Virginia was dominant, as everyone expected, in an 80-51 blowout win over North Carolina A&T on Tuesday.
The Cavaliers’ defense was dominant, limiting the Aggies to shooting 32 percent from the floor.
This game was over before most of the announced attendance of 12,905 finished socializing and found their seats.
Virginia limited NC A&T to just 6-of-28 shooting from the field in the first half and led at the break, 49-19. The ‘Hoos didn’t need 20 minutes to put this one away, leading by double digits just over seven minutes in.
As cold as the Aggies were in first-half play, the Cavaliers were hot.
Virginia made 18-of-28 shots in the first half, including 6-of-8 from beyond the arc.
Leon Bond III came off the bench to lead the hot-shooting Cavaliers hitting 5-of-6 shots in the first half on his way to scoring a team-high 16 points, finishing 8-of-10 from the floor.
And he had ample help from his teammates.
Ryan Dunn had the first double-double of his career, scoring 13 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for UVA, now 3-0.
Dunn practically had a double-double in the first half alone, with nine points and eight rebounds at the break.
Having witnessed many of these types of early-season games, where the opponent was simply overmatched, this one had a different vibe.
It certainly wasn’t from the mostly subdued crowd, but from the noticeable lack of drop-off as Tony Bennett went deeper into the bench.
Here’s some thoughts on the UVA dismantling of the Aggies.
Virginia has scorers everywhere
The Cavaliers scoring attack was certainly balanced. How balanced?
Every scholarship player scored. While Dunn and Bond got the headlines, and well they should, several other Virginia players flashed the offense as well.
Oklahoma transfer Jake Groves came within one rebound of joining Dunn as a double-double performer, scoring 11 points, and grabbing nine rebounds in just over 20 minutes.
Issac McKneely had eight points, including 2-of-2 from behind the arc, before leaving the game with an ankle injury in the first half.
The good news about McNeely’s injury was that X-ray showed no break, and after a little rest should be a go in next Monday’s battle with Wisconsin.
Leon Bond III can lead this squad
Before I get too carried away, a reality check is in order. Tonight, Leon Bond III wasn’t playing against the SEC Aggies (that comes in a couple of weeks), but tonight he dominated the NC A&T Aggies.
Bond is a complete player. That redshirt season has obviously made Bond extremely comfortable in adapting to the most challenging aspect of playing for Tony Bennett, learning the Pack Line defense.
Tonight in 19 minutes his 16 points was about as efficient as it could be, finishing 8-of-10 from the floor.
While NC A&T had no answers in defending Bond, better competition will.
But this is exactly where Bond could thrive.
As a forward, his quickness may present problems for the bigs that will populate the ACC part of the schedule.
If Bond moves to the backcourt against smaller guard-oriented teams, he could become a scoring machine in Bennett’s offense.
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