3/20/25 EM-SPORTS    

Ryan Odom Named the University of Virginia’s Dean and Markel Families Men’s Head Basketball Coach

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – Virginia athletics director Carla Williams announced today (March 22) the hiring of Ryan Odom as the University of Virginia’s Dean and Markel Families Men’s Head Basketball Coach. Odom becomes the 13th head men’s basketball coach in the program’s history.

Odom spent the last two seasons at VCU, leading the Rams to a 52-21 record and an appearance in the 2025 NCAA Championships. VCU won the 2025 Atlantic-10 Tournament and shared the A-10 regular-season championship. 

Virginia is Odom’s fifth stint as a collegiate head coach. Over the past 10 seasons he has compiled a career record of 222-127 including stops at Utah State (2021-23), UMBC (2017-2021), Lenoir-Rhyne (2016) and Charlotte (2015, interim head coach). Like VCU, Odom led his Utah State and UMBC teams to the NCAA Tournament during the second season at those schools. 

In 2018 at UMBC, Odom coached the Retrievers to a stunning upset against Virginia in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Charlotte, marking the first time a No. 16 seed defeated a No. 1 seed in the event’s history. 

Odom’s appointment is a homecoming of sorts. He grew up in Charlottesville (third through 10th grades) while his father, Dave Odom, served as an assistant basketball coach on Terry Holland’s staff from 1982 to 1989. Odom frequently rode his bicycle to practices at University Hall and served as a ball boy for Cavalier home games.

Odom’s start in coaching features another UVA connection. His first position was as an administrative assistant at South Florida for head coach Seth Greenberg. Greenberg was a one-time Virginia assistant who also coached under Holland. When Greenberg first arrived in Charlottesville, he temporarily lived in the Odom’s home. Odom later coached on Greenberg’s staff at Virginia Tech (2004-2010).

Odom’s first season at VCU produced a 24-14 record and saw the Rams reach the Atlantic-10 championship game. The team advanced to the NIT quarterfinals, picking up road wins at Villanova and South Florida during the postseason. This season’s 28-7 VCU squad featured the A-10 player of the year and the conference tournament’s MVP. 

Odom assumed the reigns of the VCU program following two seasons at Utah State that produced a 44-25 record. In 2022-23, he led the Aggies to a 26-9 mark and the first round of the NCAA Tournament. That season the Aggies ranked 16th nationally in offense, 

In his first season at Utah State, Odom led the Aggies to an 18-16 overall record and an at-large berth to the NIT. 

Just like VCU and Utah State, Odom had an immediate impact at UMBC during his inaugural season in 2016-17. The team produced a 14-win improvement over its previous campaign. Prior to his arrival, UMBC had endured eight consecutive losing seasons and had failed to reach double digit wins in seven straight years. 

Odom steered the Retrievers to three straight 20-win campaigns, including a school-record 25 victories in 2017-18. His 2016-17 squad advanced to the CollegeBasketballInsider.com (CIT) semifinals, becoming the first America East team to ever win three games in a single postseason. At the end of the season, Odom received the 2017 Joe B. Hall Award, which is presented annually to the top first-year coach in Division I.

In five seasons at UMBC, Odom’s teams were 97-60 and won the 2018 America East Tournament Championship, as well as a 2021 regular season crown. For his efforts, Odom was named the 2021 America East Conference and the NABC District 1 Coach of the Year.  

In 2015-16 at Division II Lenoir-Rhyne, Odom led the Bears to a 21-10 mark – a 13-win improvement -- and the school’s first-ever NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. The Bears led the nation in three-point field goals made per game (12.4) and finished ninth in the country in scoring at 90.1 points per game that season.
 
Odom was an assistant coach at Charlotte for five seasons (2011-15) and served as the 49ers interim head coach for the final 19 games of the 2014-15 campaign. In 2013, he helped Charlotte earn a bid to the postseason NIT.
 
Prior to his tenure in Charlotte, Odom spent seven years (2004-10) on the coaching staff at Virginia Tech and was part of a Hokies’ team that earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament in 2007 and beat Illinois in the first round.
 
Odom was also an assistant coach at American for three years (2001-03), at UNC Asheville for one season (2000) and at Furman for two years (1998-99). He also served as an administrative assistant at South Florida for one season (1997).
 
Odom graduated from Hampden-Sydney in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in economics and was a four-year starting point guard on the men’s basketball team. He served as team captain his senior season and led Hampden-Sydney to an 80-30 record during his playing career, including two berths in the NCAA Division III Tournament. In addition, Odom finished his career as the school’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made and placed fourth in assists.
 
Ryan is the son of Dave Odom, who retired in 2008 as the head coach at South Carolina. The elder Odom earned SEC Coach of the Year honors while at South Carolina in 2004 and ACC Coach of the Year honors in 1991,1994 and 1995, while at Wake Forest.
 
Odom and his wife, Lucia, have two sons - Connor and Owen.
 
THE RYAN ODOM FILE
2023-25        VCU – Head Coach (52-21)

The University of Virginia was looking for some March Madness magic as they took on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the 8/9 matchup in the ACC Tournament.  Virginia took confidence in knowing they had beat GT earlier in the year and held a 13 game winning streak in the series.

However, after a sluggish first half from both teams, the Yellow Jackets were able to get momentum and build a 13-point lead after halftime.

Virginia never quit and behind the game high 27 points of Issac McKneely (career high 7 3s), Virginia was able to close the gap to two points.

IIt was too little, too late of the furious comeback to overcome the big hole and Georgia Tech advanced into the ACC Quaterfinals.

Virginia ended the season at 15-17.

EMSPORTS 3/12/2025

The University of Virginia will conclude their home regular season schedule versus Florida State. The Cavaliers hoped to finish the home schedule with a win and build momentum going into the ACC tournament. The Cavaliers played a very strong first half but faded against Clemson in the second half in their last home game. On tonight against the strong, athletic Florida State Seminoles, the Hoos will have to match the intensity over 40 minutes in order to secure a much-needed victory. 

The Florida State Seminoles (16-13, 7-11 ACC) present a difficult and posing challenge.  They have played the Cavaliers tough in a series that is 29-28 all time in favor of Virginia.  This battle is for positioning as both teams are tied in the 10th spot in the conference.   The game started slow on offense before Virginia took a 13-8 lead.  That was the start of the back-and-forth throughout the remainder of the first half.  Each team played to their strengths. Virginia was potent from the perimeter and Florida State dominated the inside.

Virginia held a slight lead but went cold as Florida State began to take momentum and the lead back.  At the half, the Seminoles led 28-27.  Their size led to seven offensive rebounds and 20 points in the paint. Virginia converted on five 3-point baskets to stay close.

FSU’s Alier Maluk led his team with six points.  Andrew Rohde paced the Cavaliers with a game high 11.

After halftime, Virginia went on a mini run to get a small lead, 37-31. They were able to go up by six a few times in the second half.  But they couldn’t keep the lead and the seesaw action continued with each team making a run and then each team going cold. 

Eventually, Florida State took a short- lived lead at 53-50 with under four minutes left to play.  The game had 15 lead changes and four ties with the last at 55-55. 

Virginia could’ve easily folded; however, they were able to find just enough offense. The play of the game belonged to Andrew Rohde.  His desperation 3-pt corner prayer gave the Cavs a 58-55 lead with under a minute left.  A lead they never relinquished.    

Virginia celebrated a gutsy victory at 60-57 and move closer to gaining a bye for the ACC Tournament. The Seminoles were led by leading scorer Jamir Watkins with 18 points and eight rebounds.

The Cavs had three in double digits led by Dai Dai Ames with 18, Rohde with 17 and 12 from Elijah Saunders.

Virginia (15-15, 8-11 ACC) received all their scoring from the five starters while Florida State got 20 from their bench.
 

EMSPORTS 3/5/25

The University of Virginia basketball has experienced their best success of the year, winning three games in a row since the beginning of the year however, the toughest test of the season will present itself in the number one ACC team the Duke Blue Devils.

The Duke Blue Devils enter with only one loss in ACC, but more importantly they came in as the highest ranked ACC, nationally the #3 team in the nation This team is loaded with players from one through five and their five stars have been shining brightly none more brightly than Cooper Flagg, who is arguably the best player in the ACC and possibly in America.

Virginia had momentum after a big road win at Virginia Tech and looked to spring the upset over the Blue Devils. The game started off close with Virginia and Duke trading baskets and the lead.  At 12-11, Virginia was winning but Duke exerted their muscle and ran off nine straight points in a 16-2 run to go up to a 27-13 advantage.  

The Cavaliers were hammered on the boards at a clip of 24-8 and the second chance points boosted the visitors to a 43-29 lead at halftime.  Virginia was led by Andrew Rohde’s 11 points at intermission.

The second half was not much better for the Hoos. Duke took a quick six points from the start of the second half and pushed the gap to 20 points at 49-29.

Virginia was outmanned but played with heart.  They could never close the lead to single digits.  Duke was able to show their might and finish the Cavaliers off with the 80-62 triumph.

The Blue Devils had a trio of scorers with 17 points each.  Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Isaiah Evans. Flagg also pulled down 14 rebounds.  Rohde and Dai Dai Ames paced the Hoos with 15 apiece.  Issac McKneely added 14.

Duke improves to 23-3 overall and 15-1 in the ACC.  The Cavaliers now stand at 13-13 on the year and 6-9 in conference. 

EMSPORTS 2/17/25

On a special Saturday evening in February, the Cavaliers are playing with the opportunity to win  back to back games but they also are playing to find the success they had just this past season.  The past included a celebration at halftime for coach Tony Bennett.  Coach Bennett set a high standard when he took over the program 16 years ago.  He pulled the Cavaliers up from the basement of the ACC to rejuvenate the proud program. 

The Cavaliers will take on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets with a chance to continue to move up and get a better seeding for the ACC Tournament.    

The University of Virginia (11-12) basketball team has shown a propensity to put the ball in the basket and their offense has picked up the pace as the scoring over 70 points in their last three games, winning two of them (both on the road). 

Today versus the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-12) that comes in with a lot of athleticism and also with momentum after an upset win over 21st ranked Louisville.  As winners of two of their last three, GT brought athleticism and quickness into this matchup.  

The game was a game of streaks.  The Cavaliers jumped out yo a quick 9-0 lead as they made the first three field goals, all three-pointers.

Eventually the Yellow Jackets found the form and slowly took the lead.  They were able to make slashing draws, and shots from all points on the floor. Eventually, after the back-and-forth, it seems that Virginia slowly started to take control, and they started to separate themselves from the yellow jackets, Virginia made some crucial shots and critical times they were able to get a 41-36 halftime lead.  

The three-point shot was the big weapon as both teams were on fire.  GT made 7 of 11 from deep led by Naithan George (15 points) who converted on four 3s. and Duncan Powell who was a perfect 3 of 3 from behind the arc.  The Hoos were successful on 6 of 14 tries with Issac McKneely making four as well.  Both teams shot over 45% from the field and Virginia handed out 13 assists.  McKneely had 18 points to lead all scorers. 

In the second half, Virginia did a better job of cranking up the defense forcing Georgia Tech into some difficult looks.  The effort paid off as they limited GT to only 25 points. As the defense improved, the offense kept up the stellar work and outscored the visiting team from Atlanta by nine following the intermission.

Virginia was getting contributions from many players, but especially from Dai Dai Ames, who followed up had a career high of 27 points at Pittsburgh with 18 in this game.  Sharpshooter Isaac McNeely paced the Hoos with 20 points.  Andrew Rohde was the third Cav in double figures with 11 points and game high nine assists. 

Georgia Tech received their biggest scoring from George with 20 points, 18 from Powell and Baye Ndongo’s 15.

The offensive fireworks complimented the excitement that surrounded the celebration of Tony Bennett.  The former head coach received his flowers and had a banner lifted in the rafters, recognizing his accomplishments.  

EMSPORTS 2/8/2025

The Virginia Cavaliers are riding the emotions and momentum of a win on the road after beating the Miami Hurricanes, 82-71.  The Cavaliers earned their first ACC road win under Ron Sanchez.

The Cavs (10-11) needed this win to boost their spirits and prepare for a greater challenge as the archrival Virginia Tech Hokies were visiting John Paul Jones Arena.

The Hokies (9-11) had grabbed a big win versus the Florida St Seminoles in their last matchup and knew a bigger goal lay ahead if they could grab a win at their commonwealth ACC brother in Virginia.

Even though both teams were not playing up to their normal standards, the records meant nothing for this was a chance to brag and creep on steep above the other in the standings.

The Hokies and Hoos got off to a similar start as the nets were on fire from the hot shooting as both teams lit it up from downtown.

The VT squad was slightly better and grabbed a 38-31 lead at halftime as they shot above 50% from both the floor and behind the 3pt arc.

The Cavaliers were nearly step for step but they did not make as many 3s before half and had to play catchup for most of the first 20 minutes.

The second half was more of the same for VT.  They continued to pull Virginia out of their comfort zone as well as stay red hot from distance.  As the Hokes were looking to win this wire to wire, Virginia had other ideas.  The Cavaliers battled back from a deficit as large as 13 points.  The final seconds were a frenzy and with under five seconds left the bad was in the hands of Andrew Rohde for a chance to win.

The guard from Virginia made on last ditch effort but his shot was not converted and the Hokies were in celebration as they survived and escaped with the narrowest of winning margins, one point.

Stars and Stats:

Virginia Tech

Scoring: Tobi Lawal - 18 points, Jaden Schutt - 17 points

Shooting: FG% - 52.1,  3pt% - 52.4

Virginia 

Scoring: Issac McKneely - 19 points, Andrew Rohde - 12 points, Dai Dai Ames - 11 points and Taine Murray - 10 points

Shooting: FG% - 48.1, 3pt% - 34.8

EMSPORTS 2/1/2025

The Virginia Cavaliers have a chance to build on a little momentum.  After winning in dominating fashion versus the Boston College Eagles, the Cavaliers look to put together back to back wins in the ACC for the first to this year.  

The visiting Notre Dame Fighting Irish enter with a disappointing campaign for 2024-2025.  The Irish (8-10) have the same number of conference wins as the Cavaliers.  The two teams are buried near the bottom of the conference and a win would be a big boost for each team as they strive to climb up the standings.  

The Irish are facing a three game losing streak and have dropped four of their last five.  This game is the only matchup of the two combatants for this season.

Marcus Burton, the ND point guard is a player to watch.  He can take over a game as he averages nearly 20 points a game and shoots over 37% from the 3pt line.

Virginia will have to counter with the sum of all parts as they have a combination of players who can score in Issac McKneely, Elijah Saunders and Andrew Rohde. 

The first half was a great shooting showcase from Burton and McKneely.  Both teams were powered by the hit shooting of their respective star guards.  Notre Dame led 39-27 at halftime.

Burton had 15 and McKneely hit 14 with each making four out of five three-point attempts. The difference was the rebounding and the contributing playmakers from Notre Dame.  

The Irish outrebounded the Hoos 22-16 and with seven offensive rebounds, they were able to capitalize on more offensive possessions.

The second half was a cruel reminder of how Virginia’s struggles and inconsistency have continued through the season.  Notre Dame didn’t let off the gas and built the second half lead to as much as 27 as the Cavaliers never recovered from the slow start and fell at home, 74-59.  The Fighting Irish shot over 48% from the floor and 52% from behind the three-point arc. 

The Cavaliers were less as effective, as they shot just 40% from the field and 43% from downtown.  The Cavaliers were also overwhelmed on the boards with a disadvantage of 39-27.  

Marcus Burton led all scores with 21 and two of his teammates also struck for double figures as Braeden Shrewsberry hit for 13 and Tae Davis hit 16.

Jacob Cofie led the Cavs with 17 while McKneely finished with 14.  

The Cavaliers now stand at 9-11 (2-6) on the year while ND improves to 9-10 (3-5).

EMSPORTS 1/25/25

This version of the Virginia Cavaliers, has not enjoyed the success of past teams.  A heartbreaking loss to new ACC opponent, the SMU Mustangs stings even worse.   

The Cavaliers find themselves in the rare position of being closer to the bottom of the conference than the top. 

These Cavaliers have struggled to employ the pack line defense and suffocate their opponents from scoring, and the Cavalier offense has been less than stellar. 

Uva has a chance to finally win a game in calendar year 2025 when they host the SMU Mustangs these Mustangs, who are new to the ACC. They gave Virginia their first conference loss back in December.

