For Virginia men's basketball fans, it seems like the magic of senior guard Sean Singletary will never end -- and most hope it never will. The Cavaliers continued their postseason run with an improbable 80-76 win last night against Old Dominion in the second round of the College Basketball Invitational. Singletary added to his endless list of feats last night as he scored 22 points, added 10 assists, three steals and led the Cavaliers to an enthralling come-from-behind win. The Cavaliers will continue their CBI run Wednesday night at 7 at John Paul Jones Arena.
With Virginia trailing by 3 points and facing possible defeat, Singletary knocked down a clutch 3-point jumper to tie the game with 23 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, Singletary confronted Old Dominion senior guard Brandon Johnson at mid-court, stole the ball, converted a break-away layup, drew a foul and completed the 3-point play. Singletary's heroics gave Virginia a 3-point lead with four seconds to play, and sophomore guard Calvin Baker iced the game a second later at the free-throw line. Virginia trailed by as many as 10 points in the game and defeated Old Dominion despite allowing the Monarchs to shoot 50.9 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc.
"That was one of the more gut-wrenching games that I've been involved with for a long time," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said. "In the end everybody can have who they have, and I'll take Sean Singletary. He continues to rewrite a story that's already a bestseller in Virginia basketball history. He's truly amazing."
Virginia began the game without a lot of energy, which allowed Old Dominion, eager from the start, to grab the early advantage. The Monarchs jumped out to an early 10-0 lead less than 2:30 into the game. Their strong play and Virginia's complete lack of energy and production in the opening minutes forced Leitao to call a timeout following a converted Old Dominion 3-point attempt.
Leitao's attempts to reverse Virginia's unproductive trend, however, did not exactly succeed. The Monarchs continued to limit Virginia offensively with their tough pressure zone defense. To make matters worse for Virginia, Singletary drew his second foul just over five minutes into the first half. Singletary's early foul trouble forced Leitao to limit the senior guard's minutes in an effort to avoid additional fouls.
The Cavaliers, however, slowly began battling back once Singletary re-entered the game. Thanks to Singletary and freshman guard Jeff Jones Virginia worked its way back into the game and trailed by 4, 20-24, with just over seven minutes remaining in the opening half.
For the remainder of the half, Virginia made progress offensively, but Old Dominion continually answered Virginia's offensive production. The two teams traded baskets over the final eight minutes of the half. With about 35 seconds remaining in the half, the Monarchs knocked down a clutch 3-pointer to give them a 37-29 lead at halftime. The Cavaliers shot just 39 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from 3-point range in the period, compared to 50 percent and 55.6 percent respectively for the Monarchs.
Virginia began the second half firing on all cylinders. Junior forward Mamadi Diane dropped in an acrobatic put-back shot for 2 and knocked down a 3-pointer on Virginia's next trip down the court. During the next four Virginia possessions, sophomore forward Jamil Tucker, Diane and Singletary brought John Paul Jones Arena to life and tied the game at 41 with 16:19 remaining in the game. Virginia's run also forced Old Dominion coach Blaine Taylor to call two timeouts in the first four minutes of the second half. Taylor's attempts to kill Virginia's momentum and energy, however, were unsuccessful as Diane continued Virginia's momentum by connecting on yet another 3-point attempt. Diane's basket gave the Cavaliers a 46-44 lead with 15:09 to play.
Unfortunately for Virginia, the Monarchs were unwilling to surrender their lead without a fight, and during the next four minutes Old Dominion battled back and tied the game at 51 with just less than 11 minutes to play.
For the next five minutes neither team could pull away; the teams traded baskets and the lead continuously. John Paul Jones Arena was alive with energy as each Virginia basket drew scores of cheers. Even occasional Old Dominion cheers could be heard from the significant Old Dominion fan population. Two straight Monarchs' baskets, however, put Old Dominion ahead and the onus on Virginia. The Monarchs led by 4, 68-64, with 3:25 to play and also led by 4, 74-70, with 1:12 remaining.
"I think tonight was a fine show for all the people that observed," Taylor said. "I tip my hat to Virginia for hanging in there. We put ourselves in position to win and we were one play away from walking away as winners"
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