Virginia’s first ACC home game proved to be an entertaining experience for Wahoo fans. The Cavaliers dominated Wake Forest from start to finish in a game that they led 11-0 out of the gate and by double figures for most of the final 31 minutes. The 74-51 final score pushed UVa to 2-0 in the league standings.
The Double Bonus feature dives into more analysis from the victory.
Smothering Screens
The Cavaliers on-ball screen defense is one of the most interesting things to watch when the pieces all flow together. The players all move together to cover the most dangerous pieces of the puzzle: the dribbler and the screener. When it is in sync, it is really fun to watch the Hoos execute this part of their team defense.
In general, UVa chooses to smother sideline on-ball screens. The player defending the dribbler angles his body to cut off the baseline drive and take away the ‘refuse the screen’ option for the ball handler. The player defending the screener smothers the dribbler by utilizing a hard hedge defense; this means to cut off the path of the dribbler by angling your body so that your chest is facing the sideline boundary. (The Wahoos often flat hedge in defending middle of the floor on-ball screens, meaning the player defending the screener cuts off the dribbler but keeps his chest facing toward the opposite basket.)
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