Tonight is payback time for the Virginia men's basketball team. In the second of two meetings between the teams Virginia faces Virginia Techtonight at 7 p.m. at the John Paul Jones Arena.
After a dramatic victory over Georgia Tech Saturday, Virginia will look to keep its home winning streak alive. But the results of Virginia and Virginia Tech's first match-up are still lingering in the Cavaliers' minds. Virginia Tech easily handled Virginia in the first meeting in Blacksburg; the Hokies won that game 84-57. Consequently, tonight's game has a little something extra added to the traditionally heated in-state rivalry.
"They really embarrassed us down in Blacksburg," junior guard Sean Singletary said. "We beat them three times last year. It's just a heated rivalry. It's always going to come down to who has the most emotion and who is playing with the most heart."
Virginia, Virginia Tech and North Carolina are currently tied for first place in the ACC; each program has a 10-4 conference record. Thus, tonight's game will be a first place matchup. The winner will move into sole possession of first place in the ACC.
Virginia Tech brings a tough defense to Charlottesville tonight. The Hokies are ranked second in the ACC total defense -- they give up an average of 64.2 points per game.
Additionally, Virginia Tech is led by an experienced backcourt duo. Senior guard Zabian Dowdell ranks sixth in the ACC in scoring; he averages 18.1 points per game. Additionally, senior guard Jamon Gordon, junior forward Deron Washington and sophomore forward A.D. Vassallo all average more than 11 points per game. The Hokies, however, still rank in the bottom half of the ACC in scoring offense.
Virginia will likely have to deal with a full court press defense from Virginia Tech tonight because Virginia has proven susceptible to the press defense throughout the season. In the first game, Virginia Tech used a suffocating and effective press defense to jump out to a 16-point, first-half lead. The Hokies kept up the pressure throughout the game and held a 29-point lead against the Cavaliers in the closing minutes of the game. To win tonight's game, Virginia will need to be able to handle Virginia Tech's press defense.
Another key for Virginia will be keeping Dowdell in check. Reynolds and Singletary were able to keep Dowdell in check in the first matchup; he was held to only five points. But the senior guard will likely be gunning for the Cavaliers tonight, given his sub-par performance earlier this year.
Regardless of the outcome of tonight's game, the Cavaliers have put themselves in excellent position to receive a bid to the NCAA Tournament. No team with 10 ACC wins has ever failed to receive a bid to the tournament, and with two ACC games remaining, the Cavs have a great chance to improve their standing. The Cavaliers have not allowed themselves to relax, however, and remain focused on exacting revenge against the Hokies tonight.
"We can't relax now because last time we relaxed we went down to Virginia Tech and got smacked," senior forward Jason Cain said. "We have to stay focused now."
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