The game was not an offensive work of art.  Both teams seemed to be playing in mud or at least in a super small rim.  The teams combined for 52 points and changed the lead multiple times, with SMU leading 27-25 at the half.  The Mustangs were able to grab 22 rebounds versus the 12 of Virginia.  The team were able to have so many rebounds because of the poor shooting.  Both teams combined for four three-point shots out of 36 attempts.  SMU was leading for most of the half because of their interior scoring where they had 24 of the 27 points.

The second half was more of a game of hide and seek.  SMU would go ahead by a few baskets and Virginia would try their best to keep and not let them get too far away.  The Mustangs were able to keep a small but nervous lead for most of the half until Virginia snapped their cold shooting drought. 

The drought lasted nearly six minutes and Virginia still couldn’t catch the Mustangs until Ishan Sharma’s 3pt tied the game at 45 with under three minutes.   The fans were in a tizzy as Virginia had worked its way back from an eight-point deficit.  The Hoos continued their offensive surge and grabbed a 50-45 lead with 31 second left.  The scoring run of 12-0 happened in less than five minutes and seemed to all but secure a Virginia victory.

However, it ain’t over until it is over.  SMU got hot at the right time and hit three consecutive three-pointers including the buzzer beater by Boopie Miller to snatch a win from the jaws of defeat.  Miller hit two threes including less than 10 seconds and SMU left JPJ with a season sweep on the Cavaliers.

Virginia is now 8-9 (1-5) after a fourth consecutive ACC loss.  SMU improves to 13-4 and 4-2 in ACC.

Stars of the game:
SMU - 

Boopie Miller and Chuck Harris had 12 points each and Samet Yigitoglu scored 10.

VIRGINIA- 

Blake Buchanan had a double-double with 11 points and 15 rebounds. Ishan Sharma scored 10.

EMSPORTS 1/15/25

Virginia looks to wrap up a five game homestand with a battle against their nemesis the Louisville Cardinals. Louisville (9-5, 2-1 ACC) enters the game having won four of their last five contests.  These Cardinals have a new coach and a new attitude.  They bring a high speed offense that lives on the three-point shot. 

They lead the ACC in threes attempted and threes made per game.   The Cavaliers (8-5, 1-1 ACC) had an impressive win against the NC State Wolfpack.  The victory was their first ACC win of the year and it seems they played their best game of the year.  The game began as a battle of wills.  Virginia and Louisville traded baskets but the Cards find some rhythm and slowly began to pull away. 

Louisville held the lead nearly all of the first half and Virginia closed the gap to 21-20 before the visitors took a 32-27 lead at the half. The second half was more Louisville and poor shooting by the Cavaliers.  The Cavaliers seemed to be a step slow and the Cardinals took advantage with their slashing and crisp offense.

The lead ballooned to double digits and stayed that way for a majority of the second half. In the end, Louisville broke the program’s embarrassing 0 and 9 record, they were stuck with in JPJ. 

This was an emphatic statement win on the road in Charlottesville.  The 70-50 win gets the Cards off to a strong start in 2025 while the Cavs have to regroup quickly as they prepare for the west coast swing. 

They next two games at new ACC members, California and Stanford. Four Cardinals scored in double figures as they shot 44% from the field and 37% from behind the 3pt arc.  Aboubacar Traore and Reyne Smith both led with 15 points off the bench each.  J’Vonne Hadley gave them 11 and Chucky Hepburn provided 10.  The Cavs, conversely, only hit at a 38% and 19% respectively.

Virginia had three players in double digits. Andrew Rohde led all scorers with 16.  Issac McKneely shot in 13 while Elijah Saunders contributed 12.  The Cavs were outrebounded 42-25. The win moves Louisville to 10-5 on the season and drops the Hoos to 8-6.

EMSPORTS 1/4/25

The Virginia Cavaliers have had an uneven start to the 2024-2025 season.  There have been some ups and certainly some downs with unexpected surprises (Bennett retires, transfers, etc).  The origin of these events may trace back to a shocking night in March.

The high noon opponent is NC State.  The Wolfpack travel to Virginia in their first road ACC game and with an opportunity to close out 2024 on a high note.  This program was responsible for a miracle run in the NCAA tournament, when they reached the Final Four for the first time since 1983.  In their run through the postseason, these two teams met in an exciting ACC semifinal that was all but over, in the favor of UVA.  However, a Michael O’Connell banked 3pt was answered and the momentum catapulted North Carolina State into an ACC tourney title and a Final Four.

The two teams are meeting for the first time since that epic game nine months ago, but the sting still resides in Charlottesville even if many faces have changed. The Wolfpack brings experience with five seniors and balanced scoring as their five starters all average double digits.  

The Hoos (0-1 ACC, 7-5) are playing their fourth straight home contest.  The scoring load is on the inside-outside duo of Elijah Saunders and Isaac McKneely.  They are looking to help get the team to even their ACC record and build their resume.  The team from Raleigh is 1-0 in the ACC (8-4 overall) and feel this road victory will only make the start of 2025, a continuation of the positive start to the season.

Offense was the name of the game on the first five minutes.  Both teams were on fire missing just a combined three of the first 12 shots taken. 

Following the timeout, the Wolfpack caught fire from behind the 3pt line and were able to turn a 10-9 deficit into a 29-21 advantage with a little over seven minutes left in the half.  NC State made 4 triples in that span while Virginia was still looking for their first points from distance.  

Virginia trailed 39-29 the half.  Both teams were led by the offense as State shot nearly 62% and were perfect for the free throw line.  The Hoos were nearly 52% from the field but the three-point shot was the difference and Virginia only converted two versus the six from the Wolfpack. 

The second half opened with a distinct purpose.  Virginia was gong to use their height and size advantage to live in the paint.  That strategy helped as Elijah Saunders scored the first seven points of the half.  NC state started to cool off after taking a 46-36 lead.  

The Cavaliers countered with a 15-4 run that was highlighted by a McKneely “3” that gave them a 51-50 lead at the 11-minute mark.The run covered a seven minute gap that saw more NC State turnovers than field goals.

Over the next eight minutes, Virginia took control and hit the lead as big as 10, 68-58, before NC State made a few consecutive baskets due to Virginia’s miscues and drew to 68-65 with under 15 seconds. Virginia had to overcome a 14-point deficit to take the lead late in the half.

The Wolfpack chipped away at the lead but key free throws allowed the Cavaliers to hold on after a big second half and win an important game, 70-67.

The difference was protecting the ball and limiting the Wolfpack perimeter attack.  The Cavaliers were responsible for just one turnover after the half while NC State committed five.  Virginia expanded the defense to crippled the three-point shooting to a paltry 2-12 for NC State.  In return, Virginia made 7 of 13 threes to finish at 45% for the game.  The Wolfpack fell back to shooting 8 for 23 (~35%).  

NC State picked up the rebounding edge with a 34-22 advantage including 13 offensive.  Virginia balanced the shooting by playing by committee and distributing 18 assists on 26 field goal makes.

Elijah Saunders took scoring game honors with a new career high at 22 points.  He was joined in double figures by McKneely with 14 and Andrew Rohde’s 11.  Rohde also led with seven assists.  

NCSt (8-5, 1-1 ACC) was tough late but unable to overcome the big Virginia lead late.  Three Wolfies scored in double digits as Jayden Taylor had a team high with 14.  Both Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and Marcus Hill each scored 12.  The Cavaliers, also with same record, will prepare to protect the home court in 2025 when the Louisville Cardinals come to JPJ on Jan. 4th.

EMSPORTS 12/31/2024

When the Virginia Cavaliers play, they really bring out many feelings.  Nervousness, anxiety, frustration and bewilderment to name a few.  They have for years grinders teams down with their methodical play and lock tight defense that made their opponents wither.

This year’s version is not quite there and in some cases they have looked to make a basketball game more of a hair-raising thriller that seems to pull the best or worst out of the fans and the other team.

In today’s matchup with American, the game highlighted Virginia’s strengths and weaknesses in one game.  American University is not the biggest challenge on the slate but the last non-ACC game.  Both teams are 6-5 and playing their last pre-Christmas contest.

American took the lead early and then Virginia scored.  It became the theme of the first half until Virginia gained controlled for nearly the last 10 minutes.  A couple of 8-0 runs helped bolster the lead but American was relentless and made just enough buckets to stay within reach.  At 32-28, the Hoos were in an uneasy battle, but this was not unusual for the Cavs.  

Elijah Saunders was the catalyst as he led all scorers with 10 points.  American was led by Matt Rogers with eight points.  

In the second half, Virginia attempted to enforce their muscle and power to put away the pesky Eagles.  The Eagles were not listening and turned the tables in the home team.  

At roughly the 16:30 mark in the second half, the Eagles began to make everyone in white nervous.  A 3pt field goal by Collin Smalls gave American a  39-37.  The Cavaliers seemed to become slightly unglued and the basket would not cooperate.  Virginia went scoreless for over five minutes and the tension grew inside JPJ.

American extended fed the lead to 47-42 with about seven and a half minutes left and the crowd was sensing heartbreak for their beloved Hoos.  

Virginia finally turned up the defense and the offense followed.  The Cavaliers outscored the Eagles 21-11 in the final seven minutes.  Most of that scoring took place from the foul line.  The Cavaliers made seven of eight free throws in the last 24 seconds and Taine Murray and Saunders scored all of Virginia’s final 12 points.

Saunders did the most.  His game high 21 points led three players in double digits.  Taine Murray gave 13 points off the bench and Issac McKneely gave them 11.  The Eagles were paced by Matt Mayock with 16.  Teammates Matt Rogers and Collin Smalls added 12 each.

Key Virginia advantages: 

* Won the scoring from the bench: 15 to 3
* Controlled the glass: 33 - 26  rebounds
* Connected well from outside 42% - 3pt line and 46% - field goal

The win gives UVA (7-5) a nice lift as they prepare for the remainder of ACC play.  They will host NC State on Dec. 31.  American (6-6) will return home to face UMBC on Sunday, Dec. 29. 

EMSPORTS 12/22/24

The Virginia Cavaliers (6-4) are still in the midst of learning what type of team they are.  They have been exploring different lineups while trying to establish an identity.

The team has many elements carried over from Tony Bennett’s era.  The defense still lives in the Packline however the high turnover rate has been more of the norm and not the exception.

The other problem the Hoos have faced is their record against top 25, nationally ranked teams.
The Cavs are 0-3 in those games with a losing point differential of more than 22 points a contest.

The 21st ranked Memphis Tigers (8-2) have played very well under coach Penny Hardaway and have several high profile wins. This matchup last year in Memphis was all about the Tigers and they enter John Paul Jones Arena with a huge win over the, then, 16th ranked Clemson Tigers on the road.  

Both teams understand a win will bolster their respective out-of-conference resumes and add momentum as they look to make some noise as the new year soon approaches.

Virginia went into their bag and pulled out the beloved orange jerseys.  For the Orange night,  the JPJ crowd supported the retro style jerseys with the signature orange jerseys.  Virginia had not won any orange in over 15 seasons.

The change seemed to ignite the Hoos. They took an early lead and controlled the tempo and score in the first half.  Virginia limited the high flying Tigers to 21 first half points (lowest of the year) and took a 30-21 lead into the half.

The lead grew to a game high of 11, 32-21 early in second half.  Memphis, was not shaken.  The tested Memphis squad found their rhythm and started making some shots.

The Tigers took their first lead of the game at 39-37 with 12:31 left in second half.  This set up a seesaw affair for the rest of the game.  

The Cavaliers continued to battle as the spirited underdogs but could never climb back to the top.  Memphis held off the pesky Cavs and pushed the lead to eight but were able to hold on with some clutch free throws and just enough rebounding to keep Virginia away.

The man of the game was PJ Haggerty who dropped a game high 27 points, nailing 10-11 free throws.  He got help from Tyrese Hunter and Dan Dainja (game high 11 rebounds), both added 12 each.

The Hoos got double figures from Elijah Saunders with a team high 15 and 14 from Taine Murray, off the bench.

Both teams were very evenly matched.  Both teams shot under 40% from the field and Virginia 
made one three-pointer (6 v 5).  Memphis did make a few more free throws, 17 to 14.

The win helps Memphis as they continue to beat strong power conference teams.  They now prepare for two back to back games against the SEC’s Mississippi and Mississippi State.

Virginia will turn their attention to American University, to close out the non-conference slate.  They will follow-up hosting ACC foe NC State to close out the year.

EMSPORTS 12/18/24

Virginia (5-4) opened up ACC play (0-1) on the road, in their last contest. The Cavaliers were not able to take down the SMU Mustangs in the ACC opener for both teams. The loss was the first for a Virginia team, in their last 16 conference openers.

The Cavaliers return home to recapture their winning ways.  The game versus Bethune Cookman is an out of conference battle. Uva will have to get back on winning streak, as they host five consecutive games at home.  They have several games before their next ACC contest.

Have the Cavaliers used the practice time, during this exam break to clean up few details?  Those  include scoring droughts, regain better offensive continuity and improve on rebounding. This game will see what they have learned in 10 days. 

Lastly, the turnover bug has reappeared, as the Cavaliers are having far too many mistakes and giving up valuable possessions to the other team. Bethune-Cookman (2-6) entered the game looking for a signature victory.  The Wildcats have faced several power conference opponents and fallen short each time.  They hope this is the turning point on a slow start for the 2024-2025 season.  They also are looking to finally win a game on the road after losing all five thus far this season. 

The start of the game was less a picture of beauty or work of art, but more a nightmare. The Cavs seemed to be stuck in neutral and looked a step slow at every move. The Wildcats were fired up, scratched, clawed and out-scrapped the bigger Cavaliers. They took a quick lead and never trailed.  They led by as much as nine, 12-3, holding the Cavaliers to under ten points until the 5:20 mark.

Poor shooting and Cavalier turnovers gave Bethune momentum to grab a 21-18 lead at halftime to before a home crowd stunned and awestruck.  

After halftime, Virginia still seemed to be sleepwalking as Bethune matched the Hoos with their speed and athleticism to maintain the lead until the Hoos created a much needed Cavalanche.

It didn’t get going until about halfway into the second half.   Virginia took its first lead at 30-29 with about 15 minutes left on an Elijah Saunders layup.   The teams were playing a little more uptempo but Virginia cranked up the defense.  

The added pressure fueled the offense which responded with a 25-4 run in the last ten minutes of the game. The combination of Saunders (13 of 15 points after halftime) and Jacob Cofie, 12 points (all in second half) spearheaded the attack.

The outside shooting of Ishan Sharma, (4, 3-pointers = 12 points), helped keep the Hoos close in first half. His only triple in the second half, gave them a 40-37 lead, which they didn’t relinquish. 

The spirited Wildcats gave Virginia all they wanted and it was nearly enough for about 30 minutes.  The team showed heart but eventually wore down.  The leader of the visitors, Brayon Freeman, gave the Cavaliers fits.  He led the team with 14 points and was the only double-digit scorer.

The Cavaliers’ size was a huge factor. They outrebounded the Wildcats 43-29.  They limited Bethune to under 31% shooting and only 20% from the 3pt line.

In contrast, Virginia was slightly better at 44% and 30% respectively, shooting.

Virginia (6-4) will now prepared for a dangerous Memphis Tigers’ team that beat them last year.
Bethune (2-7) will travel north to West Virginia looking to break the road losing streak.

EMSPORTS 12/12/24

Virginia (4-2) has enjoyed success free was in the first season under Ron Sanchez.  The team hit a few bumps in the road on the two losses in the Bahamas.  They have recovered with a win against Manhattan in their last outing and look to stay unbeaten in the friendly environment of JPJ.

Virginia returned home after leaving the Bahamas with two defeats.  The Cavaliers (3-2) were undefeated going into the Baha Mar Classic and they were delivered two humiliating defeats by ranked teams, Tennessee and St. John’s. The losses will serve as lessons that the Cavs will used to improve their team and quality of play  as they head into December.

Virginia is still moving into a phase where team chemistry and experience and looking to become more of the norm and not the exception.

The Manhattan Jaspers visit John Paul Jones with an identical 3-2 record as the Cavaliers.

The Cavs needed to stop the two-game losing streak and continue their winning streak.  

Virginia got out to a quick 10-2 start.  The Hoos rode the momentum and made it hard for the Jaspers to get into a comfortable rhythm.

