CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Facing a tough Belmont offense, the Virginia men’s basketball team used a small ball lineup to counter the spread system of the Bruins. The versatility to make that shift helped UVa take care of business in the 2-15 game of the NCAA Tournament East Regional. The Double Bonus is back to look at the win.

Small Ball Helped Offense Too

As discussed in this article on UVa’s defense, the Cavaliers shifted to a small ball lineup against Belmont to help offset some of the matchup problems caused by the spread looks from the Bruins. Small, of course, being a relative term because the personnel switch placed 6’8″ Evan Nolte in the lineup as a post. That bumped 6’8″ forwards Darion Atkins and Anthony Gill to the other post and took minutes away from 7’0″ Mike Tobey. That meant that just like the times when Atkins and Gill play together, the post players still measured 6’8″ each. The difference, of course, is that Nolte is a big guard in style and in comfort level around the perimeter.

While the move was made mostly for defensive reasons, it sparked the offense too. Virginia first placed a small ball lineup on the floor with 11:30 remaining in the first half. The Hoos trailed 20-17 at that point and Belmont had made 8 of 14 shots (3 of 7 3-pointers). With Nolte, Gill, Justin Anderson, Malcolm Brogdon, and Marial Shayok in together, the Cavaliers ripped off a 13-0 run to take control of the game – they never trailed again.

On the first possession of small ball, Brogdon found more space than before and drove for a reverse layup. On the next trip, Gill suddenly got isolated on the blocks with four shooters around him and that resulted in a one-on-one layup. On one possession, Anderson drove and kicked out to Shayok for an uncontested jumper that went. On two other occasions, the lineup turned defense into offense when forced turnovers led to traditional 3-point plays for Anderson and Shayok as they made and-one free throws.

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