Cavaliers Cruise Past Navy

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Anthony Gill led UVa with a career-high 18 points. ~ Mike Ingalls

The paint brigade at Virginia continued to devour its early season mismatches on Tuesday. As a result, the Cavaliers cruised past Navy 67-42 at the John Paul Jones Arena.

The Hoos (3-1) outscored the Midshipmen 42-14 in paint points. Anthony Gill poured in 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting and added 5 boards to lead the interior attack, while Akil Mitchell chipped in 5 points on just four shots and 5 rebounds too. With its tallest players listed at 6’9″, Navy (2-3) simply had no answer for Mike Tobey either. Tobey, who flip-flopped starter-reserve roles with Gill, recorded 13 points and 8 rebounds. The post players sliced and diced any look thrown their way as the visitors tried man-to-man and match-up zone to no avail.

“It was kind of one-on-one once we got it in the paint. We’ve been practicing it all week,” Gill said. “Once we get it in the post, it’s just one-on-one and if they do double down, we just kick it out.”

For Gill, the night represented his best showing yet in his short Cav career. He sat out last season after transferring from South Carolina and he said he’s still looking for a consistent rhythm on the floor.

“Sitting out a year and a half was definitely tough. I’m trying to get back to what it is like to actually play in the game and the last two games were really tough for me just trying to get a feel for everything,” Gill said. “Me and the coaches were really working on trying to get the ball in the right spot and working on places where I could actually score so that’s what I did tonight.”

Virginia coach Tony Bennett discussed the line-up decisions down low after the game. Bennett said that he likes the idea of having either Darion Atkins or Mitchell in with either Tobey or Gill. That could lead to some different starting line-ups, different combinations, and possibly some big line-ups if needed thanks to Mitchell’s defensive versatility. In Tuesday’s lopsided game, Tobey logged 24 minutes while Mitchell, Gill, and Atkins picked up 21, 18, and 13 respectively.

“I think that the four man front court is one of our strengths. I think that Anthony and Mike are probably two of our better scorers in terms of the front line. I like different combinations. I think that Akil and Darion are probably ahead of those two defensively so I like to match Darion with one of them and Akil with one of them to anchor the defense. I think some time I’ll have to look at going big and playing three of those four,” Bennett said. “[Mike] can score. He had a very nice game against Davidson. … Mike is playing at a high level. I think he is able to show his ability to draw attention. Tonight, they weren’t double teaming him and when they don’t do that, he has a pretty good opportunity to score most of those times.”

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Joe Harris missed just one shot against Navy. ~ Mike Ingalls

While the front line set the tone against Navy, the Cavaliers’ offensive attack proved very balanced. Senior Joe Harris and sophomore Malcolm Brogdon started on the wings and both reached double figures. Brogdon recorded 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals for his second straight strong outing in the scoring column.

Harris, meanwhile, shook off a rough offensive outing against Davidson with a very good night against the Midshipmen. He scored just 1 point in Saturday’s win against the Wildcats, but he knocked down 7 of 8 shots including 2 of 3 triples against Navy to finish with 16 points. He also added 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal.

Bennett said that Harris ripped the nets in a spirited Monday practice and the carry-over was evident Tuesday.

“I don’t think about going out there and trying to get a lot of points necessarily,” Harris said. “The most important thing I was thinking about tonight was that we came out flat against Davidson on the offensive and defensive end. So whether it was trying to match their effort on the defensive end – and they cut really hard and run their offensive really hard – or offensively being aggressive and assertive, [I tried to focus on] creating shots for myself and my teammates.”

The Cavaliers provide highly efficient overall on offense as they made 30 of 53 shots to finish at 56.6% shooting. The five starters – Tobey, Mitchell, Harris, Brogdon, and London Perrantes – combined to make 21 of 36 attempts (58.3%) in the game. Only Perrantes didn’t crack the scoring column as he finished 0-4. The overall percentages did hide an ongoing concern through four games, though. The Hoos made just 3 of 15 3-pointers (20.0%) and struggled again at the free throw line where they made 4 of 11 (36.4%). For the season, UVa is 46 of 79 at the charity stripe (a poor 58.2% clip) and 12 of 52 from 3-point range (a meager 23.1%).

“You’ve just got to keep taking them I think within reason. The guys have to know who they are in terms of their shot selection. We’re more of an inside-out team, but if they’re room and rhythm looks, you’ve got to step up and take them. We’re certainly shoting a lot,” Bennett said. “The free throw line – that is what it is right now. Some of the guys looked a little anxious at the free throw line, but hopefully they will keep getting there.”

“We definitely practice [free throws] a lot in practice. We’re just going keep working on it and hopefully it will get better. I know it will get better,” Gill said

The Wahoos return to action on Saturday when they host Liberty at 4 p.m. That game is part of the Corpus Christi Challenge.

Final Stats