Virginia women’s basketball picked up a resounding win against Miami in an ACC clash Thursday at John Paul Jones Arena. The Cavaliers (13-13, 5-10 ACC) featured four double-digit scorers on the night and limited the Hurricanes’ (16-10, 6-9 ACC) effectiveness on offense, forcing the visitors into difficult shots and a 37.9 percent rate on field goals.
Freshman guard Kymora Johnson continues to impress in her first year, as she led all scorers with 21 points as well as four assists and four rebounds. Fifth-year forward Camryn Taylor also had an impressive performance, recording her 12th career double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
The Cavaliers got out to a great start mostly thanks to Taylor, who scored eight of the team’s first 11 points. Senior guard Alexia Smith also contributed five points and a pair of assists early on. Virginia was able to keep the Hurricanes under double digits until just two minutes remained in the first quarter, forcing numerous turnovers and capitalizing on them offensively with 10 points off turnovers in the first quarter alone. The period ended in a score of 22-15 in favor of Virginia, but Miami had shown dangerous flashes in the last two minutes.
The Hurricanes looked to draw closer in the beginning of the second quarter but were unable to close the gap. As the quarter progressed the Cavaliers began to build up a larger lead, eventually increasing it to 14 as the half ended in a score of 46-32. Despite Miami having nearly three times as many points in the paint as Virginia, the Cavaliers continued to capitalize off of turnovers. The hosts also shot a resounding 53 percent from the field and 58 percent from beyond the arc in the first half. Johnson scored eight points in the second quarter, making both of her three-point attempts, bringing her total to 11 for the game.
The third period began in an odd fashion with neither team scoring for the first two minutes, until Smith broke the drought with a pair of made free throws. The Hurricanes were able to cut into the Virginia lead, bringing it as close as seven points for a moment but never being able to continue that momentum. The quarter ended in a score of 58-47 with the Cavaliers still on top despite Miami outscoring them in the period. Johnson added another five points to her total in addition to working hard on the defensive end by collecting a steal.
The Hurricanes seemed to come alive in the fourth quarter, attacking the Virginia lead and closing the gap to just three points. However, the Cavaliers were able to hold it together and continued to power through, never allowing Miami to obtain a lead. The last two minutes saw Virginia pull away for good, building their lead back up to 17 points. The game ended with a score of 77-60 in a strong offensive showing from the Cavaliers.
Coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton was pleased with her team’s performance Thursday, highlighting their noticeable improvements from Sunday’s defeat to Syracuse.
“That was a really good game for us,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “I’m really proud of how we competed for 40 minutes. I thought we took some notes from the Syracuse game because in the second half of the Syracuse game I thought we got better.”
Agugua-Hamilton also noted the team’s emphasis on displaying a strong performance at JPJ, where they’d won only one of their seven ACC games before Thursday.
“We took a lot of pride in playing in front of our hometown fans and playing on our court,” Agugua-Hamilton said.
The win is Virginia’s third in its last four games, as the Cavaliers have put together some strong offensive performances as of late. Virginia must continue to do so in the coming weeks in order to make a run in the ACC Tournament, which is inching ever closer. The Cavaliers’ next test will come Sunday against No. 20 Louisville on the road. The game tips off at noon and will be broadcast on the CW.
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