UVA basketball players Darion Atkins, Malcolm Brogdon, London Perrantes and Anthony Gill talk with reporters after the second-ranked Cavs defeated Virginia Tech, 69-57, in ACC basketball action on Saturday.
Virginia Forward Darion Atkins
On the technical foul: “Yes, I think I deserved it. It was intentional. I’m not going to hold onto the rim again, but I wasn’t going to let them steal my moment. I was glad I finished it in that way. It was fun.”
On 4-point game then pulling away: “We were patient on offense. Coach Bennett drilled our defensive principles and we just abided by those. We pounded it inside because they couldn’t really guard us there. We also took really great shots. That was what helped us pull away.”
On having London Perrantes back: “It makes a big difference. He is really experienced and a great point guard. He is one of the best in the country. He throws our offense down and gets guys open, so having him back was really good for us.”
Virginia guard Malcolm Brogdon
On having London Perrantes back: “It was huge to have him back. He is the motor to our offense and getting him back is getting the train running again.”
On 3-pointer to give UVa a 7-point lead: “It is a play we have; the out-of-bounds under play. If I have the shot I’m supposed to take it, but I think I had air-balled the one before at the top of the key. So I decided if I have the shot, then I’m going to shoot it with confidence. And thank goodness it went in.”
On the season: “It means a lot and this has been a huge season. It is really a blessing to be in this position for all of us. Then to be playing the type of basketball we are playing, but at the same time we can’t get caught up in that. We have to take this one game at a time, and now we are thinking about Syracuse and what we have to do to go up there and be successful.”
On Darion Atkins: “The word I would use to describe Darion [Atkins] is tenacious. He perseveres through so much. He didn’t play as much his freshman year and then as he has gotten older and more mature he has started playing so much. And now he is the key to a lot of our wins this season. I think his growth has been phenomenal and his growth as a player and as a man in college is more than I have seen out of anybody before.”
Virginia Guard London Perrantes
On taking off his mask for the second half: “I felt like I re-broke my nose, so I just threw it off. I thought, it’s broken so it’s not protecting anything anymore. It wasn’t too bad with the mask, but after that happened I thought there was no point in wearing it.”
On how he re-broke his nose: “I dove on the floor and the mask shifted, and my nose just went with it.”
On Darion Atkins’ big night: “It was huge. All the work he put into this program to be where he is now, and for him to go out in his last game like that is huge. I told him that we wanted to get this win for him and all of the other seniors, and we did and we went out with a bang.”
On playing well in his first game back from injury: “I felt like I was a little rusty, especially in practice. I only practiced once, yesterday before the game. To have that mask on and to just get back into it, you know coming off of a concussion is not fun. I definitely felt a little rusty.”
Virginia Forward Anthony Gill
On the team’s performance: “We played well. At times we had some lapses, and the defense kind of faltered a little bit but we overcame it and came out with a win tonight.”
On changing his style of play: “I think being more aggressive is what I have been trying to do lately, especially because we have some guys out. I’m just trying to be as aggressive as I can and help the team.”
On Virginia Tech’s strengths as a team: “Their defense is really confusing. You’re not sure what is about to happen. They have some ball screen action that is really tough to guard, too. They had that one really good shooter, [Adam Smith], who jumps really high and usually goes in, and that really keeps them in games.”
On being 27-1: “It’s crazy. I feel like we just started. I feel like we just had the JMU game. But you know, we’re here now and still have a lot of the season left to go. Unfortunately, this was the last home game. It was an emotional night for Darion [Atkins], Rob [Vozenilek] and Maleek [Frazier] and all of our managers. It’s good for us to be in the position that we’re in. We had a lot of injuries, but I think those guys are recovering. I think we’re about to start peaking at the right time.”
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