Virginia was hitting on all cylinders and took a 27-12 lead when Jacob Cofie hit a jumper.

However, Manhattan put a better fight and outscored the home team 19 - 9 in the last nine minutes of the half.  Wesley Robinson led the visitors with seven points.  The Cavaliers got the advantage with the big man combo of Blake Buchanan and Jacob Cofie.  The twin towers each scored eight points and the Cavs outscored Manhattan, 24-10 in the paint.  The Hoos led 36-28 the half.

Virginia was on fire as they shot nearly 61% from the field and 44% from the three-point line.  The Jaspers were limited to 44% from the field but over 46% from behind the 3pt arc.

The great shooting was complimented with 10 assists on 17 made field goals.  The Manhattan squad could only produce four assists.

In the second half, Virginia continued to make shots. Manhattan was able to stay in the game with very potent three-point shooting, however Virginia settled in with a 7 to 0 run and took a 16 point lead 58 to 42 with just over nine minutes left regulation.  It was paired with a defense that held Manhattan scoreless in a five minute span.

The shooting cooled off a little for both teams but the Virginia lead was sliced by the marksmanship of Manhattan from long distance.  The Jaspers made the game closer than expected with a there-point barrage and some timely free throws.  The lead was reduced to six, 61-55, with just under 3 and a half minutes.  The Cavaliers slowly regained momentum and finished off Manhattan by breaking the press and sealing the win with free throws. Virginia made their last six free throws.

For the game, Manhattan's shooting from field and three-point line were a little over 43% and 42% respectively.  Virginia still shot nearly 55% from the floor and managed to also hit 42% from deep but the 11 three-point makes from Manhattan made the game closer than expected 

The Jaspers (3-3) were led by Robinson’s 12 points.  Teammates Devin Dinkins (11) and Masiah Gilyard (10) also scored in double digits.

The Hoos (4-2) received great output with four starters in double digits led by Issac McKneely with 18.  Cofie also added 10 from the bench.

Virginia will return to JPJ on Friday as the prepare to host Holy Cross.  Manhattan will travel home face Le Moyne on the same Friday, after Thanksgiving. 

EMSPORTS 11/26/2024

The Virginia Cavaliers have had some ups and some downs in this 2024 football season.  As a 5-5 team, UVA looks like as they take one step forward but then unfortunately, they take one step back.  

The last two games have been a microcosm of their entire season. After winning a heart-stopping game in Pittsburgh and upsetting the 22nd ranked Panthers, the Cavaliers were brought back to reality when 9th ranked - Notre Dame took advantage of five turnovers and dominated the Hoos.

The last game at Scott Stadium welcome new ACC member, SMU Mustangs, into a late November battle.

The first trip for SMU ever in Charlottesville.  The national ranked no. 13 Mustangs are undefeated in the ACC in their first year. With two games left, SMU also is looking to make the College Football Playoffs. 

This importance of this game weighs heavy on the Cavaliers’ postseason as well.  One more victory and they will qualify for their first bowl game since 2021. They also will have a chance to avoid a losing season and win their final home contest.  Finally,  it would be mentally and  emotionally rewarding prior to a trip to end the regular season in Blacksburg.  A place they have not won in since 1998.

Virginia was looking to win at home against their highest ranked opponent since 2012.

The defenses shined early on with both teams having to punt.  However, SMU made the first big play with a wide receiver screen for 62 yards from Kevin Jennings to Moochie Dixon.  It set up the first score of the game, Brashard Smith’s 4-yard touchdown carry. That was the only score in the first quarter. 

As the second quarter began, SMU’s Collin Rogers attempted a 48-yd field goal which was wide left.  The Hoos used the momentum to mount a drive into the Mustangs’ redzone.  On fourth down, the Cavaliers attempted a field goal to get in the scoring column.  Just as SMU, the 41-yd kick was wide left by Will Bettridge. 

SMU did not let the opportunity go to waste.  The Mustangs mixed the pass and run beautifully as they covered 76 yards in nine plays.  The scoring play was a 17-yard pass from Jennings to Jordan Hudson and increased the score to 14-0 late in the second quarter. 

SMU scored once again in the next drive, this time a 35-yard field goal that capped the scoring for a 17-0 lead at halftime.

SMU was able to turn a big punt return into a field goal and increase its lead to 20-0 in middle of third quarter.  With Virginia’s offense struggling, the defense stepped up and recorded a big interception by Joey Thomas at the SMU 29-yard line.  Unfortunately, Virginia could not capitalize as Colandrea was sacked for a fifth time on the fourth down play.

SMU increased the lead in the fourth quarter when Kevin Jennings scored on 1-yd QB sneak.  The 14 plays took over seven minutes and went 74 yards.  The SMU offense methodically moved the ball and wore the defense down.  A theme of the day as SMU had three scoring drives of more than 70 yards.

Cavalier fans may have been disappointed but they didn’t leave without a little Colandrea magic.

After Billy Koudelka and Kam Butler combined on a strip sack, the subsequent fumble was recovered by Chico Bennett, Jr.

The Cavaliers took advantage and after some scrambling and avoiding a big sack, Colandrea connected with WR Malachi Fields for a 4-yard touchdown pass on fourth down. 

Virginia was finally able to score in the fourth quarter but the damage was already done.  

QB Kevin Jennings finished with 323 yards passing and three touchdowns.  He also committed both turnovers of the game.

SMU (10-1, 7-0 in ACC) clinches a berth in the ACC title game and awaits either the Miami Hurricanes or the Clemson Tigers.

The Cavaliers must regroup and face their toughest challenge as the head over to southwest Virginia to face the Virginia Tech Hokies.  The Cavs and Hokies will play for more than just pride and bragging rights. The winner will become bowl eligible.  Both teams enter the game at 5-6 on the year.

EMSPORTS 11/22/2024

The Virginia Cavaliers have a new look this year.  The team will still wear the orange and blue but the voice of the program has changed.

In an abrupt move, Coach Tony Bennett, suddenly retired about three weeks ago.  The sudden shockwave not only echoed in the halls of JPJ but also sent a sonic boom throughout the college basketball universe.

In the unenviable position of replacing the legend, associate head coach Ron Sanchez was next man-up. He was formerly the head coach for five seasons at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

The remainder of the staff stayed intact and the recent addition of former All-American, Kyle Guy, provided stability for a team with mostly new faces and new expectations.

The Five Pillars that has shaped this program for the last 15 seasons did not change.  The sustained success at Virginia bolsters the prospects of a potentially successful 2024-2025 campaign. The team opens up against the Campbell Camels on November 6.  The beginning of this season will be unlike any other the Cavalier fanbase has experienced in the last decade in a half.  

Ron Sanchez and his brain trust will have the eyes of Charlottesville and the entire ACC intently watching them.  The outside world wants to see how much UVA has fallen or will they keep the  ACC on alert as one of the premium brands in the conference.  

The first half was sluggish as both teams attempted to establish a rhythm. The new look Cavs still resembled the defensive minded Packline group from the Tiny Bennett era.  The offense looked to be a better version of last year with more efficient shooting and quicker pace to keep the opposition off-balance. 

Virginia took a 35-26 lead into halftime. They were  able to shoot a whopping 64% from the field and a solid 6/10 from the 3pt line.  They also outrebounded the Camels 15-9 in the first half.

The Cavaliers were led by 1st years: Jacob Cofie and Ishan Sharma.  Cofie led all scorers with 10 points. He added two rebounds, one block, one assist and a steal.  Sharma provided six points, three rebounds and two assists. 

The second half was more competitive as both teams cooled off from the floor.  As Virginia attempted to pull away, Campbell would not hide. The Camels continued to make big 3s in the second half and stymie any momentum from the visitors.  

The Camels trailed by as many as 12 but whittled the lead to five, 59-54, before Virginia eventually pulled away with a 65-56 victory in Ron Sanchez’s debut.

The Cavaliers made enough plays to and limited the Camels in the second half with more ball pressure and rim protection.  The Camels finished at 38% shooting for the field as well as behind the 3pt line. They made 11 three-point field goals to Virginia’s six.  They also committed nine turnovers (Virginia had 11) but lost the rebound edge, 32-25.

The home victory by Virginia showed promise in the shooting as they converted 57% from the floor and 46% from the 3pt arc.  They won at the charity stripe, outscoring Campbell, 11-3.

Each player that logged minutes scored and Cofie had a game high 16 points. Elijah Saunders and Blake Buchanan scored 11 points and 10 points respectively.  The Camels were led by Colby Duggan with nine points and three others scored eight apiece.

Virginia (1-0) will turn their attention to the next opponent, Coppin State, on Monday night at home again.

Campbell (1-1) will host Saint Francis of PA, on Sunday, November 10.

EMSPORTS 11/6/24

The word rivalry brings out the best or worst in competition.  In football, the longest running rivalry in the South is no different as the UNC Tarheels traveled to Charlottesville to face the Virginia Cavaliers.  This battle has taken place 128 times before today and it is as bitter and caustic as it was in the 19th century.  The game was a part of the University' Parents' Weekend Festivities.

The Tar Heels (3-4) have had a dreaded season but looked to exact some revenge as they were rested and focused returning from a bye week.

Virginia was in the midst of a mini-slump with a two game losing streak and were looking to keep their record above .500 for the season. The Cavs (4-3) were eager to gain momentum as they looked at a bye week before the home stretch in November.

The UVa defense turned away the Tar Heels on the opening drive and successfully orchestrated their own effective drive.  The Cavaliers had 1st and Goal from the Carolina 1 when disaster struck.

A poor snap from the backup center over QB Anthony Colandrea’s head spelled doom for the drive and was a harbinger of the dread that awaited the Hoos.

Virginia settled for a field goal but that was the only lead and highlight of the day.

UNC used their power running game from All-American running back Omarion Hampton and an effective playaction with QB Jacoby Criswell.  He finished with 293 yards passing and two touchdowns.  Hampton complimented the team with 105 tough rushing yards and two TDs.

Virginia was harassed all day by the North Carolina defense.  With two starters out in the offensive line, the patched up unit was besieged all game. Carolina finished with 10 sacks and 12 tackles for loss.  They held Virginia to seven total rush yards and also intercepted two Colandrea passes.

The win makes both teams 4-4 on the year but it doesn’t feel the same as it seems they are going in opposite directions.  Virginia will attempt to rest up before returning to play in Nov. 9 when they travel to Pittsburgh.  Carolina looks to extend the winning streak as they play at Florida State next week. 

EMSPORTS 10/26/24

In 15 years, so much can happen.  In nearly a decade and a half, the University of Virginia has experienced near unprecedented success and reached the highest of heights.  Tony Bennett, the architect of the UVA basketball program, has decided to retire.

The news was swift, shocking and sudden.  The Cavaliers were preparing to start a new season after another NCAA tournament appearance.  However, this team has a new voice leading the charge.

Coach Bennett spent 15 seasons crafting, developing and almost perfecting a program that was hyper focus on a Five Pillars Approach that established a program which was near the top of the ACC men’s competition since 2009.

The early tenure of his Virginia coaching career started slow but once Coach Bennett sowed the seeds of his vision and those players, athletes and talents began to flourish.  Bennett led his teams to 10 NCAA berths, 1 Final Four and the ultimate victory in the 2019 NCAA Championship.

Coach Bennett captured six regular season ACC titles and two ACC tournament titles.  He won well over 70% of the games he coached at UVA (364-136) and was extremely dominant at John Paul Jones where he rarely lost any games in that raucous environment.

The Blue and Orange faithful will never forget how much of an impact that Coach Bennett has on the history of the men’s basketball and what a lasting memory that players and fans will have of Coach Tony Bennett.  His nearly unshakable faith, steady presence and humility were instrumental in making Virginia basketball a winning program and his legacy is remarkable. 

EMSPORTS 10/19/24

The Louisville Cardinals (3-3) visited the UVA Cavaliers (4-1) in a picture perfect fall afternoon.  This battle of ACC foes has some significance in the ACC race as both teams are vying for the top spot.  Louisville brings a high offense but has a two game losing streak but one loss in conference play.  The Cavaliers, are on a two-game winning streak, and impressively came back from 14 points down last week to beat the Boston College Eagles on Homecomings Saturday.

The Cavaliers look to maintain the momentum from last week.  They outscored BC in fourth quarter and showed no slowing down as they grabbed the opening possession and took the ball 75 yards for a touchdown when the Grady Bunch showed up twice.  In back to back plays, QB Grady Brosterhous, took direct snaps and his 1-yd push was enough to break the goal line and give Virginia a 7-0 lead.

Louisville responded with a strong answer and entered the Virginia redzone.  However, the Cardinals were not able to finish and stalled on the fourth and 1 run play at the Cavaliers’ 19.

After several punts between the teams, Louisville caught a break on a fortunate bounce.  A Cavalier punt hit a Louisville blocker but the Cardinals recovered.  They made good on the second life.  The Cardinals turned to the running game and RB Issac Brown made it count.  The shifty runner made a cut and walked into the endzone untouched from seven yards.

His score tied the game up at 7 in the second quarter with just under 11 minutes left.

Virginia made another successful drive and was knocking in the door. After a strong mix of runs, the Cavaliers faced a fourth and goal from the four-yard line.  In  an effort to grab back momentum,  Virginia was unsuccessful with a pass to the endzone and another scoring opportunity went by the wayside.

Defense was the name of the game as both teams’ units showed grit and resiliency.

The score at halftime was 7-7.

Louisville opened the second half with the ball and proceeded to crack the Cavalier redzone again.  A 61-yard pass from QB Tyler Slough to WR Ja’corey Brooks setup the Cardinals.  Virginia’s defense held and Louisville settled for a Brock Travelstead field goal of 31 yards to grab a 10-7 lead. 

A Virginia miscue turned into a Cardinal treasure when Daniel Sparks punted into the blocking lineman and what resulted was a backwards punt.  The ball was recovered at the Virginia 14-yard line giving Louisville the break they were needed.  Issac Brown wasted no time as he sprinted for his second touchdown, on the first play, to give Louisville a 17-7 advantage.

Virginia showed some life as they marched in into Louisville territory.  The Hoos were able to get to the 14-yard line before they were kicked a 31-yard field goal at the 5:26 mark of the third quarter. 

The defense stepped up and showed their mettle. The Cardinals started the fourth quarter with a drive that looked to add more points.  A field goal attempt went wide right and Virginia took momentum down the field.  Colandrea exhibited moxie and accuracy as he guide the Hoos to a scoring drive.  In a blitz, Colandrea found a wide open Xavier Brown.  The speedy running back could not be caught and raced down the sideline for a 46 yard scoring pass.  The touchdown gave the Cavs their first lead of the game at 20-17.

Virginia’s defense made another impressive stand on the ensuing drive. This time S Ethan Minter picked off Shough at the Virginia 2-yd line to shutdown another Cardinal drive.  

Virginia had to punt deep in their side of the field. Louisville then took the lead 24-20 when Slough found TE Jamari Johnson for a five yard pitch and catch TD with just under two minutes remaining. 

What seems like a promising drive ended on fourth down when a Colandrea pass fell incomplete to TE Tyler Neville.

The Hoos 4-2, (2-1 ACC) lose their first game in the ACC while Louisville improves to 4-2, (2-1 ACC).  Virginia travels next to Clemson while Louisville returns home to host the Miami Hurricanes.

Stars**
Colandrea finished with 279 yards passing with a TD. He also had 84 yards rushing to lead Virginia in both categories.

WR Malachi Fields made seven catches for 129 yards.

Issac Brown paced the Cardinals with 146 yards rushing and two touchdowns.  

Tyler Shough passed for 231 yards.  He tossed one touchdown and one interception.

EMSPORTS 10/12/24

In what is the perfection definition of a battle of the border,  the Maryland Terrapins (1-1) head south through I-95 and route 29, to capture a road win in Charlottesville.

The undefeated Virginia Cavaliers are looking for their best start since 2019 and also exact revenge from last year’s lost at College Park.This battle of familiar was an annual battle when both were ACC members.  This rivalry is still competitive and can still be bitter.  The Terps own a current three-game winning streak and are looking to rebound from a loss to Michigan State.

Virginia is excited to return home after pulling off a stunning conference, road victory against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. The Hoos are led by the dual abilities of QB Anthony Colandrea who has thrown for six touchdowns and only two interceptions.  The defense was limited with some injuries but they had their best pass rush performance, recording six sacks on the game.

