Game Notes: #2 Virginia hosts Virginia Tech in ACC Saturday Hoops

No. 2 Virginia (23-1, 12-0 ACC) hosts Virginia Tech (17-7, 6-5 ACC) in ACC men’s basketball action on Saturday, Feb. 10. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena (14,623) is set for 6:15 p.m.

For Openers

• UVA is first in the ACC at 12-0 and Virginia Tech is tied for seventh at 6-5.
• The Virginia-Virginia Tech game is part of the Commonwealth Clash presented by Virginia529, which is a head-to-head, points-based competition between the athletic teams of the Cavaliers and Hokies.
• ESPN’s College GameDay Covered by State Farm returns to JPJ prior to the game. The pregame show will air on ESPN from11 a.m. to 12 p.m.An evening edition will lead into the 6:15 p.m. tipoff.
• UVA’s 15-game winning streak is its longest since winning 19 straight to start the 2014-15 season.
• Virginia’s current 15-game regular-season ACC winning streak is the ninth-longest in league history and the longest since Duke’s record of 31, set between 1998-2000.
• Virginia is 12-0 in the ACC for the first time since starting 12-0 in 1980-81.
• UVA’s 23-1 record is its best record since starting 28-1 in 2014-15.

Broadcast Information

• The Virginia-Virginia Tech contest will be televised on ESPN and streamed online on ACC Network Extra (ESPN3.com) and ESPN App, and broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Athletics mobile app on iTunes or Android.

The Head Coaches

• Virginia: Tony Bennett (Green Bay, 1992), 211-84 in nine seasons at UVA and 280-117 in 12 seasons overall.
• Virginia Tech: Buzz Williams (Oklahoma City University, 1994), 70-55 in four seasons at Virginia Tech and 223-141 in 11seasons overall.

UVA Remains No. 2 in Latest National Polls

• UVA is ranked No. 2 for the fourth straight week in the latest polls.
• The No. 2 ranking is UVA’s highest since March 2, 2015 (No. 2).
• UVA has been ranked in the AP poll for 11 straight weeks and has been ranked in the top 10 in each of the past seven polls.
• Virginia is the fifth team in ACC history to move from unranked in preseason to the top 3, joining Miami (2012-13), Georgia Tech (2003-04), Wake Forest (1980-81) and North Carolina (1972-73).
• UVA is the lone ACC team to be ranked in the top 3 in four of the past five seasons.
• The Cavaliers received votes in the first three AP polls, snapping a streak of 64 consecutive weeks in the AP rankings since Feb. 3, 2014.
• UVA was ranked in the top 10 in the preseason polls from 2014-16.

UVA in Ken Pom Efficiency Ratings

• As of Feb. 9, UVA ranks No. 1 in the KenPom.com overall and adjusted defense efficiency ratings and No. 36 in the adjusted offense efficiency ratings.
• UVA is shooting 46.6 percent, 38.9 percent from 3-point range (2nd best in school history) and 76.9 percent from the free throw line (best in school history).
• UVA has shot 50 percent or better in nine games and limited its opponents to less than 50 percent shooting in 23 of 24 games.

Last Time Out

• Devon Hall scored 17 points, Ty Jerome added 15 and No. 2 Virginia rallied in the second half to beat Florida State 59-55 on Feb. 7.
• Kyle Guy scored 10 of his 13 points in the final 20 minutes as the Cavaliers fought back from a 32-22 halftime deficit to remain unbeaten in the ACC.
• Virginia was 5 of 10 on 3-pointers in the second half and committed just one turnover.
• Virginia (23-1) is the third team since 2000-01 to win its first 12 ACC games, joining North Carolina (2000-01) and Miami (2012-13).
• The Seminoles shot 40 percent from the field (18 of 45) and made only two of their last 12.
• MJ Walker paced FSU with 10 points, and Phil Cofer added nine.

All-Time Against Virginia Tech

• Virginia is 91-55 all-time vs. Virginia Tech, including a 38-12 mark in Charlottesville, in the series that dates back to 1914-15.
• The Cavaliers have a five-game winning streak against the Hokies in Charlottesville and are 10-2 in the last 12 meetings vs. the Hokies.
• Head coach Tony Bennett is 12-5 all-time vs. Virginia Tech.

