The firsts, symbols of a historic backslide, have mounted for Virginia this season. The first time in 15 seasons losing an ACC opener. The first time in 15 seasons losing four or more of the first nine games. The first time in 17 seasons losing back-to-back games by 22 points or more.
The Cavaliers (8-6, 1-2 ACC) added another damning milestone in a 70-50 defeat Saturday.
Their first ever loss to Louisville at John Paul Jones Arena.
Things went deeper than that, though, as far as arresting statistics go. For the first time in 14 seasons, Virginia dropped a home game by 20 or more points. For the second time in its last 63 games, it surrendered 70 or more points at JPJ.
“They got what they wanted,” Interim Coach Ron Sanchez said. “They got shots for the right guys. They screened well. They fought. They didn’t let us get paint touches like we wanted.”
They also dominated the glass. But not at first.
Assessing the game’s early stages, deciding his team was getting manhandled, Louisville Coach Pat Kelsey turned to his team in a timeout. Virginia had controlled the physicality. That had to end.
“I just said, ‘Fellas, if I’m being honest with you right now, they’re the more physical team,’” Kelsey said.
It was a short message. But it worked. The Cardinals (10-5, 3-1 ACC) outrebounded the Cavaliers 42-25 by the end, even as Sanchez deployed two players who stand nearly seven feet tall in sophomore center Blake Buchanan and redshirt freshman center Anthony Robinson, at one point simultaneously, to combat the dominance. The margin on the glass, a familiar story for Virginia, spoke to a lack of one of the game’s most crucial intangibles.
“A lot of it’s just effort,” junior guard Isaac McKneely said. “Boxing out and getting rebounds is not a talent thing. It’s just effort. Who wants it more? And they wanted it more than us tonight.”
It comes back to Sanchez’s favorite metaphor, which McKneely referenced in the postgame. A basketball game, in one sense, is like a boxing match. It requires a team to last 12 rounds. Virginia failed Saturday to do so.
Louisville gradually slipped away all afternoon, surrendering the lead for a total of 22 seconds. Virginia sealed its fate by going mute late, scoring five points in the final 12 minutes.
Louisville senior guard Reyne Smith also gashed his opponents in the second half, drilling three of his five three-pointers after halftime. All week, McKneely said, a scout team player donned a yellow jersey, a beacon simulating Smith’s movement so Virginia could learn to track him.
Smith’s jersey could have been outfitted with LEDs during the game, and Virginia still would have had trouble sticking with him.
Smith scored 15 points, all on those three-point shots. Senior forward Aboubacar Traore also scored 15, alongside eight rebounds. It proved to be a team win, as four Cardinals reached double-figures scoring and the team’s bench scored 34 points. Virginia’s bench mustered two points in return.
The Cavaliers did have “a bright spot,” Sanchez said, in junior guard Andrew Rohde. Rohde dipped his hand into his bag of tricks early. He returned a little while later, fished around a little, pulled out something else. He peered into the bag again throughout the game, repeatedly getting downhill and eventually hitting two three-pointers to reach 16 points.
Sanchez praised Rohde postgame for his aggression. For his part, though, Rohde said he just let the game come to him.
His second-half three-pointers stoked — however feebly — an offense largely absent its primary weaponry. Virginia, in its first 13 games, never failed to hit six or more threes. Saturday’s game and a 5-26 outing from deep ended that streak.
The Cavaliers’ hope resided in a trio of scorers, chugging along without much help. They accounted for 41 of the team’s 50 points.
Rohde was one. McKneely was the second, hitting three deep balls on his way to 13 points. And junior forward Elijah Saunders was the third, managing 12 points, a one-man scoring brigade toward the first half’s conclusion.
But despite hanging around for a while, Virginia folded late. It will have a lot to mull on its upcoming cross-country flight for its two West Coast games, which begin Wednesday at 11 p.m. against California. For now, though, it will be left with the lasting image of the game’s final few moments.
Louisville scored its final points on a thunderous, vicious dunk from freshman forward Khani Rooths. It yanked the visiting bench to its feet. The Louisville players’ whoops and hollers echoed through an emptying arena.
Read More
Cedeno leads wrestling with program’s first individual win at Southern Scuffle since 2018
By Ryan Weiner | 7 hours agoCedeno's win cemented the program's blistering run of individual tournament wins.
Women’s tennis strengthens roster with two winter recruits
By Gracie Genereux | 3 days agoThe additions will grow a small roster and add talent.
Women’s basketball begins the new year with a dominant victory over Wake Forest
By Sam Chun | 3 days agoAfter a win, the Cavaliers avoid sitting in last place in the ACC.