Maryland QB Billy Edwards has been pretty efficient.  He has tossed four touchdowns and only one interception.  He has only been sacked once and gets support in the rushing attack with Roman Hemby, is one of three backs, collecting over 80 yards in the two games. 

The first half was a slow grind has both teams attempted to gain momentum.  The Hoos struck first with a field goal.  Virginia gained even more yards but were stopped deep in the Terps’ territory.  On three straight drives, the offense stalled inside the 15-yard line.  After two field goals, a 6-0 lead looked to be enough in a defensive struggle.  Maryland took advantage of a short field and scored when QB Billy Edwards found WR Tai Felton on 19-yard.

Down 7-6 with an under two minutes before the half,  QB Anthony Colandrea brought the home crowd to their feet.  Using his legs and arm, he orchestrated a thrill TD drive, sealed with his 10-yard scramble into the endzone.  With just seconds left, the Cavs had grabbed the lead and the fans in Scott Stadium were over the roof with enthusiasm.  The 13-7 lead was the highlight for the rest of the game.

In the second half, Maryland turned up the defense and the Cavaliers were infected with the turnover bug. Colandrea had two picks and a lost fumble.  The team had four turnovers as Maryland had zero. The Terrapins outscored the Cavs 20-0 and untimely turnovers led to the Hoos inability to breakthrough.

The loss leaves UVA at 2-1 as they prepare to go on the road and face Coastal Carolina.  Maryland also stands at 2-1 and will host the Villanova Wildcats on next Saturday.

EMSPORTS 9/14/2024

It was a welcome and familiar sight as the Virginia Cavaliers had qualified for the College World Series for the third time in four years.  This team had gone undefeated in NCAA Tournament play through the regionals and super regionals and looked to claim their second ever national title.

The 2024 College World Series featured four teams from the ACC and four from the SEC.  It was just the second time in the history of this event, that such a scenario had occurred.

The Cavaliers opened up against long time foe, the University of North Carolina Tar Heels.  There is never any love lost between these two bordering states and a pitchers' duel took place in the opening game of the tourney.

UNC took and early lead only to see the Cavs take the lead back in the seventh innning.  The score was 2-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth when the Tar Heels walked off the game with a a single to win 3-2.  It was the third straight loss by 1 run for UVa in the College World Series and it was also their fifth consecutive loss dating back to 2021.

The Hoos looked to regroup and had a chance in this double-elimination event to regain their footing.  In the second game, another ACC team awaited them.  The Florida State Seminoles were up next and they had beaten Virginia in the ACC tournament a couple weeks ago.

The Seminoles were ready for the challenge and their bats did most of the damage.  FSU used the power of the long ball to grab a 6-0 lead.  The Cavaliers did not go quietly but could not overcome the damage done in the first five innnigs.  The Hoos bowed out of the tournament with a 7-3 loss.  The successful season had more ups than downs and the Cavaliers finished with a 46-17 overall record.  They will look to reload and be ready for another run to Omaha in 2025.

EMSPORTS 6/17/2024

The University of Virginia punched their ticket to the 2024 College World Series winning in two games at home 7-4 and 10-4 over the visiting Wildcats.  Virginia used great starting pitching and timely hitting to outlast the Wildcats and qualify for the CWS for the 7th time in the 21 years that Coach Brian O'Connor has been the head coach. 

The Cavaliers were able to stymie the Wildcats big offense with solid pitching limiting the Wildcats to a .215 average and only 8 runs in the two games.

The #12th ranked Hoos will be one of four teams from the ACC in Omaha.  The other four teams will be represented by the SEC.  This is truly a showdown of conference baseball giants when the tournament starts in Omaha on June 14th.

EMSPORTS.org 6/9/2024

6/2/2024

4/2/24   

Eight Cavalier Pitchers Combine for Two-Hit Shutout

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.  – No. 15 Virginia (23-6) recorded their second shutout of the season, with a 4-0 win over ODU (15-13) on Tuesday (April 2) at Disharoon Park. Eight Cavalier pitchers limited the Monarchs to two hits, the fewest by a Cavalier opponent this season and fewest since allowing two in the 2023 NCAA Regional opener against Army.

The two teams were engaged in a pitcher’s duel through the first six innings until sophomore Luke Hanson broke the stalemate in the bottom of the seventh with a two-out RBI single through the right side that scored Ethan Anderson. UVA tacked on three more insurance runs in the seventh to seal its second win of the season over ODU.

Lefthander Owen Coady was credited with the win after taking over on the mound in the top of the seventh. He struck out all six batters he faced in order. The eight Cavalier pitchers combined to strikeout 14 batters, matching a season high.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Virginia left five runners on base in the first four innings, including four in scoring position. Beginning in the fifth, Monarch reliever David Pond then sat down eight-straight Cavaliers before hitting Anderson with a pitch, a play that originally called a ball and challenged by head coach Brian O’Connor. The play was overturned allowing UVA’s first runner since the fourth inning.

• Anderson advanced to second on a wild pitch and Hanson delivered the two-out blow through the left side for the first run of the game.

• Matt Augustin (1 batter), Coady (6 batters) and Aidan Teel (3 batters) sat down the final 10 Monarchs down in order. Augustin stranded two runners in the top of the sixth, one of two occasions that ODU had a runner in scoring position.

• Freshman Henry Ford recorded his first career triple, driving a 1-2 pitch off the wall in right field that scored two runs. Henry Godbout followed it up with a single to left and made it 4-0 UVA.

• Teel needed only nine pitches to retire the side in the ninth.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• The two teams endured a one-hour and 14-minute weather delay after the top of the third inning.

• A total of 14 pitchers were used in the contest, six by ODU and a season-high eight by UVA.

• All four runs scored by UVA were with two outs.

• The Cavaliers take a 35-34-2 lead in the all-time series and blank ODU for second-straight meeting. The two teams are scheduled to play again on April 16 at Harbor Park in Norfolk, Va.

UP NEXT

Virginia will continue its ACC slate on Thursday when it begins a three-game series against No. 10 North Carolina. The series opener will be broadcast live on ACC Network. Game two will be on Friday at 6 p.m. and the series concludes on Saturday with a 1 p.m. first pitch.

VIRGINIA SURVIVES IN OT TO ESCAPE BOSTON COLLEGE, 66-60

If it is pretty basketball you want, Virginia’s games may not be in a beauty contest.  If you want to live on the edge of you seat, then the Cavaliers are just what you need.

In March Madness, very few teams epitomize the phrase, “Survive and Advance” better than UVA.  This was on display again in the ACC Quarterfinal against the Boston College Eagles. These teams had slugged it out just two weeks ago but this game would have more meaning.  A win assured Virginia would’ve be dancing on Selection Sunday while a loss make whispers of missing the NCAA tournament, a full blown conversation with no ending.

Boston College, the 11-seed, fresh off an upset of the 5th-seeded Clemson Tigers and playing their third game in as many days.  They wanted another shot at Virginia and looked to keep playing the role of Cinderella as long as the proverbial slipper fit.

The Eagles started fast with an 14-4 run quickly after the tip.  Claudell Harris Jr. was en fuego knocking down 3 three-pointers and lighting up the Cavaliers.  His shooting along with the dominance of Quinten Post made the Hoos struggle all first half.  The Eagles led by 10 points and seemed to smell an upset as the Cavaliers looked out of rhythm and slow to react.

The Cavs slowly pulled close but could never grab a lead in the first half.  BC kept Virginia on their backs with spurts of offense to offset any Virginia charge.  Virginia did get some momentum late and closed the deficit to 35-29 at halftime. Jacob Groves paced the Cavs with eight points. Quinton Post and Harris Jr. led all scorers with nine apiece.

The second half saw a more determined and focused Cavaliers who knew that the Eagles were playing with a nothing to lose attitude.

The Hoos played with a bigger sense of urgency and they slowly tracked the Eagles down until they grabbed the lead. The hot shooting of Groves and timely buckets from Taine Murray and Dante’ Harris gave Virginia a brief lead.  With every action, there is an equal reaction.  Boston College would not go away but the Virginia turned up the defense.  BC scored just four points in the last 7+ minutes of the second half but the last bucket was crucial.  As Virginia led 57-55 with under five seconds, BC had ine more chance.  They capitalized as Mason Madson hit a buzzer beater to tie the game at 57.  

In overtime, the Cavaliers found just enough offense and even more defense.  Issac McKneely made a huge three give UVa a 60-57 lead.  After a dry spell from both teams, Beekman made shot-clock expiring back-breaking three (63-57) that gave Virginia breathing room and broke the Eagles’ spirit.

Jacob Groves led the Hoos with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Reece Beekman also collected a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Taine Murray was the third Hoo in double figures with 11 points.

Boston College was led by Post who had a great game with 23 points and 13 rebounds.  Both game highs and he was supported by Harris Jr. who had 14, knocking down four 3pts. 

Virginia (23-9) advances into the semifinals to face 10th seeded, NC State while BC (19-15) will await to see if they will play more postseason basketball.  

EMSPORTS.org 3/14/24

NC State wins a thriller, beats UVa in OT, 73-65

In another tough game, Virginia and NC State locked up for a thriller with a chance to get to the ACC title game.  This game was like hand to hand combat and both teams were full of grit and feistiness. The score at halftime as tied 29-29 as neither team could get away from the other. 

Reece Beekman and Issac McKneely scored 18 of the 29 while NCSt was led by Ben Middlebrooks who made all four of his field goals and two free throws to score 10 points. 

In the second half, a battle of wills was on display, as one team pulled ahead, the opposing teams would take back the lead.  This see-saw affair saw both teams with small leads and then many ties.  Virginia looked to pull away with a six point lead at 58-52 until the unthinkable happened.  Ryan Dunn fouled former Hoo, Casey Morsell, on a three-point attempt.  Morsell calmly sanked all three free throws and that gave the Wolfpack hope.  After another miss, the boogeyman appeared at the worst time for Virginia.

The missed free throws that plagued UVA showed up as Issac McKneely (23 points) missed front end of one-and-one.  The rebound was grabbed by NC State.  With under five seconds, Mike O’Connell hit an impossible bank theee-pointer while being contested.  The shot rolled around the rim and fell through the net as time expired.  The improbable shot forced overtime at 58-58, but more importantly capped an incredible finish.

In overtime, the teams were even until the inside power of DJ Burns took over.  Burns was a one man wrecking crew, as he absorbed contact and delivered buckets to the tune of seven of State’s 15 points.  His power and deft touch were too much for Virginia to overcome and elevated the Wolfpack (21-14) into the ACC title tilt with Tobacco Road brethren UNC.

Burns led his team with 19 points, O’Connell and Middlebrooks both finished with 12 each.

The loss drops Virginia to 23-10 on the year and a nervous wait for their postseason life when Selection Sunday comes around.

The Hoos got a game high 23 from McKneely.  Reece Beekman recorded a double-double with 17 points and 11 assists and Dunn added 10 points.  

EMSPORTS.org 3/15/24

Virginia nearly saw their bubble burst in the ACC tournament.  They survived that scare only to see the their NCAA tournament dreams dashed in a horrible way.  The team who made the NCAA Tournament as one of the last teams, didn’t stay long and was one of the first to go. 

The Cavaliers were defeated in humbling fashion by the Colorado State Rams, 67-42, in a first round game in Dayton.

Both teams entered as a 10th seed looking to make some noise with the victor advancing on in the Midwest Region.  The next opponent, Texas, awaited them in Charlotte, in Round 2 of the tournament.

Virginia took a short lead at 4-2, but would never lead after that point for the remainder of the game.  The terrible scoring drought was back as the Hoos went without a field goal for nearly 14 minutes, spanning the last nine minutes of the first half into the second half for another five minutes.

The Cavaliers were solid on defense yet the Rams were able to squeeze a few buckets to extend the lead and used a 9-0 run to take a 27-14 lead into the half.

The second half was merely watching the inevitable take place as the Cavaliers stayed cold. The 42 points scored was an unfortunate reminder of the anemic offense and lack of firepower the team had displayed in five of their last 9 games (less than 50 points a game).

The loss extends the tourney losing streak to three games and there have been no wins since the Hoos win it all in 2019.  The Rams improve to 25-10 and look forward to a date versus the 7th-seeded Texas Longhorns in the Midwest Region.

Colorado St shot over 55% and dominated the glass with 43 rebounds to Virginia’s 23. The Cavaliers were 25% from the field and responsible for only four turnovers compared to 13 for the Rams.

Reece Beekman ended his season scoring 15 points and dishing out four assists. 

Joel Scott had 23 points, 11 rebounds to lead three Rams in double digits.  Nique Clifford recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds while Patrick Cartier added 12.

EMSPORTS 3/19/24

                   COLORADO ST.                   VIRGINIA 

 FG%               55.30%                               25.00%  
 3-Pt FG%        35.71%                               17.65%
 FT%                71.40%                                64.70%
 TREB                 43                                        24
 TO                      13                                         4

EMSPORTS 3/20/24

The Cavaliers (20-7) have found themselves struggling on offense and have hit a rut lately.  The Hoos can see the end of the regular season but are in need of a boost, as they have averaged only 51 points in their last three games (1-2).

The ACC leading North Carolina Tar Heels (20–6) enter JPJ with a high powered offense, averaging over 80 points a game.  The conference leaders only face Virginia once this year, meaning the outcome will impact standings and NCAA tourney seeding.

The Cavaliers can take some comfort in knowing that the start Heels have lost eight consecutive contests in JPJ Arena (spanning 12 years) and the defense will need to be at its best to slow down the 10th ranked team in the country.  

Each of these teams know that records can be tossed aside for this battle.  The contest will be a test of mental fortitude and contrast in styles.  

The game strayed well as Reece Beekman gave Virginia a quick 2-0 lead.  However, UNC found a groove and connected on four of next six shots to take a 9-2 lead before Beekman gave the crowd life with another bucket.  Then the well went dry for both teams.  

Each team struggled to get shots to fall but not for lack of looks or opportunities close to the hoop.  However, Carolina was able to stretch the lead due to the outstanding shooting of Cormac Ryan.  The shooting guard, in the absence of Armando Bacot, picked up the slack.  He was responsible for all five three-pointers made in the half and it provided the Tar Heels with an 18-8 lead with over five minutes to go before halftime.

As Virginia creeped back into the game at 21-14 with some timely free throws, the Tar Heels responded as Ryan hit his fifth three of the half and Harrison Ingram converted a bucket, to drive the lead to 26-14.  There was very little going well for the Hoos.  They shot a paltry 17% from the floor and no made three pointers in the half.  UNC was able to about nearly 37% from the floor and 42% from 3pt land.  The Tar Heels controlled the boards with 21 rebounds to Virginia’s 16.  They also led in fast break points at 7 to 2 even though Virginia only committed two turnovers while UNC had 6.

Reece Beekman scored eight of the team’s 16 points while Ryan led all scorers with 15 points, nearly half of Carolina’s 26 at halftime. 

The Hoos started the half with some momentum as Jordan Minor scored down low while Andrew Rohde splashed home a 3pt to draw Virginia to 31-25.  However, the Tar Heels always had an answer and subsequently responded with a 9-2 run to take a 40-27 lead at the under 12:00 minute mark.

Virginia continued to claw back into the game and with under five minutes to go, the Cavaliers had closed the gap to 45-37.

The effort and energy was superseded by the poor shooting from Virginia and Carolina making enough free throws did to keep the Cavs at distance to eventually pull away with a 54-44 win. 

The win gives UNC a 21-6 record and keeps them on top of the ACC.  The Hoos fall to 20-8 and head to Boston College on Wednesday. 

Ryan led all scorers with 18 points, on strength of six 3-pointers.  He was joined by RJ Davis with 12 and Bacot with 10 points and 13 rebounds (game high).  Jordan Minor was the spark for UVA scoring 12 and grabbing 10 boards.  Beekman stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.

EMSPORTS.org 02/24/2024

The game of basketball can be described in any ways.  Painful, exciting, thrilling, boring or a combination of all the above.

In the case of visiting Wake Forest at Virginia, this was a game of who could make a shot or at least a free throw. Wake Forest scores the most points a game in the ACC at nearly 80 points.  The Cavaliers are the stingiest allowing less than 62 points a contest.  This is a test of wills and styles when they face one another.  

