Long Beach Women Open Up on Old Dominion : Cindy Brown Has 30 Points, 13 Rebounds as Fourth-Ranked 49ers Win, 89-73

Old Dominion found out what nine other teams already knew about Cal State Long Beach’s women’s basketball team--they are so fast there is almost no defense that can keep up with the 49ers.

So speedy is Long Beach, that Old Dominion Coach Marianne Stanley opted to run a zone defense against the fourth-ranked 49ers in a game in Long Beach’s University Gym in front of 1,456 fans Sunday.

The zone merely opened up the perimeter for Long Beach and at least two Long Beach players took advantage.

Long Beach used that excellent outside shooting to complement its already strong inside game, and beat Old Dominion, 89-73.

It has not been a closely kept secret in women’s basketball that Cindy Brown, the 49ers’ 6-foot 2-inch center, is dangerous inside. Brown blew her cover Friday night when she scored 38 points in the 49ers’ win over Oregon. She confirmed what was already known, scoring 30 points and grabbing 13 rebounds Sunday.

What was not widely known is that Long Beach has some seriously hot shooters. They don’t even bother getting the ball in to Brown all the time, they pull up and shoot from 10 and 15 feet. And they make the shots. Shaundra McMichael, a sophomore from Long Beach, came off the bench to score 14 points, all of the baskets made from beyond 10 feet.

Just as the Monarch’s defense made the adjustment to McMichael, 49er forward Missy Rand would put up another long shot and make it. Rand scored 11 points Sunday.

Long Beach Coach Joan Bonvicini saw it all and she liked most of it.

“Cindy did well tonight,” Bonvicini said. “Our people were looking to her. When we hit outside, it opens everything up for us. Shaundra hit some key jumpers and Missy hit some key shots.”

For her part, Rand thinks Brown makes her passing look good. “She’s got such long arms,” Rand said of Brown. “You could throw up anything, she would catch it.”

Old Dominion played as well as a team that has been hobbled by injuries and illness can be expected to play. The Monarchs, who have lost three starters to injury this season, got an unaccustomed bit of good luck.

The bad luck came first, of course. Marie Christian took a hard fall in Friday’s game against USC and left the game with a concussion.

Christian was listed as a questionable starter for Sunday’s game. She started (but was watched closely by the Old Dominion trainer). Christian gave ODU needed experience in the starting five.

“We didn’t do as good a job as we wanted to on Brown inside,” Stanley said. ‘Right now, we are looking at a team of two sophomores, two freshmen and a junior. If USC and Long Beach are in the top five in the country, then Old Dominion is playing right with them.”

It has been a tough early schedule for the Monarchs. Their 5-5 record is the worst it has been in 12 years.

Long Beach (9-1) started slowly, allowing Old Dominion to hold the lead for nearly six minutes. Brown hit on a turnaround with 14:11 left in the half to tie it at 10. McMichael scored off her own steal to give the 49ers a lead they kept most of the first half.

“We started off terribly,” Bonvicini said. “I wasn’t happy with our shooting from the free-throw line. Then we started getting some good outside shots.”

Brown started as slowly as the rest of her team. Brown is used to scoring most of her points inside and wasn’t given room at the start of the first half. She got moving about the same time as the Monarchs lost their shooting touch, midway through the half.

Brown finished with 14 points in the half, and Old Dominion, who couldn’t buy a shot early on, ended the half shooting 46%.

Brown continued to warm up in the second half, and as much as the Monarchs tried to run with Long Beach (which was able to substitute from a deep bench), they were always a step too slow.

The 49ers led by as much as 16 in the second half, but Old Dominion didn’t quit.

“We are going to get there,” said ODU center Donna Harrington. Harrington is a good example of why Stanley managed a smile after the game. Only a sophomore, the 6-2 Harrington scored 19 points against USC and 17 Sunday.

Adrienne Goodson led the Monarchs with 18 points and 10 rebounds.