Last Time Against the Hokies

• De’Andre Hunter scored 14 points and then-No. 8 Virginia put the defensive clamps on Virginia Tech in a 78-52 victory onJan. 3.
• Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy added 13 points each and Devon Hall had 12 for the Cavaliers, who ended a two-game losing streak in Cassell Coliseum.
• UVA’s 26-point win was its largest against Virginia Tech since a 48-point win on Feb. 18, 1955 (107-59 in Charlottesville).
• Kerry Blackshear Jr. had 14 points to lead the Hokies.
• Virginia Tech came into the game leading the nation in field goal percentage at .532 and among the leaders in 3-point percentage at .427, but they made only 17 of 47 shots and were just 2 of 12 from 3-point territory.
• The Cavaliers committed just six turnovers.

UVA vs. the Commonwealth of Virginia

• UVA has a 65-14 record against teams from the Commonwealth of Virginia since 1999-2000.
• UVA is 3-0 vs. teams from Virginia this season (VCU, Hampton, Virginia Tech).
• UVA has won 18 of its last 20 games against teams from Virginia.

Getting Defensive

• UVA has limited its foes to 52.4 points per game (2nd best in school history) and has held 11 opponents to fewer than 50 points (UNCG, Austin Peay, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, Savannah State, Hampton, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Clemson and Syracuse).
• Six opponents (UNCG, Austin Peay, Savannah State, North Carolina, Georgia Tech & Clemson) have committed more turnovers than made field goals.
• UVA has held 19 opponents to 60 or fewer points.
• UVA has held 19 foes to less than 43 percent shooting.
• The Cavaliers have held 14 opponents to 30 percent or less shooting from 3-point range.
• The Cavaliers are 75-2 when limiting their opponents to fewer than 50 points under head coach Tony Bennett (11-0 in 2017-18).
• Bennett-coached teams are 100-3 when holding opponents to fewer than 50 points during his 12-year coaching career.
• In 2016-17, Virginia led the nation in scoring defense (56.4 ppg) for the third time under Bennett.
• Bennett-coached teams have led the nation in scoring defense four times and finished in the top-five nationally in eight of 11 seasons.

About the Cavaliers

• UVA is led by tri-captains Devon Hall, Isaiah Wilkins and Jack Salt.
• The announcement of Hall, Wilkins and Salt marked the first time in Bennett’s 12-year head coaching career where he officially named team captains.
• UVA has averaged 68.3 points per game on offense, while yielding a nation-leading 52.4 ppg (second lowest in school history) on defense.
• UVA has started Ty Jerome, Kyle Guy, Hall, Wilkins and Salt in each of its 24 games.
• UVA is one of eight schools to have the same starting five this season (Army West Point, Duke, Elon, Nebraska, Purdue, UNLV and UTSA).
• Guy leads the team in scoring at 15.4 points per game and has reached double figures in 20 games, including a career-high 29 points at VCU (11/17/17).
• Hall has averaged 12.3 points and leads the team in free throw percentage at 93.4 percent.
• Wilkins is averaging team-highs in rebounds (6.6) and blocked shots (1.6).
• Jerome is averaging 9.8 points and team highs in assists (3.7 apg) and steals (1.54 spg).
• Salt has chipped in 3.9 rebounds per game and 20 blocked shots.
• Redshirt freshman De’Andre Hunter (8.2 ppg) has reached double figures in seven ACC games, including team highs at Georgia Tech (17), Virginia Tech (14) and Syracuse (15).
• Graduate transfer Nigel Johnson, who returns after serving a three-game suspension for violation of team rules, is averaging 5.5 points and Mamadi Diakite has added 5.1 ppg & 3.2 rpg.
• Jay Huff and Marco Anthony provide depth and fellow rookie Francesco Badocchi is redshirting the 2017-18 season.

There’s No Place Like Home

• Virginia is 164-40 (.804), including a 14-0 mark in 2017-18, in 12 seasons at John Paul Jones Arena.
• UVA’s 16-game home winning streak dating back to last year is currently tied for the fifth longest with St. Mary’s and Texas Tech in NCAA Division I.
• The Cavaliers finished undefeated at home (15-0) in 2015-16.
• UVA is 126-24 (.840), including a 90-9 (.909) mark the past six seasons, at home under head coach Tony Bennett.
• Virginia is an ACC-leading 47-4 (.922) in league home games over the past six seasons. Duke is second at 44-6 (.880).
• UVA has won 11 or more home games for nine straight seasons.

On the Horizon

• No. 2 Virginia travels to No. 25 Miami onTuesday, Feb. 13. Tipoff at the Watsco Center is set for9 p.m. on ESPN.