In the first half, both teams were nearly perfect from the floor after the jump ball.  Virginia hit their first five shots and Wake responded making three out of their first five attempts.  Then the basket seemed to close up as there were long droughts of missed shots, unexplained turnovers and ragged play.  The defenses were certainly the aggressors.  Wake led 22-21, scoring six of the final 10 points.  Efton Reid for the Demon Deacons, led all scorers with eight as well as the best rebounder with seven.  The Cavaliers had three share scoring honors with six each by Ryan Dunn, Issac McKneely and Reece Beekman. 

The second half saw a more inspired game by the Hoos.  As they turned up the heat on defense, it rubbed off just enough on the offense as well. The Hoos outscored the Deacs, 28-25, after halftime led by Beekman’s 14 second half outburst. 

For all the good of the defense, Virginia started 0-10 from the free throw line, yes a shutout from the charity stripe until they made their last one of the game.   Wake Forest was perfect 4-4 until they missed their last one.  Needless to say, it was not pretty.

The difference was the level and impressive defense that is the bedrock of Virginia Basketball under Tony Bennett.  The Cavaliers finished with 12 blocks and forced 12 turnovers.  The Demon Deacons were only able to shoot 35% from the field and barely 24% from behind the three-point line.  Virginia (20-6) was just slightly better but good enough at 41% and 31% respectively.

Reece Beekman was the catalyst and the best player on the court.  He stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points (game high), six rebounds and four assists. Issac McKneely added 12.

The Demon Deacons (16-9) spread the scoring as Hunter Sallie scored 12 and Efton Reid contributed 10 points.

The win was not picture perfect but it is a huge win for the Hoos as they begin a new home court winning streak and pad their resume for the NCAA tournament in a month.  This win splits the regular season between the two and builds momentum for the Cavs’ quick turnaround as they play Monday at the hostile confines of Cassell Coliseum when they visit Virginia Tech. 

WF must regroup and prepare for a visit from the red hot Pittsburgh Panthers, who have tied them in the ACC standings. 

EMSPORTS.org  2/17/2024 

Virginia will look to continue their eight-game winning streak (all ACC victories) as they host the Pittsburgh Panthers.  This game also marks another chance for the Cavaliers to extend the 23 consecutive wins at John Paul Jones Arena.

The Panthers are eager to make a modest addition to their three-game winning streak while pull an upset against one of the top teams in the conference.  This game could also bolster Pittsburgh’s NCAA tourney hopes while helping them to move to over .500 in the ACC standings.

The teams started well and offense was on display all night.  The Panthers were the aggressor and took the lead early. The Hoos responded and made their home crowd happy taking a lead one point lead at 31-30 with 20 seconds da left in the half.  The Cavaliers battled from down seven and looked to grab momentum into the half.

However, the Panthers were the big cats and a modest 5-0 run gave them a 35-31 lead.

The halftime adjustments would be important and the team who could make the most stops, would prevail.  The teams shot well but the difference was the Panthers’ 3t efficiency.

In the second half, Pitt continued to lead until Virginia took the lead around four minutes into the second half.  From that point, the teams traded baskets and the lead flipped back and forth. While neither team could pull away, the offense continued to sparkle as the game progressed.

Eventually, Pittsburgh took advantage of their hot long-distance shooting and it was too much for the Cavaliers to overcome.

14-32 was the biggest stat of the night.  This 3s came from everywhere for the visitors and Blake Hinson was the main sharpshooter.  He splashed down 5 three-pointers in the night and was the game high scorer with 27 points.  Teammates Ishmael Legget and Jaland Lowe also hit double figures with 13 and 12, respectively.

The Cavaliers were equally as effective, but their two-pointers were not enough as the threes.  The Cavaliers shot 50% from the floor for the game but only made 4 3-pointers and it pales in comparison to the Panthers.  Reece Beekman led the Cavs with 19 points and Issac McKneely chipped in 15.

The win gives Pitt their fourth in a row and snapped the nation’s longest home winning streak at 23.  This was also the first time Pittsburgh had won on the Cavaliers' home court since 1974.  Virginia suffered their first ACC home loss in nearly two seasons following the defeat.

Virginia (19-6) will look to start another streak when they host the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Saturday as they look to avenge an early-season loss.  Pittsburgh (16-8) looks to keep the wins coming as they return home to face the Louisville Cardinals. 

EMSPORTS.org 2/13/2024

The Cavaliers (17-5) have found a strong combination during the recent six game winning streak.  The emergence of Jordan Minor as a legitimate inside  presence, scoring and rebounding, makes the Cavaliers (8-3 in ACC) a more complete team.  Dante Harris has brought speed and change of pace to the guard spot allowing McKneely to be the shooting threat as advertised and allows Reece Beekman to take timely rest breaks.

The duo also gives the Hoos some depth on the bench and takes away heavy minutes from the starters. This is vital as Virginia hosts the Miami Hurricanes (15-7, ACC 6-5). The game will be a quick turnaround for Virginia who survived to win a heart-thumping victory at Clemson, 66-65, on Saturday.  Less than two days later, another physical team looks to end the Cavaliers’ 22 game home winning streak, the nation’s best.

The Hurricanes pulled off a much needed win at home against the Virginia Tech Hokies on Saturday as well. They will challenge the Hoos at every level. This team is averaging nealy 81 points per game but they struggle on the defensive end.

The keys to the game will be rebounding and second chance opportunities.  As a road team, more chances to score will build confidence and break the will of the defense driven Cavs.  On the flip side, if Virginia limits Miami to one shot a possession, they will control tempo and frustrate the Hurricanes into some desperate moments as the game goes on. 

Miami was able to get off to a better start than Virginia who seem to have some jet lag from the beginning.  The Cavs missed their first five shots, one of the first nine and it allowed Miami jump out to a 7-2 lead in the first five minutes. After that episode of basketball, Virginia made some substitutions and the offense picked up in earnest.

Virginia embarked on a 12-0 run in the next six minutes spearheaded by the hot shooting of Jacob Groves.  Groves scored seven points in that stretch.  Miami stopped the run with a Bentley Joseph jumper to cut the lead to 14-9.

The Cavaliers led 29-17 at the half thanks to a 15-8 run that was punctuated by the stingy defense of the Packline.  The Hoos held the Hurricanes to a measly 28% shooting for the field with knelt 2 of 10 from behind the three-point stripe. In contrast, Virginia generated a shooting percentage of 48 from the floor and an efficient 75% beyond the 3pt arc. 

Omier led the Hurricanes with seven points and eight rebounds.  Virginia spread the scoring as Beekman had eight while Issac McKneely tied Groves with seven.

The second half was not any better for the Hurricanes and Virginia turned back any hope early in the half.  Virginia continued to enforce their will and Miami was never comfortable and settled.  

The evidence of the dominance can be seen in the turnovers and the shooting.   Miami only made 14 field goals for the game which produced  29% shooting and 10% from the theee-point space (2-20).

The Cavaliers were steady and consistent.  The shooting was a product of great passing and smart decisions.  The Hoos converted their 20 assists into 26 made field goals.  That included a strong 5 for 11 from beyond the three-point line.  

The other side of this performance was the play of the defense.  The Cavaliers forced 11 turnovers (committing only 3) and double the Hurricanes in blocks at 8 versus 4.  

The balance from Virginia on offense and defense overwhelmed the Hurricanes.  Miami was only able to have one double digit scorer, Omier had 11 points and 13 rebounds.  The next closest scorer was Wooga Poplar with eights. 

Virginia had nine of their eleven players score at least two points. 

Beekman led every player with 16 points and Jacob Groves brought 12 points from the bench.  

The win extends Virginia’s win streak to seven games and extends the nation’s longest home streak to 23.  The Hurricanes now 15-8 (6-6 in conference) have dropped to 7th in the ACC while Virginia, 18-5 (9-3 ACC), moves into second place by themselves.

EMSPORTS.org 2/5/2024

The Virginia Cavaliers entered the end of January playing some of their best basketball.  The team was returning from a victory over Louisville and wanted to extend the winning streak to five.

The challenge awaiting was the visiting team from South Bend, Indiana.  The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were struggling in the ACC.  The team was 2-7 in conference play however one ofthe wins was a crushing of the Hoos a few weeks earlier. 

A win for Virginia would solidify a third place position behind UNC and Duke.  Notre Dame was in search of a win just to turn the tide and build momentum for the second half of conference play. 

These two teams were going in opposite directions but all ACC games are tough.  Virginia was able to slowly break away with a 20-8 run in the last eight minutes of the half.  Virginia and Notre Dame were not shy from behind the three-point line.  Both teams took plenty and made 50% or more.  The Irish made five of ten shots which was great.  Virginia was even more efficient and the nine makes in 15 attempts catapulted the home team to a strong 38-23 halftime lead.

The shooters were just as effective from other spots on the court.  The Cavaliers shot 52% overall while ND was a solid 42%. The struggles for the Irish was the ability to possess the ball.  The nine turnovers provided Virginia with ample possessions.  Virginia was only guilty of three turnovers and the good shooting made for just six fouls between both teams.

The scoring was led by the sizzling stroke of Jacob Groves, who came off the bench to score 15 points, all from 3pt shots. The Irish also had bench firepower as Braeden Shrewsberry made two triples to lead with six points.

The Cavaliers needed to keep up the pressure up and not allow ND to erase the lead in the second half, as the NC State Wolfpack had done in the last home game.

Virginia was methodical and the offense kept the hot shooting Irish at bay.  The Irish came out focused and whittled the lead from 15 to eight with a little over ten minutes remaining.  When it looked as if the Irish were ready to make a final push, Reece Beekman took over.  The All-ACC guard scored seven of the last eight points cementing the win for the Hoos. He filled the stat sheet with game high 21 points to go with six rebounds and four steals. Groves (18 points) was just as effective on the strength of his 6 3pt field goals in eight attempts. 

Issac McKneely (11points) was his normal sharp shooting self making three of five from downtown. As a team, the Cavaliers shot a season best 13/25 from behind the arc.  The victory extends the nation's longest home winning streak to 22 games.

Notre Dame outscored the Cavs, 30-27, in the second half but it was not enough. The Irish were good for 50% from long distance (9/18) and shot over 46% for the game.  They outrebounded the Cavaliers 28 to 25 but it was the 18 turnovers that led to their demise.  The Cavaliers converted those turnovers into 20 points.

The leaders were freshman Markus Burton with 17 points and Shrewsberry with 16. 

The win gives Virginia a 16-5 record but more importantly a 7-3 ACC mark.  The Irish fall to 7-14 overall with a 2-8 record in conference. 

EMSPORTS.org 1/31/2024

The Virginia Cavaliers will face a regular foe with some wounds that have yet to heal.  The visiting North Carolina State Wolfpack are looking to sweep the season series after manhandling the Cavaliers in Raleigh just a few weeks ago. A few things have changed and some faces have too. 

The Cavaliers have seen an increased presence both inside and outside on this team.  The duo of Dante Harris and Jordan Minor have sparked the team in this modest two game winning streak.  Minor has provided a physical presence around the glass and the rim while Harris brings speed and defensive intensity on the perimeter.The Wolfpack are coming off a surprise loss at home to the Virginia Tech Hokies. 

They will be poised and focused in this game knowing they have defeated the Hoos once this season.  The Wolfpack are not lacking speed, quickness or firepower as they know a victory will allow them to separate from the ACC pack which includes the Cavaliers.  Both teams are 13-5 on the season and this game will allow the winner to pad their NCAA tourney resume. Virginia is still one game back of the ‘Pack in the crowded ACC for second place. 

The game was not a beauty pageant unless you love turnovers and missed shots.  Each team struggled to break loose for the defensive grip of the other.  It reminded you of shadowing boxing except there was contact and lots of it.

The teams traded many missed shots and NCSt took the early lead at 6-3 thanks to Virginia’s sloppiness.  The Cavaliers continued to work their defense and found some rhythm with a 7-0 run, holding the Wolfpack scoreless for over four minutes.  When former Hoo Casey Morsell stopped the streak with a bucket, the game then turned into a slog but Virginia continued to clamp down on defense.

In the last six minutes and 34 seconds, Virginia limited the Wolfpack to a single free throw.  In that span, Virginia created separation with 11 points and took a 27-15.  The catalyst was the work on the boards. Virginia outgained NC State 29-12, with 13 of them offensive.  

Both teams worked hard on the defense creating a total of 12 turnovers and each team shot poorly.  Virginia made the only two 3pt field goals of the 14 attempts by both teams.  The Hoos shot 35% from the floor while holding the visitors to 25% in the half. 

NC State shot out the gate from halftime and scored first but the teams traded buckets until Virginia went on a 9-0 spurt to take a 35-21 lead.  The home team and crowd were in a frenzy and the visiting team looked as if they were done.  However, the game was about to really begin.  The light switch came on for NC St and over the last 15 minutes of the half, they dominated. 

The offense clicked with DJ Burns and Casey Morsell leading the charge.  For over eight minutes, the team in red got all the bounces and made shots from all points on the court as they made a 20-5 run that gave them a 41-40 lead at the 4-minute mark.

From there it was more like hand to hand combat, as neither team could take more than a four point lead.  With the ball, under 10 seconds, the Wolfpack trailed by two, 47-45, and it seemed Virginia was going to escape.  NC State was able to get their own offensive rebound and with the putback by Michael O’Connell, the game was tied heading into overtime. 

In the extra session, Virginia is scored the first six points, none bigger than a 3point swish from Taine Murray who also made 3 free throws to lead the Hoos to a nail biting victory at 59-53.

In the end, Virginia made enough plays to create the advantage as they doubled up NC State 12-6 in scoring in overtime.  The game was essentially won by Virginia from the rebounding advantage of 54-32 with 20 offensive boards leading to extra possessions.  The Cavs also shot slightly better at 37% compared to NC State’s 35% from the floor.

The win gives the teams a split in the season in their two contests.  The win gives Virginia a 14-5 record overall as NC St . drops to 13-6, but both are tied at 5-3 in the ACC.

Stats and Stars

UVA - 5 guys in double digit scoring
Ryan Dunn 13 pts, 12 rebs, 6 blocks
Taine Murray 11 pts (off the bench), 2-2 on 3ptrs
Jordan Minor 10 pts, 9 rebs, 1 steal

NC State - Forced 15 turnovers

Casey Morsell 13 pts, 2 rebs
DJ Burns 11 pts, 3 Rebs
Michael O’Connell 10 pts, 4 rebs (off the bench)

EMSPORTS.org 1/24/2024

The Wahoo Ladies came up short against Duke. The Blue Devils shot 40% from the floor Virginia fell behind early and could not gain a lead as the Cavaliers fell to Duke  60-56, Sunday afternoon (Jan. 7) at John Paul Jones Arena.  Camryn Taylor led the Hoos with 17 points on 5-of-10 shooting, pulled down eight rebounds, and added three steals. the Cavaliers shot 30 percent. Duke went up early on Virginia 13 to 3
in the first quarter Virginia score 9 points to cut the lead  Blue Devils’lead back to one, 13-12. Duke scored the last four points of the quarter to lead it, 17-12, heading into the second. In addition to Brunelle, London Clarkson, and Taylor all picked up two early fouls in the opening period. Taylor led all scorers at the half with eight points, including six in the second quarter, on 2-of-4 shooting and knocked down all four of her attempts at the charity stripe. UVA shot 21 percent in the second quarter. Taylor scored nine of her 17 total points in the third quarter.
Reigan Richardson with 18 points and Kennedy Brown 13 to Lead Duke to Victory. 
Kymora Johnson a freshman For the Cavaliers had 14 points Eight rebounds two stills three assists    1/7/24  EM-SPORTS.ORG

The 2023 year ended with a dud for the Cavaliers.  They headed to Notre Dame looking for an ACC road win.  The Fighting Irish lived up to their name and handed Virginia one of the worst losses in the Tony Bennett era.

The loss was left in 2023 and the Cavaliers (10-3) return home looking to start a new streak and begin afresh in 2024.  The nemesis will be the visiting Louisville Cardinals who have had a very rough start to their season.  The Cardinals (5-7) are already 0-1 in the ACC and just endured a near 20-point shellacking at home to in-state rival, the Kentucky Wildcats.  The Cardinals have also struggled in road games at JPJ, where they have not won in seven previous contests.

Louisville took a quick 2-0 lead in the first 30 seconds and then a 5-2 lead within first five minutes.  That is about the only bright spots for the Cardinals.  Virginia began to execute the game plan by feeding off the tight man-to-man pressure and turned up the defensive heat on the Cardinals.  The Hoos made the right moves and most of their shots while forcing Louisville into repeated errors.

