No. 25 Virginia 73, Radford 52
Armaan Franklin said he felt like he let down his teammates with his inability to shoot the ball against Navy. He made up for it Friday.
The Indiana transfer went 5 for 8 from beyond the arc on his way to 21 points as Virginia defeated Radford at home in the type of game that fans have gotten more used to over the Tony Bennett years.
Armaan Franklin stares down one of his eight 3-point attempts. Franklin shot 42.4% from beyond the arc last season for Indiana. (UVa Athletics)
Early on, Radford went up 8-3, and some Wahoos fans were surely wondering what the heck was going on, but Virginia quickly got things straightened out. After a dunk by Shaquan Jules put the Highlanders up 10-8, Franklin made his second 3 to put the ‘Hoos up 11-10 and kick-start a 15-0 run. Virginia led 23-10 with 9:21 remaining in the first half. At the break, UVa held a 41-21 advantage, and the game more or less stayed even the rest of the way. It wasn’t a perfect game, but it was a nice step up after what we witnessed Tuesday.
It’s no surprise StLouHoo talked about 3-point shooting in his keys on Hoos Place, and that was the big difference in this game from Tuesday’s contest. After making just 4 of 16 against Navy, UVa (1-1) went 9 for 20 versus Radford. Reece Beekman went 1 for 2, Kihei Clark 1 for 3, Taine Murray hit his first 3 as a ‘Hoo, and Carson McCorkle knocked 1 of his 4 attempts down as well. Radford (1-1), meanwhile, went 6 of 20, a far cry from Navy’s 11-for-21 performance.
Bennett said Franklin, who went 1 for 7 from deep versus the Midshipmen, may have been feeling under the weather in that one, but he was just happy to see him ready against Radford and willing to continue to shoot. “Shooters shoot, and they don’t pass up good shots,” Bennett said.
Jayden Gardner matched his total from the Navy game with 18 points and added seven rebounds. He was relentless on the offensive glass, earning several trips to the free throw line, where he went 8 for 10. He terrorized the Highlanders last year as well with East Carolina, collecting 20 points and eight boards in a Pirates win.
Kadin Shedrick rounded out the double-figure scoring for Virginia with 10 points, all coming at the free throw line, where he was perfect. Shedrick also had five rebounds, four blocks, and a steal.
The Cavaliers went 24 for 29 at the line. It’s great seeing Virginia be aggressive in the paint and get to the line, something we know has been sorely lacking in recent years.
Beekman had another nice all-around game with 7 points, and it was refreshing to see him step into and confidently knock down a 3. He went 2 for 6 from the field and added another four steals after six versus Navy. Beekman also tallied three assists, three rebounds, and a block.
Clark went 3 for 8 from the field and posted 7 points, five assists, four rebounds, and two steals.
After barely playing against Navy, Carson McCorkle and Taine Murray saw extended minutes versus Radford, with 17 and 15 minutes, respectively. McCorkle scored 5 points, and Murray had 3. Unsurprisingly, though they both made treys, Bennett mentioned their defense after the game, noting that both did a nice job on that end. (McCorkle even had a block.) Bennett said the rotation is still up in the air, and he pointed out that he especially challenged McCorkle in practice the past couple of days. Hopefully getting them into the game early is a development that continues going forward. I’m sure if they can keep up their defensive intensity, Bennett will give them shots (no pun intended). Their offense is going to be needed at times.
Francisco Caffaro made two free throws in 14 minutes, and Kody Stattmann played 11 minutes but did not score. Igor Milicic Jr. made his debut with 3 minutes left and air-mailed a 3. He did have a rebound and an assist, though.
Virginia kept its turnovers under control with just 10. Clark had three, Franklin two, and Beekman one. Radford recorded 15. Virginia also was better on the glass but still barely won that battle, 33-30.
Bennett said he thinks the players understand now how hard they must play to compete.
“Everyone’s got to lay it down and … empty the tank each possession,” he said.
After the disappointing season-opener, this was an encouraging step in the right direction. Fans, you can exhale. The potential of the team is a little clearer now. We can see the path forward and how this team needs to play and what it needs to do to aim for an ACC finish we can be satisfied with.
But first, it’s clear there’s still plenty of work left to do. Bennett acknowledged the second half wasn’t as sharp. In his postgame news conference, he kept glancing up at the TV. Then he was asked about next week’s challenge, which just so happened to be on the TV. Houston was pounding Rice at the half. The Cavaliers face the Cougars on Tuesday in Houston.
“Forty-four to 15, they’re up, I just looked,” Bennett said of Houston, one of last season’s Final Four participants. “These games always seem like a good idea scheduling-wise in the comforts of summer and spring.”
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