The Virginia men’s basketball team had not played at home in two weeks and had hosted only one game so far in 2024 before Wednesday night’s rivalry showdown with Virginia Tech. The Hoos must have been happy to be back as they secured a 65-57 win while leading for the final 31 minutes against the Hokies.
That brought UVA’s record this season at the John Paul Jones Arena to 10-0, the 14th straight season with at least 10 home wins. The Cavaliers, now 12-5 overall and 3-3 in the ACC, own the nation’s longest home winning streak with 20 straight victories in the building. Virginia also has held 45 straight ACC opponents to fewer than 70 points at the JPJ.
In other words, there are plenty of quotes and lines out there about home – there’s no place like it, it’s the nicest word there is, you always find your way back – and all of them seem to apply to this year’s Cavaliers, who have struggled with four road losses by at least 16 points since Dec. 19 but have three ACC home wins by at least 8 points.
“We’ve been getting beat pretty handily in our [road] games and obviously at home we’ve won all of our games, but when you’re struggling you’re just chasing, trying to be competitive first and chasing quality,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “There was more quality tonight than we’ve had in a while. That’s the important thing. Then to have it validated with a win is important.”
That quality looked more on brand for Virginia during much of Wednesday’s win. The Wahoos piled up 18 assists on 25 made baskets and had four players with at least 8 points. On the other end defensively, UVA allowed just 38.9% shooting and secured 10 steals. The blend of the two elements didn’t produce a cakewalk to victory, but it did at least steady a young team that may have been a little shaken after recent road losses.
It may also provide something to build on defensively.
While the Hoos still had some issues with help-side recovery which contributed to 11 made 3-pointers by VT, possessions out of timeouts, and some transition problems with the Hokies getting 17 fastbreak points, there were gains made in other areas. The individual post defense held firm with Jordan Minor getting his second straight start and Blake Buchanan providing good minutes off the bench. UVA limited VT to only 5 offensive rebounds and 4 second chance points. That 38.9% shooting number from Tech marked the first time this season that the Hoos held an ACC opponent below the 40% barrier.
Virginia also made Sean Pedulla work hard for 18 points, which came on 6-16 shooting. Pedulla came in with a three-game scoring streak of 26, 32, and 33 points against Florida State, Clemson, and Miami.
“We just tried to play as hard as we could,” Bennett said of his team’s defense. “Again I said, they got some open looks and missed some shots and I thought they had separation, but like with our offense, as we’ve been getting beat, we’ve just been trying to work and not let up in practice and just keep chasing quality. Our guys stayed in a stance longer, they worked harder, and we had some good things happen and just battled away and didn’t quit.”
UVA kept Lynn Kidd from being a factor as well. He scored only 2 points on 1-3 shooting. Kidd had made 67.2% of his 2-point attempts this season entering the game. Minor played a key role there as he brought some physicality up front again after getting more minutes this past weekend at Wake Forest.
The graduate transfer said he just tried to make Kidd work hard for any buckets he produced.
“I think coach reiterated to us before we went out there imposing our will collectively and individually,” Minor said. “I think, me, I know he likes to spin and shot fakes a lot so I was just disciplined in staying down on that and trying to contest and make him work for every single bucket that he got. That was my focus.”
Minor’s impact was not limited to defense. He scored 16 points to go alongside 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in 26 minutes. He made 5 of 8 shot attempts that included a crowd-pleasing dunk in the second half and 6 of 8 free throws. That’s his first double-digit scoring game at UVA, but he his 71st overall in college. Reece Beekman matched Minor with 16 points. He made 2 of 3 triples while shooting 6-13 overall. He also put up quad fours – 4 rebounds, 4 steals, 4 assists, and 4 turnovers.
Those were the only two players in double figures, but UVA got some balanced contributions elsewhere. Isaac McKneely chipped in 8 points and 3 assists, while Buchanan had 8 points as well, which came on 4-5 shooting in 11 minutes. Ryan Dunn and Jake Groves added 6 points each, while Dunn also had 7 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 steal.
Virginia also got a jolt of energy and key contributions from Dante Harris. He returned from a bad ankle injury that forced him to miss 10 games and tallied 5 points with 5 assists and 0 turnovers. That included a second-half dump-down pass that led to Minor’s slam, which brought a smile to Harris’ face as he moved back up the floor. His presence also took some pressure off of Beekman and Andrew Rohde (3 assists) on both ends of the floor.
Harris was happy to play again and that his team got the win.
“There were times where I got a little down – I just want to hoop man so just to be back out there, that’s a dream for real,” Harris said. “I’m glad we were able to come out with a win vs. our rival.”
My favorite part of the game, apart from (gotta be honest) the final score, was when Coach Bennett was walking back to his spot after a called time out, late in the second half. Every single Virginia fan in the sold-out building is sweating bullets… but he was grinning and laughed about something with one of the other coaches. That’s the guy I want leading my team, and in addition, teaching young kids how to live life. Don’t let the moment be bigger than you are, and be sure to keep perspective while striving mightily to pursue your goals.