Georgia Tech might have come in as the 10th seed, but the Yellow Jackets had one thing over Virginia heading into their ACC Tournament matchup: a win.
Tech beat UVA, 68-64, in January in Atlanta, a lowlight of that early-season tailspin that seems so long ago now.
The Cavs, you might remember, if you hadn’t blocked it out of your memory, anyway, got off to a slow start in that one, one of the slower starts, actually, for a team famous for them.
Thursday’s ACC Tournament quarterfinal started to play out the same way. Georgia Tech led by as many as five midway through the first half, Adam Smith was bombing off-balance jumpers from all angles at will, and even a decidedly partisan crowd at the Verizon Center in the UVA alumni base that is Washington, D.C., could seem to shake things up.
A 10-point flurry from ACC player of the year Malcolm Brogdon sent UVA to the locker room with a narrow two-point lead.
The focus for coach Tony Bennett: imposing wills.
“We talked a bit at halftime. It was pretty even in terms that both teams wanted to battle the way they wanted to play. You talk about imposing wills. Let’s get a little tougher offensively. We talked about staying with it offensively. We got lifts from everybody, of course,” said Bennett, whose halftime fireside chat must have been a doozy, considering.
UVA outscored Tech 14-4 over the opening six minutes of the second half to push the lead to 12, and the rout was on.
Brogdon was his usual productive self, scoring a game-high 26 on 10-of-15 shooting, and harassing Georgia Tech star Marcus Georges-Hunt into a 1-for-8 shooting performance on the other end of the floor.
Virginia also got significant contributions from Anthony Gill (12 points, eight rebounds, 5-of-9 shooting from the floor), Mike Tobey (nine points, 4-of-5 shooting), London Perrantes (eight points, eight assists, two turnovers in 32 minutes) and Evan Nolte (six points in14 minutes off the bench).
“I think that balance, when we get other guys, obviously Malcolm, Anthony, usually London are usually there., but when those other guys can give us a lift, hitting a shot, doing some things, it makes a big difference. We needed that really early,” Bennett said.
UVA has now won 12 of its last 14 since starting ACC play 2-3, the loss at Georgia Tech the meat in the sandwich of early road losses.
Now the Cavs are back in suddenly familiar territory, making their third straight appearance in the ACC Tournament semifinals.
One thing is missing for this group that its predecessors were able to claim for themselves: a championship.
The last two UVA teams were ACC regular-season champions, and the 2014 group also won the ACC Tournament.
This team still ain’t won nothin’ yet, in a manner of speaking.
Bennett likes where his ‘Hoos are right now.
“Our guys, I think we’re collectively in a good place,” Bennett said. “As I’ve said to these guys many times, they’re capable. They can. We just always after each game answer the question, Will we be ready? Will we play the right way?
“They are certainly ready to play. They should feel the right way about that. But they know who they are. That’s what I love about them. I’ve seen that over time. These guys are experienced guys right here. I’m thankful for that. We want to obviously see what we can do.”
Story by Chris Graham
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