The Virginia men's basketball team will face another tough test Sunday, traveling to Chestnut Hills, Mass. in the hopes of reviving its 11-12 (1-9 ACC) record against Boston College.
The Cavs are currently in the midst of a seven-game losing streak and have endured tough losses to Wake Forest and North Carolina, among others and unfortunately for Virginia, this season seems to be a lost cause. Sunday's game, however, provides a chance for the Cavaliers to right the ship and salvage some pride.
"When you play excellent basketball teams, the margin of error is razor-thin," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said. "You try as best you can, but you can't play a perfect game; any mistake that you make leads to something positive on the other end for a good team."
In the face of this small margin of error, Virginia seemed to be getting back on track during Tuesday's loss to North Carolina. The Cavs held a lead for periods of the game and were even with the Tar Heels late in the game. Moreover, senior guard Sean Singletaryput up a huge game with very little support and contribution from his teammates. Although North Carolina centered its defense on the star guard, Singletary was firing and hitting on all cylinders. He finished the game with 27 points and seven assists. Only one other Cavalier scored in double figures -- sophomore Calvin Baker, who finished with 10 points.
"We're a team that has to make perimeter shots, and we have not done that," Leitao said. "I wish it wasn't that way, because I'm a believer that you live by the jump shot, you die by the jump shot. It has not been good for us recently."
Virginia has already played Boston College once this season. The teams first met last month in Charlottesville when the Cavs came away with their most recent victory, 84-66.
In the first matchup, Virginia excelled because it was able to hold the Eagles to 39-percentshooting from the field. Furthermore, the Cavaliers forced Boston College to commit 14 turnovers, which paved the way for four Cavaliers to score more than 15 points. Singletary, Baker, senior forward Adrian Joseph and junior forward Mamadi Diane all enjoyed excellent shooting nights against Boston College, as each player shot at least 40 percent from the field.
Boston College, like Virginia, has fallen on hard times recently. The Eagles have lost six straight games dating back to their loss to Virginia. Despite their troubles, however, the Eagles are led by one of the most dynamic players in the ACC. Junior guard Tyrese Rice is the ACC's second leading scorer and averages 19.9 points per game. The guard can score from anywhere on the court, can create for other players and will present significant match-up problems yet again for Virginia. If Virginia is to escape from Boston College with a victory, it will need to limit Rice and reverse the unlucky streak it has been riding.
"We don't really take any of the moral victories like that, because losers do that, and I don't feel as though we're a loser," Singletary said. "Even though we have a losing record right now, I just know that we can turn it around"
Read More
Virginia annihilated 41-14 in a must-win contest versus North Carolina
By Peter Kriebel | 21 hours agoJust about everything that could have gone wrong for Virginia football went wrong.
No. 24 women’s soccer not to be denied in late win over Clemson
By Sam Chun | YesterdayThe Cavaliers topped Clemson 1-0 in front of a packed out Klöckner Stadium.
Men’s soccer, totally discombobulated, capitulates early to No. 5 Pittsburgh
By Michael Liebermann | YesterdayPittsburgh set a program record for the quickest cluster of three goals.
