Virginia added another home win to the list this season with a 61-49 victory against Pitt. The Cavaliers have won five straight games since their only loss to Duke. The Double Bonus looks back at the most recent W against the Panthers.

Refuse The Screen

UVa’s motion offense has a lot of built in options. Flare screens and baseline screens, fade cuts and curl cuts are all examples. Another option that often pays a lot of dividends is a ball reversal into a ball screen. When Virginia took final control of the game against Pitt in the last 8 minutes, that wrinkle was on full display.

First, two possessions played the ball screen traditionally, meaning that the guard dribbled of the screen and made a decision. At the 7:35 mark, Malcolm Brogdon utilized a ball screen from Anthony Gill and drew two defenders. Brogdon threw a pocket pass to Gill, who was fouled on the play. He made both free throws. At 3:31, London Perrantes turned the corner on a ball screen and stopped for a pull-up jumper near the free throw line area. He was fouled and made 1 of 2 free throws.

On four other offensive trips, a less traditional approach led to points too. On all four possessions, Virginia’s guards faked use of the ball screen and drove the other way. This is called refusing the screen. At the 5:57 mark, Perrantes refused the ball screen and drove to the baseline where he was fouled. He made 1 of 2 free throws. At 5:27, Perrantes did it again and drove in for a lay-up. At 2:16, Perrantes refused the screen and tip-toed along the baseline with his dribble before he found Gill late in the middle of the paint. Gill got fouled and made both free throws.

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