Behind the transition ability and pure speed of its All-ACC guards Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds, Virginia (10-6, ACC 2-2) knocked off No. 22 Maryland (15-4, ACC 1-3) 103-91 last night at the John Paul Jones Arena.
Virginia's dynamic duo received support from a third guard, however, as sophomore Mamadi Diane paced the Cavaliers with a career-high 26 points. Singletary added 25 points and seven assists of his own.
"We had a terrific practice yesterday and a very good shoot-around today," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said after the game. "So I had an air of confidence about what I thought would happen [tonight]."
The game's first five minutes featured both teams pushing an incredible tempo, led by Singletary and Maryland's D.J. Strawberry. These lightening-fast guards had their respective teams close until the five-minute mark when Virginia began its ascent. Cavalier freshman Jamil Tucker hit two consecutive three-pointers off Singletary assists near the 13-minute mark, extending Virginia's early lead to 24-14.
"[Jamil] definitely stepped up tonight," Singletary said. "We know when he knocks down those threes that he's on. He was a plus for us tonight."
Maryland took a big hit with just under 12 minutes to play as Strawberry was forced to the bench with two fouls. Over the next three minutes, the Cavaliers routinely beat the Terrapins down the court, with Singletary and senior J.R. Reynolds finding open shooters in transition.
With two minutes to play in the first half, Virginia's own transition game ran into a roadblock in the form of Maryland's full court press. Up 50-30 with 2:34 left in the first, Virginia managed to commit four turnovers in less than a minute, opening the door for a Terrapin run -- the half ended with the score at 50-43.
The story of the second half was further foul trouble for the Terrapins. Maryland did cut Virginia's lead to only three just five minutes into the half. At that point, however, three of Maryland's starters -
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