The last time the Virginia men's basketball team played consecutive road games, the Cavaliers went 0-2 against ACC opponents North Carolina and Boston College. But after beating North Carolina State in Raleigh Wednesday, the Cavaliers have shown they do possess the ability to win on the road, which will be a key factor in the home stretch of the season.
"It definitely feels good to get a win on the road," junior guard Sean Singletary said. "Anytime you get a win in the ACC, especially on the road, it's special. Hopefully, from here on out, we can have a little swagger when we go to other arenas."
The Cavaliers will need this swagger when they play at No. 19 Clemson Sunday. The Tigers started the season on fire, winning their first 17 games and holding the title of the last unbeaten team in the country. Clemson dropped its next two games against ACC foes Maryland and North Carolina but came back with a 74-54 win over Boston College.
Clemson has a balanced scoring attack, with four players averaging more than 11 points per game. As a team, the Tigers have made 147 three pointers in 20 games this season, second in the ACC behind Virginia's 151 treys (in 18 games). Clemson boasts solid guards on both sides of the ball, including K.C. Rivers, who is second only to Singletary in three pointers made with 2.65 per game (Singletary makes 2.67 per game). The Tigers' other two guards, Vernon Hamilton and Chris Hammonds, are both in the top ten in steals in the ACC.
Virginia's guards have also played superb basketball as of late, dominating their opponents on offense. The win over N.C. State exhibited continued scoring from the Cavaliers' duo of Singletary and J.R. Reynolds, who combined for 56 of Virginia's 71 points against the Wolfpack. In the previous game against Wake Forest, Reynolds put up a career high 40 points en route to an 88-76 victory and won the honor of ACC Player of the Week. Virginia coach Dave Leitao is highly impressed with the play of his shooting guard over the last few games.
"I didn't think that after a 40-point performance that I'd be able to say that J.R. came back even better, but he did," Leitao said. "Some of the shots he made were tremendous. He's playing with a lot of confidence right now. He's had some excellent games, he knows he has the green light to shoot, and he's making them."
Reynolds understands his role as a team leader, being one of only two seniors on the roster, and embraced that role by taking control of the game against the Wolfpack.
"We needed this win bad," Reynolds said. "The team needed somebody to step up, and I knew I needed to be that guy. The way Sean had it going in the first half, I knew I needed to come to his rescue."
Virginia's guards will need to step up their game against Clemson's tough defense, which uses a pressing style that Virginia has not seen much of this season. The matchup against Clemson will showcase two fast-paced offenses that like shooting three pointers and excel in transitioning from defense to offense. It also will feature a high-scoring Cavalier backcourt against the conference leader in steals, as the Tigers pick off 10.75 steals per game.
The game starts at 1 p.m. Sunday.
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