Hurricanes Send ‘Hoos Into Tailspin

Devin Smith made a strong return with 21 points.

Virginia’s once-promising basketball season already had started slipping away in recent weeks. Wednesday night it took a major nosedive.

The Cavaliers suffered one of the most discouraging defeats in Pete Gillen’s seven-year tenure as head coach, one that may go a long way toward ending his UVa career. It was a 91-80 loss at home to Miami, a team picked to finish last in the ACC, and it dropped Virginia’s record to 0-3 in conference play for the second straight year. WIth road games coming up at Duke and Maryland, things may get worse before they get better — that is, if they get better.

The 8,079 fans at University Hall, many of whom exited before the game ended, left with little reason for optimism other than the return of Devin Smith. The team’s leading scorer, who missed three games with a sprained ankle, provided an emotional lift and a strong performance with 21 points in 28 minutes. But even his presence couldn’t keep the Cavs (9-4) from collapsing once again in the second half.

Up 46-40 at the half, Virginia wasted no time in squandering its lead. Miami forward William Frisby scored eight points in the first four minutes of the second half, including three stickbacks on consecutive possessions, and the Hurricanes ended up shooting 59% percent from the field after the break. Guards Guillermo Diaz, Anthony Harris and Robert Hite did most of the damage with 62 points, 34 in the second half.

“We played soft. They drove the ball against man and zone. No resistance. No fouls. We’ve got to be tougher than that,” Gillen said. “They drove to the basket and just laid it in. Our defense really stunk in the second half.”

Elton Brown scored 20 points, 18 in the first half.

So did the offense. Elton Brown scored 18 points in the first half but just two in the second. He missed two shots early in the second half and traveled on another possession as Miami (11-3, 2-1 ACC) took control.

“Their coach had to do something,” Brown said. “I knew at halftime they were going to do what they did. They started sagging in the zone, so we had to take what they gave us. We still got good shots but they weren’t going down.”

Smith made eight of 15 shots, including four 3-pointers, but he didn’t get enough help. J.R. Reynolds and Jason Clark, who had played well recently, provided just two points (on a pair of technical foul shots by Reynolds). Reynolds got into early foul trouble and ended up fouling out without a basket. Clark re-strained his Achilles tendon in practice and played 10 ineffective minutes.

Sean Singletary had just eight points and two assists in 35 minutes, while Miami’s guards were explosive. Diaz scored 26 points, including four 3-pointers and a 10-for-10 outing from the foul line, and Harris had 21. Robert Hite, the ACC’s No. 2 scorer, missed 10 of 13 shots but still finished with 15 points by making all eight of his free throws.

“They’re quick, they attacked us and they broke down the exterior of our zone,” Singletary said.

Diaz had a three-point play and a 3-point shot on consecutive possessions, giving Miami a 72-64 lead. After Smith answered with a 3-pointer of his own, Hite drove for a layup, then Diaz stole a pass and fed Gary Hamilton for a dunk and a nine-point lead with five minutes left. Minutes later, as the Hurricanes made layups and free throws down the stretch, the fans started filing out of U-Hall.

It’s hard to imagine anyone will be too excited about coming back.