THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, November 11, 1996 TAG: 9611110151
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 77 lines
Nancy Lieberman-Cline's homecoming to the Old Dominion field house on Sunday started with halfcourt hugs and a standing ovation from many of the folks who witnessed the glory days that would land her in Basketball's Hall of Fame. The afternoon ended with more sentiment, as Lieberman-Cline was whisked into her old team's locker room for a post-game chat and a photo session with the Big Blue mascot.
In between, the reality hit, as the Lady Monarchs blew by Lieberman-Cline and her Athletes in Action teammates 82-66 in an exhibition. And if there was a Lady Magic on this court, it was Mery Andrade, who had 14 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds and seven steals while turning the ball over just twice in 36 minutes.
``Mery is so strong. But you don't know that until you mix it up on these courts,'' said Lieberman-Cline, whose line wasn't as impressive. Hindered by a sprained ankle she suffered a week ago at Penn State, she said she was only playing at about 85 percent and was unable to push off and drive to the basket. Lieberman-Cline finished 2 of 11 for eight points, with three rebounds, four assists and five turnovers in 31 minutes.
Despite those numbers, the day still belonged to the former Lady Monarchs star, who led ODU to national championships in 1979 and 1980.
``It's exciting,'' she said while hugging her 2-year-old son, T.J., who was wearing his ODU colors. ``You have to temper your emotions because the bottom line is you still have to play. You know how wonderful the experience is, you know you're going to see your friends . . . Once the game starts, you've got tunnel vision and it's just pure basketball. But before and after, it's fabulous.''
Lieberman-Cline joined AIA earlier this year to prepare herself for playing in the Women's NBA in June. She circled this date with ODU the minute she saw the schedule, and Ticha Penicheiro said the Lady Monarchs did the same.
``We found out maybe in September and everybody was like, `Oh, my God, it's Nancy Lieberman coming to our house,' '' Penicheiro said. ``I was like, `I can't wait until November 10.' The day finally came to play against each other, and I'm telling you, she's 38, but she's still a great player and I can tell she has a great past behind her. I wish we had a chance to play together. I think I would enjoy that more than going against her.''
Penicheiro was the easy winner in their matchup, blowing by Lieberman-Cline like a freight train at times. Lieberman-Cline was called for two fouls before the game was three minutes old. She went 0 of 3 from the field in the first half as AIA wilted under ODU's defensive pressure.
Still, ODU coach Wendy Larry was impressed with what she saw.
``I think Nancy is the epitome of a competitor,'' Larry said. ``She did some incredible things. Her anticipation is still very, very effective. She sees the floor as well as any Division I player, and I think she'll be a tremendous pro. If Michael Jordan can do it, Nancy Lieberman can, too.''
ODU went up by as much as 23 in the first half and led at the break 38-24. When the Lady Monarchs struggled with early turnovers in the second half, AIA's Suzanne Ressa nailed a pair of 3s and Lieberman-Cline knocked down a jumper to cut the lead to six. But ODU's offense dampened any hopes of a rally, as Andrade landed a jumper, assisted Clarisse Machanguana on consecutive layups and scored another off a lefthanded behind-the-back dish from Penicheiro. Stacy Himes' trey and another shot from Machanguana capped a 13-2 run.
``After a game like this I feel a little bit better,'' said Larry regarding her team's sharpness. ``This was a very competitive contest for us. I thought AIA made us play a different level of basketball than Thursday night against Croatia.''
Next, ODU moves on to its season opener Friday night in the first round of the preseason WNIT against George Washington. And Lieberman-Cline and AIA head to East Carolina, where more memories await.
``Annie's tomorrow,'' Lieberman-Cline said with glee, referring to the coach at ECU, Anne Donovan, her old ODU teammate and fellow Hall of Famer. ILLUSTRATION: HUY NGUYEN
The Virginian-Pilot
Athletes in Action's Nancy Lieberman-Cline (ODU '80), right, tries
to steal the ball from Ticha Penicheiro during ODU's 82-66 win
Sunday. Lieberman-Cline finished with eight points and four assists. by CNB