That was almost everything I wanted out of an NCAA-opening 1-16 game.
We did trail 10-9 early and let 20-12 become 20-18, but the intent was clear from the beginning: we were going to try to punish Hampton with our superior size and strength and use that to open lanes for our perimeter guys. Once the open threes started falling (we started two of seven, but hit five of six on a 20-3 run to close the first half), the competitive part of the game ended. Aside from the touch and go opening stretch and what was thankfully just a little scare involving Tony Bennett right before the half (I was admittedly close to Googling his blood type to see if I could donate any necessary organs when it first happened), this was a rout done right.
I was pleased with the approach. We needed to be efficient and emphasize our physical superiority, and both of those boxes were checked.
AG had 19 points and led us in shot attempts (13), which is how things should be when he’s clearly bigger and more talented than his defenders. Gill also had four assists (a career-high that prompted him to crack that he’s our best point guard), but the great thing about this one was that all five starters had multiple dimes, that seven of the nine guys in our regular rotation had at least one, and eight of them scored (Hall was blanked, though he certainly chipped in on D and on the defensive glass). We had 20 assists on 32 baskets, which is one of my favorite signs of Virginia success because it almost always means the ball is moving crisply, and just five turnovers. Isaiah had two great looks for scores, AG’s assists came out of doubles or triples on the block, and once they — especially AG — drew the defense, it became easier for Malcolm (three assists) and London (four) to swoop down the lane and either drop the ball off for a big or look for the other guy for a three (the two of them were a combined six of 13). The offense fizzed once we got past the opening minutes.
The bench gave themselves a real confidence boost. All four of the regulars contributed something meaningful in their time on the floor. Mike Tobey had eight points, six boards, and four blocks that appeared almost lazy with how easily they came to him, Marial Shayok scored 10 and had two assists, Darius hit two threes, meaning he’s now hit three in a row after missing 13 consecutive normal (non-gamewinning behind the head heaves) treys through ACC play, and finally, Evan hit two threes and grabbed three boards. Getting consistent contributions on offense from one or two of the bench group every game is both our biggest question mark and one of the biggest keys to our success this month, so hopefully seeing some shots go down in an NCAA Tournament game will bolster their confidence. A fired-up Mike Tobey alone is a big deal, and he’s been on a little bit of a roll: his last five games have seen him average 17.8 points and 15.6 boards per 40 minutes (clearly boosted by Louisville, but he’s been good since), and he’s been agile and physical at appropriate times on D. The other guys are trending up, too: Marial has scored in double figures in two of three games, I mentioned Darius slowly regaining confidence in his shot, and Evan has now hit seven of 12 threes in March and 10-22 overall dating back to the beginning of February. I’m optimistic.
Hampton got 17 points from Quenton Chievous (including two deep early threes that came as somewhat of a surprise from a reluctant 29% shooter), but Chievous is a position-less, hard-to-defend player who has an odd, herky-jerky, “this shouldn’t be working” old man game that makes him hard to match up with. For the game, the Pirates shot 37.8% on twos, made three of 19 threes (leading scorers Reggie Johnson and Brian Darden went 1-12, taking contested looks from a little farther than they’d have liked), and scored 0.75 points per possession. They wanted to spread out the Pack Line, but we were able successfully contest and push the Pirates offense farther away from the basket than they’d like. I’m satisfied.
Both Tony Bennett the coach and Tony Bennett the singer are in good health.
I wanted to let all my fans know that Im ok. Glad to hear UVA coach Tony Bennett is fine after his fall. Congrats @UVAMensHoops on the win!
— Tony Bennett (@itstonybennett) March 17, 2016
Butler and Roosevelt Jones — another weird, positionless player who is one of my favorite distinctly college-styled basketball players — are up next.
