Oh hey there, bouncing, round orange object.
It's been awhile since I posted about Virginia basketball, and that is because the end of the football season was actually riveting for the Cavaliers: They were actually playing decent, there was coaching search speculation, and then finally, the introduction of Bronco Mendenhall as UVa's new coach. It all kind of pushed hoops to the backburner -- in my posts only. I have feverishly been watching the games and keeping up with the hardwood 'Hoos' progress.
The last time I addressed the team's results was following the second game of the season, a road loss to George Washington. The team looked lethargic and not ready for an intense road atmosphere. I also recognized GW as a good team and so far, that has held true. The Colonials are 8-1, and the loss was by just five to Cincinnati in Brooklyn.
Since the loss, Virginia has rattled off seven straight victories. Here is a quick look at each of them:
Bradley, 82-57, in Charleston, S.C.: Luuk van Bree made four 3s in the game -- I believe it was three in the first half -- and the lightly-regarded Braves (they've lost every game since and just one all year) were giving the Cavs all they could handle in the opening minutes. I think Virginia was having a hangover from the GW game in the opening minutes. Bradley led, 22-19, before Virginia finally went on a run to go up 37-25 at the half. Anthony Gill had 16 points, Malcolm Brogdon had 13, London Perrantes had 12, and Marial Shayok had 10.
Long Beach State, 87-52, in Charleston: The 49ers, despite coming off a victory over Big East team Seton Hall, were no match for the Cavaliers. LBSU got out to an 8-4 lead, but it was all UVa after that, as the Cavs dominated the game, slicing up the 49ers' defense and slowing down their fast-paced offense easily. Virginia led, 41-23 at halftime and scored 46 points in the second half. Shayok had the best game of his career with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including 3 of 4 on 3s. Perrantes had 15, Devon Hall 12, Gill 11, and Brogdon 10.
George Mason, 83-66, in Charleston: The Patriots -- winners of nine games last year -- made it an all-Virginia title game at the Charleston Classic. GMU, under first-year coach Dave Paulsen, pushed the Cavs in the first half and made it interesting. UVa led 47-39 at the half. Five Patriots scored in double digits, led by Jaire Grayer with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Mason's defense was not good enough, though. Virginia shot 57.1 percent and was led by 21 from Brogdon, 16 from Perrantes, 15 from Gill, and 14 from Mike Tobey.
Lehigh, 80-54, in Charlottesville: Virginia again got off to a slow start, something that has been a troubling pattern this season. But a 16-4 run in the first half erased a two-point deficit, and then Virginia put together a 24-8 run in the second half to put the Mountain Hawks away. Brogdon was terrific, scoring 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including three 3s. Shayok had 11, and Gill put up 10.
Ohio State, 64-58, in Columbus: The Cavaliers were on the road for the second consecutive year as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. Last year, Virginia beat Maryland. Perrantes, UVa's starting point guard, underwent an appendectomy the Sunday before and was out. You could tell that the flow of Virginia's game was affected. It was a tight game throughout, but Virginia outscored Ohio State in the defensive first half and the more offensively-highlighted second half. Gill had zero points before halftime but 10 in the second half to really help the Cavaliers, but Brogdon was again the star, pouring in 22 points while making 7 of 16 shots, and a career high six 3s on 10 shots. His performance had OSU coach Thad Matta gushing over him after the game. "That's one of the best kids, honestly, I've seen because he's so patient, he's so smooth." Darius Thompson, starting in place of Perrantes and for the first time since the GW game, had 12 points.
William & Mary, 67-52, in Charlottesville: The Tribe came in with accolades, having beaten N.C. State on the road by double digits, and had just two losses by a combined five points. Virginia looked ready, getting off to one of its best starts of the season. Virginia was up 14, but then W&M charged back, making it a 10-point game by halftime and then cutting it to six in the second half. UVa kept at it, though, and eventually wore the Tribe down. Thompson gave the victory an exclamation point when with four minutes left he took the ball from a player, started up the court, passed to Brogdon, then received the ball back in time for a vicious dunk on top of a another player. JPJ erupted and Thompson landed on SportsCenter's top plays. In case you missed it, here's the video: Click
Thompson finished with 12 points and the team was led by 16 each from Brogdon and Gill.
West Virginia, 70-54, in New York: In the Jimmy V Classic, Virginia could not have gotten off to a worse start against WVU's vaunted press defense. Virginia looked tentative early and got behind by 14, thanks to several turnovers and some poor defense. By the end of the half, though, the Wahoos were shaping up, and the deficit was just 36-30 at the break. Gill was a monster in the first half, keeping Virginia in the game with 15 points and seven boards in the first 20 minutes. Virginia dominated the second half, outscoring the Mountaineers 40-18. UVa finished with 19 turnovers, but cut down on the sloppiness in the second half. West Virginia turned it over 18 times itself, and UVa took advantage, shooting 73.7 percent in the second half. WVU, meanwhile,really struggled to make outside shots, shooting just over 30 percent in the second half. The Mountaineers were bad at the line, too, making just 12 of 21. Virginia was a little better at 13 of 20. Gill finished with 20 points to lead the team. Perrantes made his return and was bad in the first half and acknowledged as much after the game. His second half was much better, though, and he made three 3s and scored 13 points. Brogdon added 14 and Thompson had 10.
WVU came into the game undefeated. The road doesn't get easier for the Cavs in their next game. UVa hosts undefeated Villanova at noon Dec. 19 in a game that will be televised by ESPN2.