Cavalier’s took a 37-22 lead at the half and never looked back.  The Cards scored the first four points after halftime but that would be as close as they would get.  Once the score was 37-26, the Cavaliers methodically increased the lead to over 20 points in the second half and maintained the advantage for the remainder of the game.

Louisville spent the entire second half playing catch-up and could never gain any sustained momentum.  

Stars for the home team were Issac McKneely with 18 points 4 made 3pt field goals. Ryan Dunn produced a double-double 15 points, 10 rebounds and 

Taine Murray, off the bench, with ACC career high 12 points.  

Reece Beekman was his constant, steady playmaker with stats in multiple categories, 11 points, game highs with 8 assists and three steals.

UVA shot 52% and 38% from three point land while taking a 34 to 27 advantage on the boards.  The ball security was immaculate as Virginia had 20 assists to only three turnovers while Louisville had just 10 assists and eight turnovers. 

The visitors were led in scoring by Curtis Williams with 14 from his reserve role and 11 from starter Mike James. The team shot at a clip of 40% from the field and just 24% behind the 3pt arc.

The loss places the Louisville Cardinals at 5-8 (0-2 in ACC) on the year while Virginia improves to 11-3 (2-1 in ACC).

EMSPORTS.org 1/3/2024 

The Cavaliers return to the friendly comforts of home after suffering a devastating loss at the home of the Memphis Tigers.  The Cavs have been away for over a week and now will use those lessons learned to start a new winning streak and remove the sting of the last loss.

The Cavaliers (9-2) will make room for the Morgan State Bears (4-10), a common opponent over the last several years.  The Bears are a scrappy and athletic outfit who will have their work cut out against a stingy defense in UVA’s Packline system.

The Cavaliers have a chance to knock off some holiday rust as they wrap up their non-conference schedule.  This game will also allow the Hoos to fine tune their rough spots as they gear up for ACC contests going forward.  

The Bears are looking to throw caution to the wind and pull off the massive upset.  A victory on the court of JPJ, would jumpstart the Bears as they look ahead to their MEAC battles. 

Virginia wasted little time and energy to establish their dominance from the tip. Jacob Groves got the scoring started with a three-pointer and the Cavaliers flexed their defensive muscle allowing only ten points in the first 13 minutes of the first half.  The Cavaliers were proficient from the floor scoring 24 points in that time frame.  The defense restricted the Bears from getting into any rhythm.  There were multiple scoring droughts from the field of five minutes or more for the Bears.  

The Hoos took the halftime lead at 43-16 on the strength of shooting a scorching 53% from the field and nearly 46% from behind the 3pt arc.

Morgan State struggled with anemic shooting.  They converted 26% from the floor and only slightly better at 33% from distance.  

The second half was more on the same as Virginia continued to blaze the nets and the defense was just as impressive.

Morgan State was able to shoot slightly better after halftime.  It was not enough as Virginia never let the lead go under 22 points for the entire half.  

The game was well in hand and the benches  were in heavy rotation.  Virginia’s last five points were scored by members of the “Green Team” with Tristan How recording a bucket and the final points were scored on a  Bryce Walker three-point shot.

Virginia outrebounded the Bears by six, 39-33.  They also were better with the ball committing half the turnovers (5) to the Bears’ (10).

Rob Lawson and Kameron Hobbs led the way with 14 and 12 points, respectively.

The Cavaliers had four guys score in double digits.  Reece Beekman led all scorers with 17 points.  Three of his teammates scored 10 each, Jacob Groves, Andrew Rohde and Leon Bond III.

The win gives Virginia a 10-2 record as they prepare for the ACC slate.  The Cavs will visit Notre Dame on Saturday, Dec. 30th.  Morgan St. falls to 4-11 on the season and head to NJIT on New Year’s Eve Sunday.

EMSPORTS.org 12/27/2023

Virginia took a break from the court to hit the books for exams.  They worked just as hard preparing for a return to the court after an 11-day layoff.

The Cavaliers were still enjoying the homestand and they welcomed the Northeastern Huskies, who at 4-6, were looking for a big upset.

The Cavs crushed NCCU Eagle son their last game and looked to stay perfect at home with a victory over the Huskies.   Northeastern came in as an underdog but came out with force.  They jumped out to a 6-2 lead with a couple of 3-pointers and as the Cavaliers stayed cold, the Huskies continued scoring.  The visitors increased the lead to 16-6 and the Hoos were struggling.

The Cavaliers picked up the defensive pace and the offense followed.  A 14-2 run provided the home team with a 20-18 lead and the crowd was finally able to cheer.  The lead didn’t last.  Northeastern collected their poise and closed the last 4minutes and 32 seconds of the half on a 12-4 run to the shock of the arena and led 30-24.  

The Cavaliers were led in scoring by Reece Beekman who had 10 points to lead all scorers.  The team was rather flat otherwise.  The Huskies shot nearly 50% on the half and they grabbed 21 rebounds.  Virginia had only 12 boards and was outshot from the three point line as well as Northeastern made 4 to Virginia’s 0.

The second half looked to have a change in the score but the start was not to UVA’s liking.  

Northeastern continued to attack the basket and cutdown on their turnovers.  The  Huskies stretched the lead to the largest of the game at 37-24 with seven consecutive points to start the second half. Virginia slowly cranked up the defense and proceeded to get back into the game with their efficient, methodical play. In a ten minute span, Virginia produced a 21-7 

Cavalanche and grabbed the lead at 45-44.

The last six minutes of the game became a seesaw affair where neither team pulled away with more than a two point margin.

The punch-counterpunch action led to tough buckets and tougher defense.  Northeastern pulled ahead at 50-48 before Virginia tied it at 50.  The teams traded buckets until Virginia took a final lead at 56-54.  Reece Beekman provided the bucket with about 5 seconds left and each of 21 points was needed.  The game was not cover because with around three seconds the Huskies had one more chance.  The in-bounds pass was errant and the Cavaliers escaped with a 56-54 home victory. 

The Cavaliers lost the rebounding battle at 35-28 but were able to overcome their poor shooting creating 17 turnovers while committing only five. 

The win pushes the ranked Hoos to 9-1 in the season with their next game a visit to Memphis.  Chris Doherty led the visitors with 12 points and Joe Pridgen added 11. The gamed and persistent Huskies fall to 4-7 but they gained the respect of the Cavaliers. 

EMSPORTS.org 12/16/2023

The Virginia Cavaliers started a new month with a thumping of ACC fellow member, the Syracuse Orange.  The team was in sync from the start and several big offensive explosions sealed the fate of Syracuse.

The Cavs welcomed out of conference for, the North Carolina Central University Eagles for the first time to John Paul Jones Arena.  The Eagles entered at 4-5 and are facing another Power 5 opponent after battling with Kansas and Georgia earlier in the year.  Virginia enters their third straight home game with a heavy advantage and momentum gained from the victory a few days ago.

The Cavaliers came out the gate slow as they and the Eagles missed some early shots but Issac McKneely open up the scoring with consecutive threes and the offense got it going.  NCCU did not back away.  Even though McKneely was on fire from 3pt land, the Eagles closed the gap to 16-10 on a Perry Smith Jr. layup with a little over five minutes gone by in game time.

From that moment on, the Cavalanche was in effect and Packline Defense was lethal. Virginia unleashed a 25-7 run to completely control the game and remove any momentum from the visitors of North Carolina. The lead of 41-17 at half was all the home crowd needed to keep the buzz going.

The Hoos did nearly half of their scoring from the 3pt line where they made seven in the half.  Those 21 points alone outpaced the entire Eagles’ offense.

McKneely led all scorers with 14.

The Eagles were down three starters and it had an effect on the team’s production.  The Cavaliers were hitting on all cylinders and they didn’t let up in the second half. The shooting did not slowdown and the defense continued frustrating the Eagles at every turn.  In the first five minutes, Virginia extended the lead to 52-20 with a mixture of jump shots and inside efficiency.  The Eagles played fairly even with the Cavs over the majority of the half. 

The Cavaliers were able to extend the lead, doubling the Eagles at 74-37 with just under five minutes.  From there, the Eagles finished the game on a 10-3 run.  It was not enough with the home team pulling away and coasting to a 77-47 victory. 

The defense set the tone and NCCU could never crack the code.  They finished with an anemic shooting of 29.4% from the field and a measly 17.6% from behind the three-point arc.  The team collected 30 total rebounds while committing just nine turnovers.

The Cavaliers, in contrast, showed tremendous shooting touch and were stingy with the ball.  The team shot over 54% from the floor and made half the shots (4-8) when they launched from distance.  The Cavs gobbled up 40 boards with only five turnovers. 

Virginia was led by sharpshooter McKneely, who made six 3pt shots for the second straight game and finished with 22 points to lead all scorers.  His other teammates in double figures, were Leon Bond III (14) and Elijah Gertrude (13) off the bench.

The Eagles had three in double figures as well.  Smith Jr. led the team with 12.   Guy Fauntleroy recorded 11 and Josh Smith had 10.

The win gives Virginia a 8-1 record and North Carolina Central falls to 4-6 overall. 

EMSPORTS.org 12/5/2023

EMSPORTS.org 9/23/2023

The football team of the Virginia Cavaliers had waited nearly 10 months for this moment.  The program, the university and all of Wahoo Nation had circled this date on their respective calendars once the 2023 schedule was public.  The season started, officially, last week versus the University of Tennessee, but all eyes were on this game.  This would be Virginia's first home game since the shooting tragedy that claimed the lives of three football players.

This team was poised and focused on honoring their fallen teammates and bring a much need victory to the Wahoo Faithful. The opponent was the James Madison Dukes.  The team from Harrisonburg had paid homage to the Virginia program recognizing the players from last year's tragedy with stickers on their helmets.

The reality was this game was huge for both programs who were headed in opposite directions.  Virginia had not won in nearly a year and the Dukes had become members of a new conference, Sun Belt, and were 1-0 after winning their season opener.

The Hoos got off to a rough start.  They allowed a TD on the opening JMU drive and then the offense stalled deep in their own territory.  The punt was blocked and JMI recovered for another TD.

Virginia answered back when 1st year Tony Colandrea in his first start shows he was capable.  Colandrea connected with Malik Washington for a 63-yd catch and run.  JMU increased the lead to 17-7 before Virginia scored 21 straight points to grab a 28-17 lead.

JMU responded right before the fourth quarter and trailed 35-24 after Mike Hollins scored his second TD with seconds left in the third quarter. JMU was not fazed and proceeded to outscore Virginia 12-0 as the defense shut the door in the fourth quarter.

The JMU team scored twice and finished off the comeback with a TD pass with 55 seconds left.  Virginia behind the strong performance of Colandrea, (20-26, 377 yards with two TDs and 1 interception), the Cavs had a chance.  They needed just a field goal down a point but could not get one more big play and fell in the emotionally charged contest by a score of 36-35 to their in-state foe.

Jordan McCloud was very strong for the Dukes.  He was 20-31 with 224 yards passing and no turnovers.  He led a balance attack as JMU gains 228 in the air and 167 on the ground.  Virginia was more one-dimensional as they also gained 395 yards like JMU but the heavy damage was from Colandrea (377 yards) while the other 18 yards were from rushes.

The loss drops Uva to 0-2 while JMU improves to 2-0.

EMSPORTS 9/9/2023

The thrill of being in the NCAA Final 8 or Division 1 College World Series is a dream come true for the most dedicated and fiercest working college baseball team.  The road to Omaha, Nebraska is paved with potholes, challenges and the situations beyond your control.

The Virginia Cavaliers have performed in the highest level for two decades under Coach Brian O’Connor the Charlottesville community has enjoyed the fruits of labor when their might Cavaliers have found the right combination of pitching, hitting and defense to make six trips to the hallowed diamond.

Virginia had achieved this year’s trip with a super regional championship over fellow brethren, the Duke Blue Devils.  After vanquishing the Blue Devils, the Wahoos prepared for an opening game versus a familiar foe, the Florida Gators.

These two worthy adversaries had met recently in 2015, the year the Cavaliers won the title.  The Gators had not been to Omaha some 2018, when they captured their first national title.

The game was a battle of pitching and defense.  A few errors early on the base paths took away some early chances for Virginia.  Florida struck first and took a quick 1-0 lead.  Virginia responded quickly before taking a 4-1 lead late into the game.

The Cavaliers looked to be in control as they led 5-2 in the eighth inning where they were extremely effective in closing games out.

The Florida Gators had other ideas and none proved good for Virginia.  The Gators overcame a 5-3 lead with three runs in the ninth inning including the walk-off sacrifices fly to steal a victory from the Hoos by a score of 6-5.

The loss left Virginia in an unenviable task of attempting to win four games in five days while Florida could breathe a sigh of relief for they escaped with a momentous win.

The Cavaliers were disappointed but not out of it.  They had a quick turnaround when they refocused in an elimination game bs the TCU Horned Frogs.  

Both teams were on the verge of elimination and each team could not afford any big mistakes.

One of the characteristics of Virginia’s great season was their offense.  The Cavs were first in the country hitting at a .335 clip.  It was the aspect that would let them down. 

The battle versus TCU was another rematch from a college World Series game nearly a decade ago.  This time the Horned Frogs used timely hitting (runners in scoring position and clutch pitching to fend off a Cavaliers comeback.  The Cavaliers played from behind all day, briefly tying the score at 1 before having a final chance with a runner on second with two outs down 1.  It was not meant to be and the struggle to get hits all game (5) was present in the final frame.

The heart breaking, season clenching loss placed a sudden damper to a remarkable season.  With 50 wins and another trip to Omaha, Virginia continues to show the nation they are a program with high goals and consistently a threat to push for the top spot in the NCAA baseball tournament in June ever year.

EMPORTS.org 6/18/2023 

In late April, the Virginia Cavaliers were scrambling on the field and struggling to put together victories.  What a difference time and patience can make when you don't lose faith.

A small change in the lineup and a few pitching moves and the Cavaliers became the dominant team they have known to be in June.

Virginia captured the Charlottesville Regional with a perfect 3-0 record beating the Army Black Knights, 15-1.  They then defeated the East Carolina Pirates twice with a 2-1 grinding victory before finishing them off in the championship by a score of 8-3.  As the Cavaliers celebrated their wins, they knew there was more waiting.  In the process of advancing to the super regionals, the Cavaliers were trending in the right direction.  They won 10 stright games before a loss the North Carolina in the ACC tournament.  The loss only fueled their competitive spirit when they were rewarded with the #7 national seed for the NCAA tournament.

The other element to the success was the outstanding performances of the starting pitching which consisted of the arms of Nick Parker, Connelley Early and Brian Edgington.  The three had combined to lead the Hoos on the mound but most importantly their consistency and ability to gobble up innings kept the bullpen fresh and efficient.  The three weekend starters did nothing to give the opposing team any favors.

In the Charlottesville Regional, the three combined to give up only 3 earned runs in the three games.  Nick Parker pitched five perfect innings in his start while Early and Edgington both got into the 7th inning on their starts.  The offense was just as impressive as they outscored their counterparts 25-5 in those three contests.

A familiar foe returned to Charlottesville with a chance to make the All-ACC Super Regional a memorable affair.  The Dule Blue Devils were the last team to win in Charlottesville and they had given Virginia two of the four losses (35-4) the Cavs had experienced all season on their home field.  The Duke Blue Devils had blasted their way through the Conway Regional hosted by #10 National Seed Coastal Carolina.  In their 4 games, the Blue Devils hammered 12 homeruns and scored 12 runs twice.  MJ Metz, the powerful DH, finished with four homers, with three in the opening game.  Duke was equally effective with the long ball when they took two of three in late April at Davenport Field in Disharoon Park.

The Cavaliers were not the same team they were six weeks ago and the goal to get to Omaha was much closer now than before.  The Cavaliers had been sensational in the chance to advance to TD Ameritrade Park. In 7 previous super regionals, the Cavaliers advanced in five of those series including a 4-1 record when they were the host.

The trend of pitching would be the key as Duke usually relied on multiple arms as their bullpen was tremendously impressive and were able to hold leads.  The Hoos would also be able to counter with big arms but the operating method was to get a strong start from their big 3, all who were transfers from other Division 1 programs. 

