As the game clock wound down at the Carrier Dome Monday, a much-anticipated sense of déjà vu started to sink in for Virginia fans, players and coaches alike. Despite being down 13-2 with seven minutes to go in the first half, the Cavaliers were able to comfortably defeat Syracuse, 59-47, clinching the ACC regular-season title for the second year in a row.
“It’s a blessing to be in this position for all of us,” junior guard Malcolm Brogdon said Saturday, two days before putting up 10 points in the win against the Orange.
A blessing indeed for a team that has managed to win all but one of its games while relying primarily on stellar defense in a sport often dominated by offense. The Cavaliers (28-1, 16-1 ACC) are currently holding opponents to just under 50 points per game (49.9), a feat that hasn’t been accomplished over an entire season in Division I men’s basketball since 1992, when the Princeton Tigers held opponents to 48.2. But recently, Virginia has been far more than a defensive juggernaut.
The real story has been Virginia’s ability to overcome the loss of junior guard Justin Anderson, who, despite missing the Cavaliers’ last seven games with a fractured pinky, is leading the ACC in 3-point percentage at 48.4.
Brogdon is currently netting 13.6 points per game and making 43.5 percent of his shots. Sophomore point guard London Perrantes has also gone above and beyond, averaging 4.7 assists per game (fourth best in the ACC) to go along with a conference-leading 3.32 assist-to-turnover ratio. He dished out a career-high 10 assists Monday night.
However, nobody on the team has done a better job of stepping up than junior forward Anthony Gill, who has averaged 13.9 points per game since the loss of Anderson, and currently leads the team with 6.8 rebounds per game. He has proven himself to be one of the most consistent scorers on this Virginia squad, as evidenced by his physical, down-low play night in and night out.
And Gill is not the only Virginia forward to have recently elevated his level of play.
This past Senior Day, as the Cavaliers hosted the Virginia Tech Hokies, senior forward Darion Atkins managed 16 points and six rebounds in his final game at John Paul Jones Arena. But Atkins’ role on this Cavalier team goes far beyond his game-day contributions.
“We wouldn’t be here without Darion today,” Gill said. “Just him pushing us in practice all the time — you know, he’s a great leader, and we just feed off of his energy, especially on the defensive end. He’s the anchor that we have, and we have to make sure that we’re up to par with Darion.”
Atkins is one of just three seniors on this Virginia team. Of those three, he is the only one who consistently sees the court, averaging 23.4 minutes per game this season.
“He perseveres through so much,” Brogdon said. “He didn’t play as much freshman year, and then as he’s gotten older and matured he’s started to play way more. He’s the key to a lot of our wins this season.”
Now, Virginia heads to Louisville (23-6, 11-5 ACC) Saturday with the sole blemish on its record a heart-breaking loss to No. 3 Duke. The Cavaliers are looking to finish the regular season with just one loss — still very feasible.
Since narrowly losing to Virginia in early February, Louisville’s season has been nothing short of tumultuous. They suffered a home loss to NC State just one week after their strong effort against the Cavaliers, and then proceeded to lose again four days later in a tough matchup against Syracuse.
To make matters worse, senior guard Chris Jones was recently dismissed from the team amid allegations of sexual assault. Jones was averaging 13.7 points per game and led the ACC with 2.04 steals per game.
The biggest challenge for the Virginia defense will be shutting down junior forward and future first-round draft pick Montrezl Harrell, who is averaging 15.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game this season.
When asked about Harrell in early February, Bennett, who knows him from USA Basketball, said Harrell is one of the fiercest competitors he has ever seen.
“He is a warrior between the lines,” Bennett said. “The bigger the game, the bigger the setting, he seems to thrive on that.”
But with the second-best team in the country vying for a nearly perfect season, Louisville is going to have to leave everything on the court if it wants to stand a chance.
Tipoff against Louisville is set for 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky.
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