Duke 63, No. 7 Virginia 62
Don't let them beat you twice.
I hope that was coach Tony Bennett's message to the Cavaliers after their controversial loss at Duke on Saturday.
Like I said before the matchup, the game was not big in terms of being a must-win situation for the Wahoos. No championships were decided. No byes in the ACC tournament were clinched. No place in the ACC standings was locked down. Virginia isn't close to the NCAA tournament bubble. Sure, you can argue it was big in the sense that a victory would have gone a long way toward the 'Hoos winning a third straight ACC regular-season championship and possibly snagging a 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. That a win would have signaled a changing of the guard. But I don't think it is necessary for UVa. It would have been nice for
the program to win its first game in Durham since 1995, but I think Virginia has already made its presence felt over these past couple seasons. A win at Duke, while always an accomplishment, wouldn't necessarily validate Virginia's rise. I think the Cavs have done enough these past couple seasons to be taken seriously. Besides, since the beginning of ACC play last year, Miami, Syracuse, and Notre Dame have all beaten Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium. It's rare, and before the Miami loss last year Duke had won 40-some-odd games in a row there, but the Blue Devils could very well drop another there this season.
Did Grayson Allen walk before putting up his game-winning shot? Yes. Did his right foot land on the court before he released the ball? Yep. Did the referees seem to give Allen every foul call when he drove into the lane during the middle of the second half? It seemed like it. In fact, the Blue Devils only made three field goals over the last 12-ish minutes. They stuck around in the lead thanks to free throws. But Virginia missed a lot of shots, too. Some wide-open 3s. UVa was 2 of 11 from beyond the arc. So while the refs didn't help the situation, Virginia didn't help itself either.
The ending was awful, but Virginia doesn't need to let the game define its season. This year was never going to be about the the result of the game at Cameron. It would have been a nice story for UVa had it won. But it's time to move on. There are bigger prizes out there for the 'Hoos. If they let the game affect their psyche, that is when it ends up being a big game, a bad turning point. So far this season, Virginia has done a good job using losses as positives. In the roughest patch so far this season, UVa lost three of four games. But then it went on a seven-game win streak, which ended Saturday. A veteran group led by a coach that preaches keeping an even keel puts UVa in an advantageous position to get the most out of losses. To get better. Depending on how the rest of this season's story plays out, it could be another good turning point, or maybe it ends up being just another loss.
N.C. State at No. 7 Virginia, 7 p.m. ESPN
But I think the guys will shake it off and focus. They have to quickly, because there is only one day off between games. Virginia hosts a dangerous N.C. State team tonight. Here's more on the Wolfpack:
Record: 13-12, 3-9
Scorers in double figures: Senior guard Anthony Barber (24.1), freshman guard Maverick Rowan (13.1), sophomore forward Abdul-Malik Abu (12.8), sophomore guard Caleb Martin (11)
Leading rebounders: Abu (8.6), junior forward Lennard Freeman (6.2), junior forward BeeJay Anya (5.1), Martin (4.8), Barber (4.6), sophomore guard Cody Martin (4.2)
Assist leaders: Barber (4.6), Cody Martin (2.3)
Notable: Cody Martin averages 6.7 points, Anya 4.4 points, and Freeman 3.6. No other Pack player scores more than a point per game. Like Duke, State isn't very deep production-wise, but does have more players averaging more than 10 mpg.
Best win: Beating top-25 ranked Miami, 85-69, at home Jan. 30
Worst win: High Point, 76-73, at home Dec. 16
Other wins: South Alabama, IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University of Indianapolis), LSU, Winthrop, Bucknell, South Florida, Missouri, UNC Greensboro, Northeastern, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest
Best loss: Probably home against Louisville, 77-72, or at Duke, 88-80
Worst loss: Season opener, an 85-68 home loss to William and Mary
Other losses: Arizona State, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Florida State (twice), North Carolina, Duke at home, Georgia Tech
Two things worry me about this game: Barber and rebounding. Obviously, Barber can take a game over. He
is sixth in the country in scoring. Only one player this year has scored 30 points against Virginia, and it was Oakland's Kahlil Felder, who is fourth in scoring. Last year, Barber scored 17 points in two games against UVa on 7-of-20 shooting. He's taking almost twice as many shots as last year, when he averaged 12.1 points. So he's not necessarily more efficient, but he is trying to carry his team on his back and is capable of being more than a headache for the 'Hoos. His 3-point shooting is solid, 37.2 percent, but nothing spectacular. Caleb Martin (35.2 percent) and Rowan (33.5) are capable from behind the line, too. Rowan and Martin have actually both shot more 3s than Barber, even though Barber's percentage is better (173 for Rowan, 165 for Martin, 86 for Barber). So those are the main guys Virginia needs to watch out for in addition to Barber.
And rebounding -- UVa has usually been beaten on the glass when it loses this season, and N.C. State is 25th in the country in rebounds per game (40.7) and 46th in rebounding margin (+5.1 per game). Georgia Tech, who is around N.C. State in the bottom part of the ACC standings, is in the top 50 in rebounding margin as well and beat Virginia on the boards in January when the Yellow Jackets upset the Cavaliers. Virginia is just going to have to hope offensive rebounds don't lead to easy buckets or 3s, buckle down, and try to limit the Wolfpack to as many one-shot possessions as possible. Rebounding is usually about hustle and scrappiness, but the Cavaliers are going to have to be extra sure to get bodies on bodies in the lane when shots are in the air.