Game 1, Duke 5 - Virginia 4

Nick Parker took the mound and was steady and impressive.  He left the game with the score tied at 3-3 and gave the Cavaliers a great chance to win.  The offense responded and scored in the bottom of the 7th and took a 4-3 lead. The relievers were not able to keep the lead as the often reliable combination of Jay Woolfolk and Jake Berry was just slighlty off.  The Duke Blue Devils were able to scratch across two runs which was an anomaly to a Cavalier team that only lost 1 game when leading after the seventh inning.  Duke's familiarity with the bullpen from Virginia and their confidence and memory of winning in Charlottesville before paid off to help them escape with a 5-4 win.  This win put the Cavaliers on the brink of elimination and made game 2 the must win scenario that know one wants to face.

Game 2, Virginia 14 - Duke 4

Connolley Early took the mound and knew what faced his team.  The Army transfer was brilliant throughout the year, take an 11-2 record and had just defeated a talented ECU team just a week ago.  

The Duke Blue Devils were stoked after winning in dramatic fashion and only 1 win away from taking this team to the College World Series, the first time they had been in 62 years.  The Duke team has been this close before when they took a 1-0 lead at Vanderbilt in 2019 only to lose the next two games.  Would history repeat themselves?

Virginia started early and never let up.  Griff O'Ferrall got the party started.  As the visiting team, the Cavaliers hit first and did they take advantage of it.  The second pitch of the game was a success for the Cavaliers.  O'Ferrall liked what he saw and picked the perfect time to hit his first homer of the season.  The homerun ignited the team and the Cavalanche had just begun. 

Virginia scored in six of the nine innnigs with several being big 4 run innings.  In the process, the Blue Devils were only able to pose a threat in the fourth inning when a collection of hits from the bottom of the lineup, Tyler Albright, Luke Storm and Davin Lux spearheaded three-spot and the Cavaliers were only up 4-3 as the game moved into the fifth.

Virginia was not deterred and remained focused.  As the Cavaliers scored 10 consecutive runs and erased any chance of a Blue Devils' comeback.  The pitching was handles by Early who gave his longest performance of the year and it was more than enough.  The bullpen duty turned to freshman swingman Jack O'Connor.  He was effective only allowing one run to finish off Duke and set up the rubber game 3 that would determine which ACC team would represent the conference in Omaha.   The offense was the story as they produced as many hits (14) as they did runs and the homerun ball was responsible for four of those hits, the most ever hit by a Virginia team in a super regional game.

Game 3, Virginia 12 - Duke 2

To the winner goes the spoils or the joys of winning.  To the loser, the agony of getting so close to getting to the mecca of college baseball only to see just how long the wait may be before you have this chance again.

Welcome to the final game at Davenport Field and the last game of the season for some team and its rabid fans.

The Cavaliers turned to their veteran, Brian Edgington, who was Virginia's winning pitcher in the previous series against Duke.  Edgington has been dependable and super reliable with his win against ECU a week prior giving the Cavaliers the chance to reach this round.  Edgington had tossed 7 quality innings in the 8-3 victory over ECU and he was capable and able to give the same performance to finsih Duke.  The Blue Devils knew history was on the line.  They were capable of getting hot and blowing a team out but first they had to get a strong pitching performance from their plethora of arms which had been highly successful all year.

The model of success had been for Duke to get up and early lead and sustain until they could get to the back end of the bullpen with the arms of Frank Oschell and closer James Tallon, ACC Freshman of the Year.  The Cavaliers knew if they could grind and be patient that Duke would eventually run out of quality arms.  That was the case on this closeout game.

After a scoreless first, the home standing Cavaliers, jumped out to a lead they would never relinquish.  The Hoos had become synonymous with scoring in bunches and the second inning was no different.  Five Cavaliers crossed the plate and it was all Edgington needed to command the tenor of the game.  The 5-0 lead was untouched until a two-run homer from 2B Jay Beshears in the sixth inning, ruined the shutout but not the complete game victory.  Edgington was masterful in the matchup, throwing a complete game.  He recorded 11 strikeouts (season high) and scattered nine hits throughout the game.  In contrast, Duke could not find the right combination nor stop the bleeding as nine different Blue Devils took the mound and all were ineffective and Virginia steamrolled their way into another invitation to the College World Series with a statement victory of 12-2.  The offense continue to make Duke's life too tough to handle as the Cavaliers put up 16 hits.  By comparison, Duke tied its lowest run output (2), the same amount they had in an opening round win in the regionals against Rider.

Virginia makes their sixth College World Series appearance in the last 14 years all under the supervision of Coach Brian O'Connor.  The Cavaliers were the 2015 champion and will look to add to their championship hardware and history by adding trophy number two in the next two weeks.

They will have a tough road ahead with their opening matchup versus another champion, the Florida Gators, the SEC regular season champs who are the #2 National Seed.  These teams have faced each other in previous College World Series contests.  The opening game will take place on Friday, June 16th at 2pm EST.

EMSPORTS.org 6/11//2023

The ACC is a tough obstacle course and Virginia had a bumpy ride in April. The Hoos swept the Miami Hurricanes and were looking to run away from the rest of the ACC in the Coastal with an 11-4 standing. The bats were ready and the pitching arms kept the opponents at bay.  As good as it was going, the Cavaliers then hit an unfortunate snag in the season.  The next three series did not go as planned and the team was struggling with consistency and scoring.  The Cavaliers enjoyed dominance over non-conference teams but couldn’t get over the hump as the low point in this stretch included a sweep at the hands of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.

The losses looked to stymie the early season momentum and Virginia was looking up at Duke and Miami with a 13-11 record and losing position for the ACC tournament.

The Cavaliers were staring at adversity and needed to turn the ship around in their last two ACC series.  The season with such promise and high national rankings was staring to slip into an abysmal finish.

Virginia controlled their destiny and they proved their mettle with by finishing the season with a nine-game winning streak.  As they had done all year, the Cavaliers did not let any ACC besmirch their record and that did not change with three wins over Conmonwealth teams in this order, VCU, JMU then Radford.  

With those wins Virginia finished undefeated against their non-ACC opponents at 25-0.  This was the first time a D1 team had accomplished this feat since 2016.  The wins paved the way for their last two ACC opponents, Louisville and Georgia Tech.

The Cavs used this newfound momentum to complete consecutive sweeps and grab the Coastal Division Title.  The 19-11 conference record secured the overall #2 seed for the postseason tourney in Durham.

EMSPORTS.org 5/22/2023

The Cavaliers enjoyed great success as their veteran players gave them a boost that few teams could match.  The stacked lineup included preseason ACC stars 3B Jake Gelof and C Kyle Teel.  In addition, talented sophomores 1B Ethan Anderson and Freshman All-American OF Casey Saucke, gave the lineup some legit power and a nightmare for opposing pitchers.  

The Cavaliers won their first three ACC series.  The wins included a trip to NC State and a strong showing with a sweep of the Florida State Seminoles.  THowever, the tide turned with a visit into southwest VA.  The Hoos were ready to continue their winning ways but lost their first ACC series in the matchup with their in-state foes, the Virginia Tech Hokies. 

As they had done in each series, the Cavaliers won the first game to set the tone and put pressure on their counterpart.  However it was not the same recipe for success in Blacksburg.  After a successful month of March, the dud was finishing with two straight loss at the end of the month.  The Hoos dropped the last two at VT to fall to 8-4 in ACC play.  

The game two loss ended their seven-game conference winning streak.  The Hokies’ bats came alive and averaged 12 runs in their two wins.  Virginia still had a hold of the Coastal Division lead as the calendar turned to April.

With the losses, the Cavaliers were looking to regroup and jump back into the win column and not let this one blip become a theme for the rest of the season.

EMSPORTS.org  3/31/2023

In the NCAA Tournament, there are a few phrases that are universal to any fan.  “March Madness” is the calling card but a close cousin is “One and Done”.  In each case, the phrase seems to take in a life of its own.

This was truly felt as a shockwave rippled through the Virginia fans and team with a surprising upset loss at the hands of 13-seeded Furman Paladins. The #4 seeded Cavaliers were the favorite and looking to bounce back from a grinder in the loss to Duke in the ACC tournament final.

The game started on a good note as Virginia took a quick 6-0 lead and then expanded it to 19-9.  However, Furman, the Southern Conference Champs of the regular season and tournament, did not feel the press and started to make shots to stem the Virginia tide.  The Paladins were not intimidated and found themselves only down 32-27 at the half.  The success of the three-point shot made a huge difference as Furman made four and Virginia made zero on the first half.  Virginia instead rules the paint and it allowed them the advantage.

The second half was played to Virginia’s liking and the defense was leading the way.  Virginia methodically put the clamps on Furman and pushed the lead to 12, at 50-38 with 11 minutes to play.

Furman knew they needed to switch it up or they would be packing their bags.  A timely change from the man to man defense to an extended 1-3-1 half court zone was the catalyst to a 19-4 run, allowing only one field goal by Virginia in over seven minutes.  Furman was in fire from behind the arc and their leader, SoCon Player of the Year, Jalen Slawson, scored nine straight to give them their first lead at 57-54.  The teams battle back and forth and just when Virginia looked to put the game away, the madness of March reared it’s ugly head.

Down 67-65, the Paladins broke out a fullcourt press with 12 seconds left.  The ball was inbounds and Kihei Clark had possession.  However, he attempted to heave the ball down the courts with nearly six seconds left.  The ball was intercepted by Furman.  With just under three seconds,  JP Pegues got the pass and made the biggest shot if his career.  A right wing three-pointer found the bottom of the net and the indescribable had happened, Furman had upset the Cavaliers and ended their season.

The 68-67 loss is the final game for several Cavaliers while Furman looks to continue to wear the slipper of the dance’s Cinderella just a little longer.  Furman had four starters in double digits led by 19 points and 10 rebounds from Slawson.  The Cavaliers got a double-double monster game from Kadin Shedrick with 15 points and 13 rebounds.  He was one of three Hoos in double digits.  The undoing was behind the 3pt arc where Furman finished at 10 of 28 while Virginia only made 2 of 12.

EMSPORTS.org 3/16/2023

The University of Virginia raced out the gates for the 2022-2023 bases all season.  Last season ended with a bitter taste in the mouth of the Cavaliers who were looking to follow up the 2021 campaign with a return trip to Omaha, Nebraska, the site of the NCAA College World Series.  They team fell short of their destination losing in the regionals at Coastal Carolina University.  

The new season lined up with new energy and a new set of challenging opponents for the team from Charlottesville.  As the schedule lined it up, Virginia was knocking them down.  

The first 12 games were out of conference as each game went the same way as all 12 of those games were victories for Virginia.  

The Cavaliers entered ACC season on the road the at rival North Carolina.  The Tar Heels were looking to get off to a strong start and anytime UNC played UVA, no win would be better than against Virginia.

The Cavaliers spoiled the party at Chapel Hill winning the first two games of the three-game series.  The great pitching and strong offense was more than enough to overpower the Tar Heels in the first couple of games by a combined score of 15-7.

The Cavaliers ran their season opening winning streak to 14 games before falling to UNC in the final game of the series.  The winning streak bode well as a sign of starting fast on the ACC slate.

EMSPORTS.org 3/11/2023

Virginia knew that the ACC Tournament required your best effort every game.  They had another obstacle in front of them in the form of Clemson who played them tough in a loss just 10 days ago.  The winner will face Duke in the finals.

Clemson finished off NC State in blowout fashion and they looked primed to pull the upset on the second seeded Cavaliers in this tournament.

The teams started fast and looked to be locked in step with each other, flipping the lead back and forth.  Virginia took an 11-10 lead after Kihei Clark layup and never trailed again.  The Cavaliers slowly started to overwhelm the Tigers.  As the half went on, the lead grew and Clemson’s cold spell grew as well.  After a Tyson Hall three-pointer, the Tigers were ready to make a move on down 29-25.  Then the infamous Cavalanche, Virginia’s ability to score in large amounts, appeared.  The Cavs finished the first half on an 8-0 run and it gave them a 37-25 lead at halftime.

The Cavaliers were in control but they didn’t let up in the second half.  The Clemson Tigers were in a drought and it was too much to overcome.  The final four minutes led to an extended four minutes before Hunter Tyson scored in a layup.  The Cavalanche had created 14 straight points and the game was for all intents and purposes over.

The Cavaliers were dominant and had the ability to score at will.  They stretched the lead to 23 points at 52-29 at the 13:45 mark.  The smooth movement of offense led Virginia to scoring 40 points in the paint nearly double the 22 paint points of the Tigers.

Eventually, the Tigers were just a step or two slope and Virginia never let up.  Virginia scored 39 points to Clemson’s 31 to put the finishing touches on an eye-popping 76-56 win. Jayden Gardner was the man again.  He recorded his second consecutive double-double, recording 23 points and 12 rebounds, both game highs.  Cavaliers also 

gained 16 points from Armaan Franklin and 13 from Kihei Clark.  The team shot 50% from field including six three pointers.  There were only six turnovers.  The Tigers made a push but it was futile.  Clemson finished the game at about 36% shooting and converting seven 3pts to six by Uva.

The dynamic duo of PJ Hall and Hunter Tyson were not able to take over the game and the supporting cast was not much better.  The two combined for 28 points, half of the team’s output.  Brevin Galloway scored 12.  

EMSPORTS.org 3/10/23

As the Virginia Cavaliers prepare for the ACC Tournament, they have experienced several ups and downs in just the last few weeks.  The team lost as many game in February (3) as they had lost all year since the season began in November.

After a second consecutive loss, they seemed to regroup and put together two

wins at JPJ to close out the regular season and take momentum into postseason.

They have a chance for redemption when they face North Carolina for the third time.  The first two meetings were split with each team winning on their home court.  This game had more meaning because the winner would move onto the tourney semis while the loser had to wait for the NCAA to give them an invite to the big dance. 

The Cavaliers had to play without a starter in Ben Vander Plas who suffered a broken hand in practice prior to the game.  The Cavaliers had to adjust as it led to a slow slow start as UNC took a 13-9 lead with a little over eight minutes left in the first half.  The Cavaliers were sparked by their defense and it helped generate offense when the Hoos had a 14-2 run the grab a 23-15 lead with 3:10 on the clock.

The Tar Heels were struggling as well by had the ability to finish the half with an 8-2 run on the strength of two three-pointers to close the gap to 25-24 in favor of Virginia at the half

The teams shot a combined 6-21 from the 3pt arc and each shot roughly 40% from the field.

RJ Davis from UNC led all scorers with 12 while Reece Beekman led the Cavaliers with 11.

 The Tar Heels are shot makers and even without Bacot, they kept it close and made a run to get the score to 57-55 with under two minutes left after a RJ Davis free throw.

Virginia did not fold and sealed the victory with an 11-4 run making 9 out of 10 free throws.

The win puts Virginia at 24-6 with a date in the ACC semifinals where they will face the number 3 seeded - Clemson Tigers.  North Carolina is 20-13 and will have to see if they will get a bid to play in the NCAA tournament.  

Virginia - 

Jayden Gardner 17 points, 10 rebounds 

Reece Beekman 15 points, 5 assists, 5 steals

Armaan Franklin 14 points

Team shot 49% for the game but only 27% from the 3pt arc.  Eight steals and eight blocks with six turnovers.

North Carolina-

RJ Davis 24 points

Caleb Love 11 points

Five bench points for the entire game.

Team shot 36% from the field and 30% behind the 3pt arc and 11 turnovers.

EMSPORTS.org 3/9/2023

The 13th ranked Virginia Cavaliers knew  they had many goals this season.  The main goal is always to be the best in the ACC.

They accomplished that mission today and locked up another regular season championship, the sixth in the last 10 seasons.

This was a special Senior Day as the Hoos recognized the accomplishments and services of Ben Vander Plas, Jayden Gardner, Francisco Caffaro, Armaan Franklin, Chase Coleman and Kihei Coleman.

The offense was just as impressive with the nets on fire from the field as the Cavs made over 58% for the game and a strong 11 for 14 (78%) from the free throw line.

The first half was all Virginia as they jumped out to a quick lead and then applied pressure with made baskets and forced Louisville into shooting under 30% from the floor.  The Cavaliers put up 36 and took a commanding lead into the half at 36-20.  

