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Underdog bites Virginia basketball for second straight game Underdog bites Virginia basketball for second straight game
(about 1 hour later)
ATLANTA — Virginia men’s basketball Coach Tony Bennett stressed forming good habits early in this season of high expectations. But as conference play gets underway, his Cavaliers seem to have fallen in a rut. ATLANTA — Senior guard Malcolm Brogdon couldn’t remember the last time the Virginia men’s basketball team lost consecutive games. Maybe because it was more than two years ago, in December 2013 against Wisconsin and Green Bay , and the consistent winning since has erased those memories. Saturday, Georgia Tech brought the feeling back.
For the second game in a row, fourth-ranked Virginia succumbed on the road to an underdog’s best effort of the season, falling at Georgia Tech, 68-64,on Saturday afternoon. For the second game in a row, fourth-ranked Virginia succumbed on the road to an underdog’s best effort of the season, falling to Georgia Tech, 68-64.
Despite a re-focusing in practice after a 70-68 loss at in-state rival Virginia Tech on Monday, Virginia trailed the Yellow Jackets nearly the entire game. The Cavaliers got into the game with a 7-0 run to tie the game at 49 with six minutes left, but then allowed the next 11 points to effectively seal the outcome. The Cavaliers worked to re-focus in practice after a 70-68 loss at Virginia Tech on Monday and reshuffled their starting lineup on Saturday for the first time in five games to give senior center Mike Tobey and sophomore guard Marial Shayok their first starts of ACC play. But they trailed the Yellow Jackets nearly the entire afternoon. A three-pointer by Shayok closed out a 7-0 run to tie the game at 49 with six minutes left, but Virginia’s defense allowed Georgia Tech a 11-0 tear, during which they hit three three-pointers, that effectively sealed the outcome.
Senior guard Malcolm Brogdon led the Cavaliers (12-3, 1-2 ACC) with 19 points and junior point guard London Perrantes had 13 points and four assists. [Trimble’s three-pointer gives Maryland emotional win over Wisconsin]
Virginia, which entered as one of most efficient offensive teams in the nation, shot 40 percent from the floor, including 4 of 18 on three-pointers, to Georgia Tech’s 44 percent and was out-rebounded 41-29. “It’s reality — we’re in for a fight, we’ve got to improve,” Coach Tony Bennett said. “You’re in for a fight. These guys have won so many games, and it doesn’t always just happen. You’ve got to battle for everything and you can’t ever get tired of doing the little things that have gotten you to win. Those are hard things to do every time, the discipline that’s required.”
The Yellow Jackets (11-5, 1-2) were led by three players with 16 points apiece, including junior forward Quinton Stephens in his first start this season. Brian Gregory ranked the victory among his biggest in five seasons as Georgia Tech’s coach. “We’ve had some big wins, but unfortunately a lot of them have been on the road. We won at Miami when they won the ACC that year in the second-to-last game of the year. But at home with that atmosphere — that’s the way we need it every single game.”
In their previous meeting, last Jan. 22, the Cavaliers held the Yellow Jackets to 28 points, the lowest score ever recorded in an ACC regular season game. But this time Georgia Tech was playing its ACC home opener after competitive losses at No. 7 North Carolina and No. 24 Pittsburgh. The Yellow Jackets do their best work at McCamish Pavilion, and the boisterous crowd helped lift their home record this season to 9-1. Brogdon, one of four Georgia natives on Virginia’s roster, led the Cavaliers (12-3, 1-2 ACC) with 19 points. Junior point guard London Perrantes added 13 points and four assists. Like he did against Virginia Tech, Perrantes led the team in the second half, scoring 11 points in the final 20 minutes and making the team’s first three-pointer of the afternoon with 16 minutes left in the game.
Virginia trailed at halftime for the seventh time in its last nine visits to Atlanta. Virginia entered Saturday’s game one of the most efficient offensive teams in the nation but shot 40 percent from the floor, including 4 of 18 on three-pointers, to Georgia Tech’s 44 percent, and was out-rebounded 41-29.
Virginia chipped away at the 35-24 deficit at halftime until sophomore guard Marial Shayok stepped back and let fly a three-pointer that tied the game at 49. But the Cavaliers’ best chance melted away over the next four minutes. Faltering defense for the second game in a row has Virginia re-examining its identity. Bennett said his team is still finding itself. Brogdon agreed.
The Cavaliers were killed from long range and on the glass early on. They didn’t make a three-pointer until Perrantes hit one with 16 minutes left in the game. “I think we’re a defensive team, but we don’t play like it most games,” Brogdon said. “That’s what I came to Virginia for, we have been in the past couple of years — I’ve been confident that we’re a defensive team. There’s never been ‘I think,’ or a question of it, we’ve just got to re-evaluate ourselves.
From the start, Saturday wasn’t much of a homecoming for Virginia’s four Georgia natives, Brogdon, Isaiah Wilkins, Evan Nolte and Justice Bartley. Georgia Tech dominated from three-point range in the first half, hitting 5 of 9 attempts, three of which were from Virginia Tech transfer Adam Smith. Smith also finished with 16 points, including four of the Yellow Jackets’ eight three-pointers on the game. The Yellow Jackets (11-5, 1-2), playing their ACC home opener after competitive losses at No. 7 North Carolina and No. 24 Pittsburgh, improved to 9-1 at McCamish Pavilion. They were led by three players with 16 points apiece, including junior forward Quinton Stephens in his first start this season.
In all, the Yellow Jackets shot 14 of 29 (48.3 percent) from the floor before intermission, while Virginia went 0 for 5 from three-point range and ended the half 10 of 26 (38.5 percent) overall. The home team dominated from three-point range in the first half, hitting 5 of 9 attempts, three of which were from Virginia Tech transfer Adam Smith. Smith also finished with 16 points, including four of the Yellow Jackets’ eight three-pointers on the game.
In their previous meeting, last Jan. 22, the Cavaliers held the Yellow Jackets to 28 points, the lowest score ever recorded in an ACC regular season game. This season, Bennett said, “the league’s better. Credit to Georgia Tech: You’ve got a better team. I know they played twice on the road and fought against Carolina and Pitt and they’re so much more balanced inside-out this year. Whenever we got close, they hit a couple of big shots.”
Perrantes acknowledged the loss and the prospect of falling further behind in the ACC race puts further importance on Tuesday’s visit from No. 12 Miami, the Cavaliers’ first ranked ACC opponent.
“We’ve been getting everybody’s best shot, we just haven’t been coming up with a good shot of our own. That’s how you get beat,” Perrantes said. “Maybe [the loss] will give us that chip on our shoulder again. Obviously we didn’t want to have that happen, but we’ll see how we come out on Tuesday.”