It’s one thing to lose. It’s another to give one away.
As Old Dominion embarks on a two-game swing through Rice and North Texas beginning Thursday, it does so with the foulest of tastes in its mouth.
The Monarchs, leading Texas El Paso by seven points at home with 1:17 left in regulation Saturday, let slip both the lead and the game, falling 78-70 in a crushing Conference USA overtime loss.
It’s why this week’s trek is especially vital to rerouting the ship.
“It’s always an important one, even more so with this,” ODU coach Jeff Jones said. “It would’ve been an important road trip, but losing here, losing the way we did, that makes this upcoming road trip even more important.”
The Monarchs (7-9, 2-1 C-USA) had gotten off to a promising 2-0 start in the league before Saturday’s collapse, with COVID-interrupted wins over Florida International and Texas San Antonio.
But a free throw and a pair of late 3-pointers evaporated their lead against UTEP, and the Miners’ Souley Boum scored 13 points in overtime to render the heartbreak.
ODU, almost back to full strength after a recent COVID outbreak, struggled to find open shots against UTEP’s active man-to-man defense. The Monarchs shot 31.5% from the field and made just 1 of 15 from 3-point range.
Jones called into question his team’s effort.
“You’ve got to work on offense,” he said. “You’ve got to come off screens hard, and you can’t do it some of the time. I think we’ve been doing a better job, but fatigue is not an answer.”
Despite the loss, ODU sits in an early tie for first with Charlotte in C-USA’s East Division. Wins at Rice (10-6, 3-2) and North Texas (11-4, 4-1) would go a long way toward erasing an unsavory memory.
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com
