RALEIGH, N.C. - According to both the ESPN Coaches Poll and the Associated Press, the Virginia Cavaliers are the No. 8 team in the nation.
But against N.C. State (17-6, 6-4 ACC) last night, the Cavaliers (14-6, 4-5 ACC) did not play like a top-10 team, losing to the Wolfpack, 85-68.
"I thought we were out-scrapped by N.C. State," Virginia coach Pete Gillen said. "They wanted it more. We got out-toughed, out-hustled and out-worked."
After the Cavaliers weathered an early Wolfpack storm to take a 18-14 lead, N.C. State went on a 25-10 run to close out the first half.
Before halftime, N.C. State connected on six three-pointers, opening up the court enough for the Wolfpack to put some breathing room between themselves and Virginia.
The Cavalier defense did little to stop the Wolfpack onslaught. N.C. State was able to force major mismatches against Virginia's man-to-man defense, bust their zone from outside and make little work of their press.
"Defensively, we gave them a lot of open looks," junior guard Roger Mason Jr. said. "You can't sit on a team like that."
Ten first half turnovers by Virginia, most of which were self-inflicted, proved too much to overcome as they could not get into any offensive rhythm.
In the second half the Cavaliers were unable to hold onto the ball. Virginia finished the game with 20 turnovers.
"We have to take better care of the ball," Gillen said. "We are throwing the ball away way too much."
N.C. State senior guard Anthony Grundy led the Wolfpack with 25 points on 9-of-18 shooting with seven rebounds. Scooter Sherill chipped in a career-high 20 points.
Virginia, as a team, connected on only one three-pointer in the entire game.
A lone bright spot for the Cavaliers was junior center Travis Watson, who led all scorers with a career-high 29 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Virginia was unable to get leadership from Mason. He ran into foul trouble, and the aggressive Wolfpack defense shut him down as an offensive threat.
"He was frustrated. They were physical with him," Gillen said of his junior guard.
Mason finished with 12 points on 6-of-12 shooting before fouling out with more than 11 minutes remaining in the game. Mason also received a technical foul after missing a three-point attempt in the first half.
Read More
Football lands three additional transfers
By Peter Kriebel | YesterdayOne common trait that stands out with this most recent batch of transfers is size.
Men’s basketball suffers road drubbing versus California
By Emory Huffman | YesterdayVirginia submitted another rudderless performance.
