Pregame: Davidson vs Virginia Tech 11/29/2024

Published: November 28, 2024

Davidson does not jump out defensively, but they do a wonderful job with the small things. Especially their Block Pct, ranking 117th in Division 1. They also rebound extremely well ranking 45th in Division 1 at 75.0%. Their defensive rating ranks them 112th at 86.1, however I feel like that stat is misleading with how slow of a style they play at.

Offensively this team is SLOW. They rank 324th in Pace at 66.2. They just don’t play fast at all. Some of that may be from the injuries they’ve endured over the past season and a quarter, but they definitely fall in the lull you to sleep category.

Most of their shots are either paint touches or 3PAs. Mid range 2s are not in this team's DNA. They remind me a lot of SDSU where they’re really fundamentally sound and attack angles well. The biggest battle will definitely be defensive positioning and communication to stop Davidson.

Individual player highlights:

#7 Katie Donovan (5’11”, Guard)

Katie has a chance to be a rebounding machine if she puts her mind to it. Against Wofford she had 13 rebounds. Three of them being offensive. Her attack isn’t so much offensively, as when she’s on the floor Davidson's Defensive Rating plummets. Katie can completely swing the game on the defensive end. Really effective penetration defensive pressure.

#17 Candice Lienafa (5’11”, Forward)

Extremely good scorer. In her last game against Presbyterian she scored 13, and 3 out of 4 of her attempts were assisted. Effective FG% for the season is 65.5%. Doesn’t rebound well. Elite from the FT line. (91.7%) on the season.

#1 Mallorie Haines (5’10”, Guard)

Mallorie has been changing the game on both ends of the floor. She has great hands and gets steals, and is also a terrific rebounder. Her EFG% for the season is 56.3%, but in wins it is 90.0%. If she gets hot, Davidson has a great chance to win.