It's been awhile since I posted about Virginia basketball, and that is because the end of the football season was actually riveting for the Cavaliers: They were actually playing decent, there was coaching search speculation, and then finally, the introduction of Bronco Mendenhall as UVa's new coach. It all kind of pushed hoops to the backburner -- in my posts only. I have feverishly been watching the games and keeping up with the hardwood 'Hoos' progress.
The last time I addressed the team's results was following the second game of the season, a road loss to George Washington. The team looked lethargic and not ready for an intense road atmosphere. I also recognized GW as a good team and so far, that has held true. The Colonials are 8-1, and the loss was by just five to Cincinnati in Brooklyn.
Since the loss, Virginia has rattled off seven straight victories. Here is a quick look at each of them:
Bradley, 82-57, in Charleston, S.C.: Luuk van Bree made four 3s in the game -- I believe it was three in the first half -- and the lightly-regarded Braves (they've lost every game since and just one all year) were giving the Cavs all they could handle in the opening minutes. I think Virginia was having a hangover from the GW game in the opening minutes. Bradley led, 22-19, before Virginia finally went on a run to go up 37-25 at the half. Anthony Gill had 16 points, Malcolm Brogdon had 13, London Perrantes had 12, and Marial Shayok had 10.
Long Beach State, 87-52, in Charleston: The 49ers, despite coming off a victory over Big East team Seton Hall, were no match for the Cavaliers. LBSU got out to an 8-4 lead, but it was all UVa after that, as the Cavs dominated the game, slicing up the 49ers' defense and slowing down their fast-paced offense easily. Virginia led, 41-23 at halftime and scored 46 points in the second half. Shayok had the best game of his career with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including 3 of 4 on 3s. Perrantes had 15, Devon Hall 12, Gill 11, and Brogdon 10.
George Mason, 83-66, in Charleston: The Patriots -- winners of nine games last year -- made it an all-Virginia title game at the Charleston Classic. GMU, under first-year coach Dave Paulsen, pushed the Cavs in the first half and made it interesting. UVa led 47-39 at the half. Five Patriots scored in double digits, led by Jaire Grayer with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Mason's defense was not good enough, though. Virginia shot 57.1 percent and was led by 21 from Brogdon, 16 from Perrantes, 15 from Gill, and 14 from Mike Tobey.
Lehigh, 80-54, in Charlottesville: Virginia again got off to a slow start, something that has been a troubling pattern this season. But a 16-4 run in the first half erased a two-point deficit, and then Virginia put together a 24-8 run in the second half to put the Mountain Hawks away. Brogdon was terrific, scoring 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including three 3s. Shayok had 11, and Gill put up 10.
Ohio State, 64-58, in Columbus: The Cavaliers were on the road for the second consecutive year as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. Last year, Virginia beat Maryland. Perrantes, UVa's starting point guard, underwent an appendectomy the Sunday before and was out. You could tell that the flow of Virginia's game was affected. It was a tight game throughout, but Virginia outscored Ohio State in the defensive first half and the more offensively-highlighted second half. Gill had zero points before halftime but 10 in the second half to really help the Cavaliers, but Brogdon was again the star, pouring in 22 points while making 7 of 16 shots, and a career high six 3s on 10 shots. His performance had OSU coach Thad Matta gushing over him after the game. "That's one of the best kids, honestly, I've seen because he's so patient, he's so smooth." Darius Thompson, starting in place of Perrantes and for the first time since the GW game, had 12 points.
William & Mary, 67-52, in Charlottesville: The Tribe came in with accolades, having beaten N.C. State on the road by double digits, and had just two losses by a combined five points. Virginia looked ready, getting off to one of its best starts of the season. Virginia was up 14, but then W&M charged back, making it a 10-point game by halftime and then cutting it to six in the second half. UVa kept at it, though, and eventually wore the Tribe down. Thompson gave the victory an exclamation point when with four minutes left he took the ball from a player, started up the court, passed to Brogdon, then received the ball back in time for a vicious dunk on top of a another player. JPJ erupted and Thompson landed on SportsCenter's top plays. In case you missed it, here's the video: Click
Thompson finished with 12 points and the team was led by 16 each from Brogdon and Gill.
West Virginia, 70-54, in New York: In the Jimmy V Classic, Virginia could not have gotten off to a worse start against WVU's vaunted press defense. Virginia looked tentative early and got behind by 14, thanks to several turnovers and some poor defense. By the end of the half, though, the Wahoos were shaping up, and the deficit was just 36-30 at the break. Gill was a monster in the first half, keeping Virginia in the game with 15 points and seven boards in the first 20 minutes. Virginia dominated the second half, outscoring the Mountaineers 40-18. UVa finished with 19 turnovers, but cut down on the sloppiness in the second half. West Virginia turned it over 18 times itself, and UVa took advantage, shooting 73.7 percent in the second half. WVU, meanwhile,really struggled to make outside shots, shooting just over 30 percent in the second half. The Mountaineers were bad at the line, too, making just 12 of 21. Virginia was a little better at 13 of 20. Gill finished with 20 points to lead the team. Perrantes made his return and was bad in the first half and acknowledged as much after the game. His second half was much better, though, and he made three 3s and scored 13 points. Brogdon added 14 and Thompson had 10.
WVU came into the game undefeated. The road doesn't get easier for the Cavs in their next game. UVa hosts undefeated Villanova at noon Dec. 19 in a game that will be televised by ESPN2.
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