Top-ranked Virginia led by as many as 17 in the first half, then withstood a Louisville rally that cut the margin to four with 8:55 to go, before pulling away for a 74-64 win on Thursday at the ACC Tournament.
UVA (29-2) led 38-21 with 1:40 to go in the first half, but threes by Dwayne Sutton and Deng Adel got the Cardinals (20-13) back to 38-27 at the half.
A De’Andre Hunter three with 12:10 to go had the ‘Hoos up 54-41, but an 11-2 Louisville run capped by a Jordan Nwore dunk with 8:55 left cut the lead to four, at 56-52.
Then, it was time for the Cavalanche, fueled as usual on the defensive end. Louisville went without a field goal for more than eight minutes, and a pair of finishes at the rim by Mamadi Diakite ignited a game-ending 19-6 run.
Kyle Guy led the Cavaliers with 19 points. Devon Hall had 14, Hunter had 12, Ty Jerome 11 and Diakite finished with 10.
Team Notes
- Virginia improved to 29-2
- The Cavaliers advanced to the ACC semifinals for the fourth time in the last five years (24thoverall)
- UVA has at least one win in each of the last five ACC tournaments, tying a program best (1970-74)
- UVA is 26-3 all-time in the 16 weeks as the top-ranked team
- UVA has a six-game winning streak
- UVA has 29 or more wins for the eighth time in history (1981, 1982, 1983, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018)
- UVA is 13-4 all-time vs. Louisville, including a seven-game winning streak vs. the Cardinals
- The Cavaliers improved to 6-1 all-time at Barclays Center (3-0 this season)
- UVA improved to 39-62 all-time at the ACC Tournament
- Virginia limited its 30th opponent to less than 50 percent shooting (Louisville – 36.7%)
- UVA led 38-27 at the half and improved to 26-0 when leading at halftime
- UVA held its 23rd opponent to 60 or fewer points
- UVA had 42 points in the paint, marking its second best of the season (44 at Georgia Tech)
Player Notes
- Kyle Guy (19 points) led UVA in scoring for the 12th time, reaching double figures for the 25th time
- Guy’s 19 points were his most since scoring 22 against Louisville onJan. 31
- Devon Hall (14 points) reached double figures for the 21st time
- Mamadi Diakite had 10 points and has scored nine or more points in four of the last five games
- Ty Jerome (11 points) reached double figures for the 16th time this season
- De’Andre Hunter (12 points) reached double figures for the 15th time this season
- Isaiah Wilkins totaled six rebounds to move into sole possession of 18th on UVA’s all-time rebounding list with 618
- Wilkins had two blocked shots and ranks third all-time at UVA with 140 career blocks
Share
AFP
