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Sylven Landesberg netted 22 points and 6 rebounds in the loss to Auburn. |
It doesn’t take a basketball guru to figure out what went wrong in Virginia’s 58-56 loss to Auburn on Saturday.
Despite five lead changes and some roller coaster momentum swings, it all boils down to several key things for the Hoos. Quite simply, UVa shot 20 % in the first half, was out-rebounded 44-30, and was victimized by big shots at big moments.
Cav coach Dave Leitao summed up the simplicity of the loss saying, “Two things we emphasized were to execute a game plan and do it with a high level of passion. We didn’t sustain either and it obviously cost us in the beginning, it cost us in the middle, and it cost us late.”
From the opening tip, the Cavaliers’ motion offense stalled. Throughout the opening half, Virginia struggled once again to move the ball inside of 15 feet, a task that Leitao has emphasized all season.
“More times today than I think any other game this year we got ourselves deep into the shot clock,” Leitao said. “We were making cuts just to make cuts. Passing just to pass. We weren’t looking to get the ball down low. We weren’t looking to penetrate.”
Between Calvin Baker and Sammy Zeglinski, the point guards combined to take 12 of the teams’ 24 field goal attempts in the first half, a sign that the offense wasn’t clicking and the point guards were being forced to create their own offense, often late in the shot clock. As the pressure to score mounted, it appeared that shot selection and decision-making suffered. Leitao agreed that Baker especially struggled with decision-making against the Tigers.
“He, like everybody else, didn’t play with the same kind of passion that he needs to,” Leitao said. “When you don’t, other things are missing. His decision-making is one of them. His leadership, his ability to run the team, his defense, all those things suffer when you don’t have the proper mindset.”
Baker wasn’t the only point guard struggling Saturday, though. Zeglinski forced several shots early, including four missed attempts from beyond the arc during the first half. The Cavs as a whole shot 3 for 11 from the 3-point line in the first half. Threes weren’t the only shots missing, however, as the Cavaliers missed two dunks and multiple lay-ups throughout the game.
Although the Hoos’ shots began to fall in the second half, their efforts continued to be hampered by poor rebounding. Auburn dominated the offensive glass 14-2, although many of its shot attempts were 3-pointers, which tend to ricochet out for long rebounds.
Leitao attributed the Cavaliers’ lackluster rebounding to the lack of passion.
“We had instances where our perimeter people were standing at the elbow or our post people were standing at the block while [Auburn’s players] were jumping,” Leitao said. “You’re just not going to survive like that.”
Freshman Sylven Landesberg agreed.
“They weren’t beating us with talent in the first half. It was basically a mentality,” he said. “They were punking us on the boards.”
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Sammy Zeglinski led the Cavaliers’ late comeback with all nine of his points in the second half. |
Ultimately, despite all of their shortcomings, the Cavaliers had the game in their hands in the game’s final minutes. After coming back from a 12-point deficit, the hosts had momentum on their side. The final game changer, after it was all said and done, was big shots, on both offense and defense, at the biggest of moments.
Offensively, the Cavs’ effort came together in the second half, shooting 52% (12-25). They couldn’t get the big shots to fall, however, which would have put the game out of reach for Auburn down the stretch.
They had their chance to seal it with 3:17 to go on the game clock and 12 on the shot clock, up 56-52, Baker pulled up behind the line and attempted a three that banked off the rim. On the next possession, Landesberg drove the lane and missed a challenged lay-up. Either of these shots likely could have preserved the win for the Cavaliers.
On the whole, Virginia’s defense played respectably, holding the Tigers to a true shooting percentage (the percentage made of FG attempts, 3-point attempts, FT attempts) of 33.9% (36/106). But at biggest of moments, the execution was simply lacking.
Auburn’s Tay Waller, who hit the first of two key 3-pointers, was 1 of 9 up until this possession. Left alone on the outside, Waller didn’t miss with the game potentially on the line, bringing the score to 55-56. After a Mike Scott turnover, DeWayne Reed, 1-6 from beyond the arc before this possession, threw up another big 3-ball to give the visitors the lead.
As the clock hit zero, the Cavaliers were left with the feeling that they let a winnable game slip away.
“Their point guard made a big three, they were down by four and cut it to one, Zeglinski said. “Yeah, I mean I thought we were in control of the game but it slipped away.”
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