and took a 56-61 loss on Sunday in Blacksburg.
Wake Forest and Virginia Tech are now 15-14 for the season and tied in conference action with a 2-11 mark. A coin toss will determine the positioning of both teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, set to begin on Thursday, March 6. The official bracket will be announced by the ACC immediately following the conclusion of the Duke/North Carolina game on Sunday evening.
Virginia Tech guard Brittany Cook proved to be a deciding factor in the Hokie win, netting 27 points and pulling nine boards.
"We are normally a good defensive team, but we didn't have an answer for Brittany Cook today. She was phenomenal," Wake Forest head coach Mike Petersen said.
Wake Forest freshman Brittany Waters tied her season high 15-point mark to lead the Demon Deacons in scoring, while sophomore Mekia Valentine boasted a game-high 11 rebounds. Sophomore Courteney Morris had a career-high assist count, registering seven in Sunday's match-up.
Virginia Tech and Wake Forest exchanged leads six times in the opening ten minutes. Wake Forest guard Alex Tchangoue's second-chance 3-point basket tied the contest for the final time at 22-22 with 11 minutes to play. Cook countered with a layup on the next possession to return the lead to the Hokie favor. VT retained the lead for the rest of the half. A back door layup from WFU's Mekia Valentine set the score halftime score at 42-31.
The Hokies locked up under the Deacon defensive pressure at the start of the second half, shooting 0-12 from the floor to leave the door open for Wake Forest to cut the deficit to four points during the opening five minutes. After a couple of free throws, Cook scored the VT first field goal of the half with 14:02 to play to extend Virginia Tech's lead to 46-39.
Facing a 12-point deficit with nine minutes to play, Wake Forest began to whittle away the Hokie lead, eventually reaching a one-possession deficit with Brown's three-point basket at the four-second mark. WFU's Brittany Waters immediately fouled Cook to return the ball to Deacon possession, but Cook's two charity stripe shots sealed the 61-56 Hokie win with three seconds on the clock.