Freshman guard Mike James was impressive scoring 24 points (game high) and drawing fouls against multiple Virginia Cavaliers.  His backcourt running mate, El Ellis, scored 14.  The Cardinals shot much better in second half to improve to over 43% for the game but were only 4 of 15 from behind the 3pt line.  They were very successful shooting 80% (16/20) from the charity stripe which collecting 25 rebounds and committing 12 turnovers.

Virginia (23-6) was able to collect 24 rebounds while committing only seven turnovers.  Nine Cavaliers scored led by the duo of Jayden Gardner and Armaan Franklin who both had 16.

The win locks up the second seed in the ACC Tournament for Virginia while Louisville (4-27) will be seeded 15th.

EMSPORTS.org 3/4/2023

2/27/23

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The family of legendary Virginia men’s basketball head coach and athletics director Terry Holland announced today that he passed away Sunday, Feb. 26, in Charlottesville. He was 80 years old.

Holland served as head coach at Virginia from 1974 to 1990, retiring as UVA’s all-time winningest men’s basketball coach with a 326-173 (.653) record. Holland guided the Cavaliers to a pair of NCAA Final Four berths (1981 and 1984), three consecutive ACC regular-season titles (1981-83), two Elite Eight appearances (1983 and 1989), one ACC tournament championship (1976), one NIT crown (1980) and nine NCAA tournament appearances. He earned ACC Coach of the Year honors in 1981 and 1982.

Holland was a standout player for Lefty Driesell at Davidson, where he led the nation in field goal percentage as a senior in 1963-64. Holland joined Driesell’s coaching staff after he graduated and took over head coaching duties in 1969.

Holland served five seasons as head coach at Davidson before accepting the head coaching job at Virginia in 1974. He turned around the UVA program and won the school’s first ACC tournament championship in 1976.

He took the Cavaliers to an elite level with the arrival of future stars Wally Walker, Jeff Lamp, Bryant Stith, and most famously, 7-4 Ralph Sampson, the national Player of the Year in 1981,’82 and ’83. The Cavaliers posted a 112-25 mark and earned its first Final Four berth during the Sampson era from 1979-83.

The year after Sampson graduated, Holland led the Cavaliers back to the Final Four in 1984, losing to Houston and Hakeem Olajuwon in the semifinals. In his 21 seasons of coaching, Holland's teams compiled a record of 418-216, with a school-record 326 of those wins coming at Virginia. Holland's record was broken earlier this season by current UVA Dean and Markel Families Men’s Head Basketball Coach Tony Bennett.

After retiring from coaching in 1990, Holland returned to Davidson as athletic director. He later became the athletics director at Virginia for seven seasons from 1994 to 2001 and then at East Carolina for 10 more years.

The Clinton, N.C., native is survived by his wife, Ann, daughters Ann-Michael Holland and Kate Baynard, and three grandchildren.

As the Calendar nears March, the games becoming more important.  Tournament season also affectionately known as March Madness brings out the best and worst in teams.

The University of Virginia is a team who knows they are going to play postseason basketball howeve the 13th-ranked Cavaliers have struggled in the last two weeks.  Consecutive losses on the road at Boston College and North Carolina.  

The Clemson Tigers were also looking to gain momentum going into the end of the season with tournaments on the horizon.  As the Tigers and Cavaliers stood tied for third in ACC at 13-5, a win would be crucial for seeding and keep alive hopes of sharing the ACC regular season crown.  Clemson was coming off a blow out win at NC State and seems to be gaining confidence as they headed north to Virginia.

With this being the only head-to-head matchup, the victor would have a much needed boost towards March.

The first half was a very familiar and slow start for the Hoos.  The Tigers were ready for a fight and broke out the offense with a quick 5-0 lead in the first two minutes.  The Cavaliers looked stunned and playing in molasses until a quick spark turned it around.  Ryan Dunn, entered the game at the 15 minute mark.  His impact was like a bolt of lightning, firing up the team and the crowd.  His first basket was an acrobatic layup that started a 17-2 run for the Cavaliers over a five minute span grabbing a 17-7 lead and putting Clemson on notice.

As the remainder of the half continued, both teams struggled offensively but Virginia was able to hang on to a 28-23 lead at the half.  

To say shooting was anemic is very accurate. Both teams shot in the 30 percentile from the field and each made 3-12 from behind the three-point arc.  Ryan Dunn led the Cavs with eight points followed by Armaan Franklin with 7.  The dynamic duo of Hunter Tyson and PJ Hall combined for seven each to pace the Tigers.

T With the win, Virginia improves to 22-6 on the year and 14-5 in the ACC locking up at least the third seed for ACC tourney.  The loss for Clemson, now 21-9 and 13-6 in ACC, moves them into a tie at the coveted 4-seed which guarantees a double bye for next week in Greensboro.  

Highlights:

Virginia had four players in double figures:

3 tying for high scorer with 12 - Jayden Gardner, Armaan Franklin and Issac McNeely.  Gardner had team high nine rebounds.

Clemson had scored over 70 points in 6 straight games, averaging almost 76 points per game in ACC play finished with 57. Hall scored 19 while Tyson had 17.

Virginia had eight turnovers which was below season average of 8.7

The Cavaliers outrebounded the Tigers 40 to 32 but Clemson shot nearly 42% and made two more 3pt shots (7 v 5) than Virginia. 

EMSPORTS.org 2/28/2023

The ACC is not for the weary in spirit.  The fans of UVa know that all too well as they have seen Virginia struggle to put teams away as they maintain a grip on 1st place in the standings.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish entered JPJ at 2-13 in the ACC but they are as good a two-win conference team you will find.

They stood true again today as they had a chance to pull a huge upset at #8 Virginia’s house.  Coach Mike Bret has made it known he will not be ND’s Coach next year, so they were playing inspired for him.

Virginia wanted to play better after a hard fought win at lowly Louisville.  The Cavaliers and Irish traded baskets early on but the made shots were few and far between.  After a brief ND 5-4 lead, the Cavs found a rhythm and methodically state red to separate themselves from Irish.  

All looked well as Virginia took a 24-15 lead after a Ben Vander Plas layup at the 4:28 mark.  However, Notre Dame would not go away quietly.  The Irish finished with a spurt, out scoring Virginia 10-5 gaining momentum entering the halftime trailing 29-25.

The Irish took the initiative to not be comfortable and grabbed a 6-0 run and take a 31-29 lead and raise the anxiety for the Virginia crowd hoping for an easier win than in the past three games. From that moment in, it was a see-saw affair for the next seven minutes.  Neither team could escape the other until a Reece Beekman three-pointer gave Virginia a little breathing room at 45-40 with less than 12 minutes remaining.

It looked like Virginia could hold a lead and avoid late game dramatics but the Cardiac Cavs showed up.

With a five point lead at 55-50 with about 3 and one-half minutes left, the Cavaliers failed to score another field goal.  In that long scoring drought, the defense would bend and not break.  Kihei Clark converted two free throws but Notre Dame had one last chance to win.

Trey Wentz was fouled with less than four seconds left.  He made the first and after a timeout missed the second.  In a scramble, ND recovered the rebound and Dane Goodwin spotted up for a game winning three-pointer. As the pass went to Goodwin, all the Virginia faithful could do was hang on with their collective hearts in their throats and hope for a miss.  The wish was granted as the shot went clanging off the rim and Virginia escaped with a 57-55 victory.  The win boosts the Hoos 21-4 overall and 12-3 in the ACC.  The tough loss makes ND 10-17 overall with a 2-14 ACC mark.

In the victory, history was made as Kihei Clark became the school’s all-time assist leader passing the great John Crotty.  

The Cavaliers outrebounded the Irish, 35-30 and committed less turnovers: 6 to the Irish’s 8.  Both teams were nearly identical in shooting, as ND shot 39% to 36% for Virginia.  Virginia was slightly better from the 3pt arc at 29% to the 26% of Notre Dame. The Irish have never won in Charlottesville.

The Irish leading scorers:

Nate Laszewski - 18, Dane Goodwin - 12, Marcus Hammond - 10

Virginia’s leading scorers: 

Kihei Clark - 15, Armaan Franklin - 12, Reece Beekman - 11

EMSPORTS.org 2/18/23

The 8th ranked Virginia Cavaliers were looking to rebound following a tough loss at the Hokie house of Blacksburg. The Hoos saw their seven- game win streak end with a Virginia Tech victory. The could only mope for a couple of days because a return to JPJ meant another challenge. This time the red-hot NC St Wolfpack was visiting. 

The first round of the Commonwealth Clash took place at JPJ as the 10th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers hosted their neighbors from the western part of the state, the Virginia Tech Hokies. 

The Hokies were excited to get leading scorer, Hunter Cattoor, back after a four game absence as a result of an elbow injury.  The Cavaliers knew his return could be a catalyst for a team desperate for a much needed win.  

The home team came out of the gate quick.  The Cavs scored first only to see VT tie it up at 2-2 in the first two minutes of the game.  Virginia answered back with a 9-0 run to take a 11-2 lead and maintained that margin until the Hokies turned the tables.  

Virginia experienced one of their common scoring drought.  This version lasted about five minutes.  In that span, Virginia Tech took a 21-19 lead as they streaked on an 11-0 run.  As it seemed VT had taken control, the Cavaliers answered the call.  In the next seven and a half minutes, UVa began the making shots and they didn’t stop until the halftime buzzer.  

The Cavs took a 40-31 lead on an emphatic slam dunk to end the half by Reece Beekman.  This capped a 14-5 run to break a 26-26 tie. 

The Cavaliers could never pull completely away from the Hokies until late in the game.  After halftime, Virginia was able to push the lead to as high as 14 (74-60), however a few tense moments saw the Hokies cut the lead to two but never grab the lead again.

Uva shot 51% from the floor.  They grabbed 30 rebounds compared to 27 for the Hokies.  Virginia Tech shot 12 of 27 from behind the 3-point area and had 8 turnovers whereas the Cavaliers were 8 for 23 from distance and just five turnovers.  Virginia Tech shot over 49% but only attempted and made both of their free throws.  Conversely, the Hoos were 12 of 13 from the charity stripe. 

The win is Virginia’s fourth straight, all ACC victories, and boosts the record to 14-3 overall and 6-2 in conference.  The Hokies extended their losing streak to six games.  They fall to 1-6 in ACC and 11-7 for the season. 

Beekman had an all-around game with He 11 points, seven assists and three rebounds.  His starting backcourt mate Kihei Clark scored 20 points to lead all scorers.  He contributed five assists with one turnover. Armaan Franklin tallied 15 points while Jayden Gardner chipped in 12 and Ben Vander Plas supplied 10 points and 7 rebounds to take high honors for the game.

The Hokies also had all five starters in double digits.  Darius Maddox was the highest scorer with 13. Both Justyn Mutts (10 points) and Cattoor (11 points) both grabbed a team high six rebounds.

EMSPORTS.org 1/18/2023

In the battle of ACC teams, very few battles are more historic than Virginia vs North Carolina. The Hoos and Heels have storied history of battles both in-season and during ACC Tournament time.  The original members of the ACC never disappoint.  

In this 2023 edition, the 13th-ranked Cavaliers welcome a hot UNC team with six wins in their last seven games.  The Tar Heels had not beaten the Cavaliers in their last 7 trips to JPJ. 

The Tar Heels are always an exciting, aggressive, fast-paced offense with firepower from all points on the floor.  The Cavaliers are the anti-UNC with a slow, patient, methodical presence and in your face defense.  The question is which style would win out. 

Carolina has enjoyed a recent two-game streak by sweeping the Cavs in both games last year however, a different year means all of 2022 is left behind.  Virginia has not lost to UNC at JPJ since 2012 and looked to move up the ACC standings with a big win.

Armando Bacot, a preseason All-ACC candidate for Player of the Year, was going to be a marked man.  He was leading the league in scoring and rebounding but he didn’t get much playing time.  Bacot suffered an ankle injury and Virginia took a quick 10-3 lead as Carolina didn’t score for the first five minutes of the game.

Enter Jalen Washington, a five star recruit seas called into action and he performed.  Washington was the catalyst of a 21-5 run to give UNC their largest lead at 24-15 with about 3 and a half minutes left before halftime.  He scored 12 points and grabbed 7 rebounds.  His play helped them maintain a 29-27 lead at the half.  Virginia finished the last few minutes with a respectable 9-3 run.  The Cavs turned Carolina over five times but shot under 35% from the field.  Carolina shot over 40% from the field and held a rebounding advantage of nearly 2 to 1.

The Tar Heels continued a solid effort in the second half and pushed the lead back to 36-29 on RJ Davis jumper.  Davis led all Carolina scorers with 16 points. Virginia turned to their new faces to jumpstart the offense.  Issac McKneely and Ben Vander Plas didn’t start but they finished with force.

The combination scored 22 of UVA’s 38 points in the second half (Vander Plas 14, McKneely 8).  Vander Plas made a jumper to start a run that he finished with a three pointer to give Virginia a 42-40 lead with under 13 minutes to play.  The Cavaliers’ hot shooting created a 23-6 Cavalanche that would push the lead to 10 (52-42). The Cavaliers would not falter.  Carolina got as close as 56-52, and Virginia withstood three Caleb Love three pointers late in the game to secure a 65-58 home victory.

Caleb Love and Washington each scored 13 points and Carolina fell under 40% for the game and made 8 of their 24 three point attempts.  The Hoos shot over 46% from the field (over 50% in second half).  The Tar Heels outrebounded their rivals at 36-32 but also committed more turnovers with 13 compared to UVA’s 8.     Three other Hoos scored in double digits with Reece Beekman at 13, Armaan Franklin’s 12 and McKneely finished with 11.

Virginia’s win gives them a 4-2 ACC record and makes them 12-3 on the year.  They next travel to Florida State on Saturday.  UNC, 3-3 in ACC and 11-6 overall, will look to get healthy and regroup as they head to Louisville for a Saturday afternoon showroom. 

EMSPORTS 1/10/2023

The 11th ranked Virginia Cavaliers returned to Charlottesville looking to get back in the win column.  The Cavaliers played well for a half before losing a close contest against the Pittsburgh Panthers on the road.  The Hoos were ready to battle the Syracuse Orange.  

The ‘Cuse entered the matchup on a two-game winning streak and felt good as they entered John Paul Jones Arena.  The famous 2-3 zone was ready to challenge the vaunted Packline Defense to see which team would reign supreme.

The first half was very productive for the Cavaliers.  The shooting was efficient and points were plentiful.  The defense was just as effective and the Hoos maintained a solid double digit lead for a majority off the half and took a 35-26 lead into the locker room. 

 Virginia jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead on Armaan Franklin’s opening three-pointer and never lost the lead it got as high as 35-20 before Syracuse finished with a 6-0 run.  

The Cavaliers limited the shooting of the Orange to under 40% from the field and only 2 of 5 from 3pt line.  The Cavaliers were much better shooting over 53% from the field and a scorching 7 of 13 from beyond the three-point arc.  The leading scorers were guards Armaan Franklin and Issac McNeeley with nine points each.  Judah Mintz and Maliq Brown were leading scores at six apiece for Syracuse.

The second half started even better as the Cavaliers stay hot and seemed ready to crush the Orange.  The Cavaliers took a commanding 22-point lead at 57-35 with a little under 12 minutes left.  Then a lid was put over their basket.   Over the next nearly nine minutes, Syracuse took the momentum and the Cavaliers offense went mute.  Virginia scored a measly four points on free throws while Syracuse chipped the lead to 61-50.  The teams traded three point shots but Syracuse added consecutive threes by Joseph Giraud III to give the Orange hope and raise the nerves of the JPJ crowd.  The score was 64-56 but Virginia settled down and they eventually held on 73-66.  The victory was not just a win for the Cavaliers but it also marked the 327th victory for Coach Tony Bennett to break the program record he had shared with legendary former coach, Terry Holland.

Giraud led all scorers at 19 points followed by 18 from Mintz and 10 from Brown.  Virginia had five in double figures as Franklin scored 16, Reece Beekman’s 13, McNeeley had 12, Kadin Shedrick scored 11 and 10 by Jaylen Gardner.  

Both teams shot very well, nearly 44% from the floor and ‘Cuse shot 57% from the three while Virginia cooled to a very respectable 46%. Kihei Clark provided 11 assists of the team’s 23 made field goals. 

The win improves Virginia to 11-3 and 3-2 in the ACC.  Syracuse falls to 10-6 overall and is tied at with Virginia at 3-2 in conference. 

EMSPORTS.org 1/7/2023