He had not hit a shot all afternoon. But Saturday, with less than three seconds on the clock and the game on the line, senior captain Todd Billet nailed a go-ahead three-pointer, catapulting Virginia to an 82-80 home victory over No. 15 Georgia Tech. The win snapped Virginia's five-game conference losing streak that dated back to a loss at North Carolina Jan. 24.
Down six points with less than four minutes to play, the Cavaliers battled back into the game behind clutch baskets from junior Devin Smith and freshman T.J. Bannister. Still down by one with 24 seconds left on the clock, the scene eerily mirrored the Maryland game earlier in the season when Billet had the ball stolen on the game's last possession with a chance to win.
Determined to avoid a similar fate, the Cavaliers inbounded the ball and ran a play designed to get junior Elton Brown open for a shot. Seeing he was double-teamed, Brown hit Billet with a skip pass at the top of the arc. The senior stepped up in a big way, draining the game winner with 2.4 seconds left to play. Following a failed last second heave by Georgia Tech's Will Bynum, the Cavaliers claimed their third conference victory of the season.
"It's a 40-minute game," Virginia coach Pete Gillen said. "Todd Billet had not done much for 39 minutes and 57 and a half seconds. But the last two and a half seconds won the game. I'm happy for Todd to have a moment like that because he is a senior."
On a day when Brown dropped 20 points for his third consecutive game, it was Bannister who created a stir with his surprising performance. Facing Jarrett Jack, one of the better point guards in the country, Bannister responded with 15 points and seven assists in his most playing time of the season.
"T.J. stepped up and played great," Billet said. "He was very aggressive. He stepped up and made shots. He has a great game, especially for a freshman coming in and doing that."
In addition to the numbers he put up, Bannister helped the Cavaliers by giving them a transition game that the team had severely lacked in recent contests. After showing signs of improvement against Duke last Wednesday, Bannister took full advantage of the team's desire to push the pace of the game.
"Everybody wants to get out and run," Bannister said. "We push the ball whenever we have a chance. I just try and hit our shooters or pass it around to Elton for the easy bucket."
Not to be overshadowed by the great underclass performances, the veteran Smith once again raised his level of play to lift the team in its time of need. After being shutout in only six minutes of play during the first half, Smith showed why he was chosen as a captain by draining 16 crucial second-half points, helping the Cavaliers to fend off the Yellow Jackets -- all of this despite ongoing back problems that have left him out of practice for over a month.
The Cavaliers hit the hardwood again Tuesday night in Tallahassee against the Florida State Seminoles. Further attempting to remove itself from the ACC cellar, Virginia will take on a Florida State team that has lost only once at home all season.
But a mid-January victory over the Seminoles, combined with Saturday's momentum shift, could allow the Cavaliers to turn their conference win into a late-season run.
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