Davidson at No. 3 Virginia, 6 p.m. ESPNU
Since beating VCU on the road and finishing up an exam break, Virginia coasted by Cleveland State, 70-54, and absolutely demolished Harvard, 76-27.
The Harvard win was especially incredible. The Crimson came into the season a top-25 ranked team. They barely left Charlottesville with their dignity. Virginia held Harvard, which came into the contest with just one loss and as one of the best shooting teams in the country, to just one first-half field goal and 16 percent shooting overall. The halftime score was 39-8. It was Virginia's biggest win in the history of JPJ. It was complete domination of a possible NCAA tourney team and caught the nation's attention.
So, the bull's-eye has grown even bigger on Virginia's back as it has risen to No. 3 in the country. Wisconsin lost to Duke but Virginia jumped the Badgers after pounding the Crimson. And then Arizona lost to UNLV, knocking the Wildcats down a few pegs. Virginia is one of the most efficient offensive and defensive teams in the country. Justin Anderson leads the team in scoring at 15.1 points per game. He is shooting an incredible 60 percent from beyond the arc. Malcolm Brogdon (13.1) and Anthony Gill (12.1) aren't far behind in scoring department while Mike Tobey (8.8) and Darion Atkins (six) are contributing as well. Marial Shayok and Devon Hall have been key off the bench and London Perrantes has been steady at the point with a 3-to-1 turnover-assist ratio, though he has yet to find the stroke from 3 like he did at the end of last year as he is shooting just 26.3 percent from beyond the arc. Evan Nolte has been providing energy off the bench and has improved his defense this year and has finally started making some shots after struggling to open the season.
Davidson comes into tonight's game hungry for a key win. It has an opportunity to pick up a huge road victory over a ranked team and earn even more respect in the Atlantic 10, which is full of quality teams such as VCU, George Washington, Dayton, and Saint Louis. This is the Wildcats' first year in the A10 after several seasons in the Southern Conference. Davidson was picked near the bottom of the league in the preseason but has had a terrific year so far.
Despite the gaudy record, Davidson hasn't played many tough teams so far. Davidson's one loss was a 90-72 setback against North Carolina. That's why this game is important for the Wildcats; it is another opportunity to try to shine on a big stage.
Davidson is second in the country in scoring (87.7), 34th in field-goal percentage (48.3), 10th in rebounding, and sixth in assists. This is a seriously good offensive team. The Wildcats have four players averaging at least 10 ppg: Tyler Kalinoski (16.1, 5.7 rpg), Jack Gibbs (15.6, 4.3 rpg), Peyton Aldridge (12.4, 5.9 rpg), and Jordan Barham (10.8, 4.1 rpg). The first three of that group are all shooting at least 43.2 percent from 3. Brian Sullivan (8.9), Oskar Michelsen (8.4), and Jake Belford (7.5) are all key contributors as well. As a team, Davidson is shooting just a hair above 41 percent from 3 and are solid from the free-throw line as well at 75 percent.
It will be interesting to see if Virginia can tie up and stall Davidson as well as it did Harvard, which also came into that game a good offensive team too, though not as impressive as Davidson. My inkling is that the Cavaliers won't play as well as they did against the Crimson (how could they?) but they should be able to beat a team that just hasn't played the best competition yet. However, all it takes is a blistering night from 3-point land to all of a sudden make this game very winnable for the Wildcats so UVa needs to be prepared for an onslaught of the 3 ball.
Since beating VCU on the road and finishing up an exam break, Virginia coasted by Cleveland State, 70-54, and absolutely demolished Harvard, 76-27.
The Harvard win was especially incredible. The Crimson came into the season a top-25 ranked team. They barely left Charlottesville with their dignity. Virginia held Harvard, which came into the contest with just one loss and as one of the best shooting teams in the country, to just one first-half field goal and 16 percent shooting overall. The halftime score was 39-8. It was Virginia's biggest win in the history of JPJ. It was complete domination of a possible NCAA tourney team and caught the nation's attention.
So, the bull's-eye has grown even bigger on Virginia's back as it has risen to No. 3 in the country. Wisconsin lost to Duke but Virginia jumped the Badgers after pounding the Crimson. And then Arizona lost to UNLV, knocking the Wildcats down a few pegs. Virginia is one of the most efficient offensive and defensive teams in the country. Justin Anderson leads the team in scoring at 15.1 points per game. He is shooting an incredible 60 percent from beyond the arc. Malcolm Brogdon (13.1) and Anthony Gill (12.1) aren't far behind in scoring department while Mike Tobey (8.8) and Darion Atkins (six) are contributing as well. Marial Shayok and Devon Hall have been key off the bench and London Perrantes has been steady at the point with a 3-to-1 turnover-assist ratio, though he has yet to find the stroke from 3 like he did at the end of last year as he is shooting just 26.3 percent from beyond the arc. Evan Nolte has been providing energy off the bench and has improved his defense this year and has finally started making some shots after struggling to open the season.
Davidson comes into tonight's game hungry for a key win. It has an opportunity to pick up a huge road victory over a ranked team and earn even more respect in the Atlantic 10, which is full of quality teams such as VCU, George Washington, Dayton, and Saint Louis. This is the Wildcats' first year in the A10 after several seasons in the Southern Conference. Davidson was picked near the bottom of the league in the preseason but has had a terrific year so far.
Despite the gaudy record, Davidson hasn't played many tough teams so far. Davidson's one loss was a 90-72 setback against North Carolina. That's why this game is important for the Wildcats; it is another opportunity to try to shine on a big stage.
Davidson is second in the country in scoring (87.7), 34th in field-goal percentage (48.3), 10th in rebounding, and sixth in assists. This is a seriously good offensive team. The Wildcats have four players averaging at least 10 ppg: Tyler Kalinoski (16.1, 5.7 rpg), Jack Gibbs (15.6, 4.3 rpg), Peyton Aldridge (12.4, 5.9 rpg), and Jordan Barham (10.8, 4.1 rpg). The first three of that group are all shooting at least 43.2 percent from 3. Brian Sullivan (8.9), Oskar Michelsen (8.4), and Jake Belford (7.5) are all key contributors as well. As a team, Davidson is shooting just a hair above 41 percent from 3 and are solid from the free-throw line as well at 75 percent.
It will be interesting to see if Virginia can tie up and stall Davidson as well as it did Harvard, which also came into that game a good offensive team too, though not as impressive as Davidson. My inkling is that the Cavaliers won't play as well as they did against the Crimson (how could they?) but they should be able to beat a team that just hasn't played the best competition yet. However, all it takes is a blistering night from 3-point land to all of a sudden make this game very winnable for the Wildcats so UVa needs to be prepared for an onslaught of the 3 ball.
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