Virginia Basketball Double Bonus: Clemson

The Double Bonus provides analysis on the Virginia basketball team.
Virginia grabbed two ACC wins last week, including one on the road at Clemson. ~ Mike Ingalls

Virginia picked up another road win in ACC play with a 77-73 victory at Clemson on Saturday. The Double Bonus is back to take another close look at the Hoos.

Perhaps the most interesting thing to come out of the most recent W is that UVA relied on its offense more than its defense to get the victory. Clemson, after all, shot 50% in the game while pouring in 42 points in the paint. The Tigers scored 23 points off of turnovers and 13 second chance points. That leaves a lot to be desired defensively.

On the other hand, the offense stepped up in a big way. The Hoos shot 58% overall and 55.6% from 3-point range. London Perrantes and Marial Shayok really got going with 25 and 17 points, respectively. That duo combined to make 16 of 29 shots (55.2%).

The fact that UVA turned to its offense to get victory maybe shouldn’t have been too surprising though. Looking for offense to hide some issues and making strategical moves based on offense has been a minor theme at times this season. Cavalier coach Tony Bennett has hinted at that fact numerous times, usually within answers addressing questions about defensive breakdowns, rebounding, four-guard lineups, or things like that. Take this quote from just after the Clemson win for example.

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