If UVa comes out with the right mindset, maybe even a bit angry, it should win going away. But N.C. State isn't unlike Georgia Tech or Wake -- in the bottom half of the league, but dangerous and capable of the upset. The Jackets did it against UVa, like I already said, and the Demon Deacons almost did it, had it not been for Virginia's heroics. I think ultimately, a little bit of a hangover/weariness is expected, but Virginia does enough to fight through it and get the "W."
Gut feeling: Virginia wins by 5-10 points.
Don't let them beat you twice.
I hope that was coach Tony Bennett's message to the Cavaliers after their controversial loss at Duke on Saturday.
Like I said before the matchup, the game was not big in terms of being a must-win situation for the Wahoos. No championships were decided. No byes in the ACC tournament were clinched. No place in the ACC standings was locked down. Virginia isn't close to the NCAA tournament bubble. Sure, you can argue it was big in the sense that a victory would have gone a long way toward the 'Hoos winning a third straight ACC regular-season championship and possibly snagging a 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. That a win would have signaled a changing of the guard. But I don't think it is necessary for UVa. It would have been nice for
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| A tough break for the Wahoos: Grayson Allen's foot was on the floor before releasing his game-winning shot. |
Did Grayson Allen walk before putting up his game-winning shot? Yes. Did his right foot land on the court before he released the ball? Yep. Did the referees seem to give Allen every foul call when he drove into the lane during the middle of the second half? It seemed like it. In fact, the Blue Devils only made three field goals over the last 12-ish minutes. They stuck around in the lead thanks to free throws. But Virginia missed a lot of shots, too. Some wide-open 3s. UVa was 2 of 11 from beyond the arc. So while the refs didn't help the situation, Virginia didn't help itself either.
The ending was awful, but Virginia doesn't need to let the game define its season. This year was never going to be about the the result of the game at Cameron. It would have been a nice story for UVa had it won. But it's time to move on. There are bigger prizes out there for the 'Hoos. If they let the game affect their psyche, that is when it ends up being a big game, a bad turning point. So far this season, Virginia has done a good job using losses as positives. In the roughest patch so far this season, UVa lost three of four games. But then it went on a seven-game win streak, which ended Saturday. A veteran group led by a coach that preaches keeping an even keel puts UVa in an advantageous position to get the most out of losses. To get better. Depending on how the rest of this season's story plays out, it could be another good turning point, or maybe it ends up being just another loss.
N.C. State at No. 7 Virginia, 7 p.m. ESPN
But I think the guys will shake it off and focus. They have to quickly, because there is only one day off between games. Virginia hosts a dangerous N.C. State team tonight. Here's more on the Wolfpack:
Record: 13-12, 3-9
Scorers in double figures: Senior guard Anthony Barber (24.1), freshman guard Maverick Rowan (13.1), sophomore forward Abdul-Malik Abu (12.8), sophomore guard Caleb Martin (11)
Leading rebounders: Abu (8.6), junior forward Lennard Freeman (6.2), junior forward BeeJay Anya (5.1), Martin (4.8), Barber (4.6), sophomore guard Cody Martin (4.2)
Assist leaders: Barber (4.6), Cody Martin (2.3)
Notable: Cody Martin averages 6.7 points, Anya 4.4 points, and Freeman 3.6. No other Pack player scores more than a point per game. Like Duke, State isn't very deep production-wise, but does have more players averaging more than 10 mpg.
Best win: Beating top-25 ranked Miami, 85-69, at home Jan. 30
Worst win: High Point, 76-73, at home Dec. 16
Other wins: South Alabama, IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University of Indianapolis), LSU, Winthrop, Bucknell, South Florida, Missouri, UNC Greensboro, Northeastern, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest
Best loss: Probably home against Louisville, 77-72, or at Duke, 88-80
Worst loss: Season opener, an 85-68 home loss to William and Mary
Other losses: Arizona State, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Florida State (twice), North Carolina, Duke at home, Georgia Tech
Two things worry me about this game: Barber and rebounding. Obviously, Barber can take a game over. He
And rebounding -- UVa has usually been beaten on the glass when it loses this season, and N.C. State is 25th in the country in rebounds per game (40.7) and 46th in rebounding margin (+5.1 per game). Georgia Tech, who is around N.C. State in the bottom part of the ACC standings, is in the top 50 in rebounding margin as well and beat Virginia on the boards in January when the Yellow Jackets upset the Cavaliers. Virginia is just going to have to hope offensive rebounds don't lead to easy buckets or 3s, buckle down, and try to limit the Wolfpack to as many one-shot possessions as possible. Rebounding is usually about hustle and scrappiness, but the Cavaliers are going to have to be extra sure to get bodies on bodies in the lane when shots are in the air.
If UVa comes out with the right mindset, maybe even a bit angry, it should win going away. But N.C. State isn't unlike Georgia Tech or Wake -- in the bottom half of the league, but dangerous and capable of the upset. The Jackets did it against UVa, like I already said, and the Demon Deacons almost did it, had it not been for Virginia's heroics. I think ultimately, a little bit of a hangover/weariness is expected, but Virginia does enough to fight through it and get the "W."
Gut feeling: Virginia wins by 5-10 points.
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