No. 12 UVA (9-1) plays at California (9-2) in non-conference action on Wednesday (Dec. 21). Tipoff at Haas Pavilion is set for 10 p.m. ET.
For Openers
- California head coach Cuonzo Martin served as an assistant coach for the 2011 USA Basketball Men’s World University Games National Team, while Virginia head coach Tony Bennett served as a court coach during that team’s training camp in Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Virginia redshirt junior guard Darius Thompson played for Cuonzo Martin at Tennessee during his freshman season in 2013-14.
- UVA senior guard London Perrantes is a Los Angeles native, playing his high school basketball at Crespi Carmelite.
- UVA ranks first in the nation in scoring defense at 46.7 points per game and has held eight of its 10 opponents to 52 or fewer points.
Broadcast Information
- The Virginia-California game will be televised on ESPN2, streamed online on ACC Network Extra and broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Athletics mobile app on iTunes or Android.
- Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.
The Head Coaches
- Virginia: Tony Bennett (Green Bay, 1992), 174-73 in eight seasons at UVA and 243-106 in 11 seasons overall.
- California: Cuonzo Martin (Purdue, 2000), 50-28 in three seasons at Cal and 174-110 in nine seasons overall.
UVA Ranked No. 12 in Latest Polls
- UVA is ranked No. 12 in the latest Associated Press and USA Today Coaches’ polls.
- UVA has been ranked in the top 15 in each of the first seven polls this season and was ranked in the top 10 in the first four polls.
- The Cavaliers were ranked in top 10 in the preseason rankings (No. 8/7) for the third straight season, matching a school-best from 1981-83.
- UVA has been ranked in 52 consecutive AP polls since Feb. 3, 2014.
- UVA has finished in the top 10 (No. 3 in 2014 & No. 6 in 2015 and No. 4 in 2016) in the final AP rankings in three consecutive seasons for the first time since 1981-83.
All-Time vs. California
- Virginia is 1-0 all-time vs. California, posting a 63-62 overtime win in Charlottesville last season.
- London Perrantes (10 points) drilled a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left in overtime to give Virginia the win.
- Former UVA two-time All-American Malcolm Brogdon added 10 points and stopped California’s Jaylen Brown at the final horn.
- Former Cavalier Anthony Gill tallied a team-high 17 points and Jarred Reuter added 11 points in 16 minutes off the bench.
- UVA shot a season-low 18.2 percent (4-22) in the first half, but shot 53.1 percent (17-32) in the second half and overtime.
All-Time vs. Pac-12 Conference Opponents
- UVA is 13-12 all-time against current Pac-12 Conference members (3-2 vs. Arizona, 1-0 vs. Arizona State, 1-0 vs. California, 2-0 vs. Oregon, 1-7 vs. Stanford, 0-1 vs. UCLA, 1-0 vs. USC, 1-1 vs. Utah, 1-1 vs. Washington and 2-0 vs. Washington State).
- The Cavaliers are 3-2 against the Pac-12 in the Tony Bennett era, including a pair of wins against Oregon and last season’s overtime win against California.
- Washington handed Virginia a 106-63 loss in Maui during the 2010-11 season, marking the largest defeat during the Bennett era.
Last Time Out
- Then-No. 13 Virginia rolled to a 79-39 win over Robert Morris on Dec. 17 at John Paul Jones Arena.
- Devon Hall tied a career high with 13 points and Kyle Guy scored 13 as UVA shot 59.6 percent in its sixth home win of 2016-17.
- Jack Salt chipped in a career-best 10 points and Jarred Reuter also scored 10 as UVA owned a 48-8 advantage in the paint.
- Isaiah Wilkins added seven points, six rebounds and six assists (career high) and Ty Jerome contributed a career-best six assists.
- Isaiah Still led Robert Morris with 16 points, but the Colonials shot just 23.9 percent in its ninth loss.
Hoo Are These Wahoos?
- Virginia is led by senior point guard London Perrantes, who is a Wooden and Naismith Player of the Year and ACC Player of the Year candidate.
- Perrantes is averaging team highs in points (9.6 ppg) and assists (4.4 apg).
- Isaiah Wilkins (6.3 ppg & 5.2 rpg) leads the team in rebounds (52) and steals (17) and is second in blocked shots (13).
- Marial Shayok is averaging 9.1 points off the bench, while Darius Thompson has added 8.4 points per game off the bench.
- Newcomer Kyle Guy is averaging 8.6 points on 55.8 percent shooting, while Jarred Reuter leads the team in field goal percentage (68.3%) and is second in rebounding at 4.5 per game.
- Mamadi Diakite is averaging 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocked shots in 15.4 minutes per game.
On The Horizon
- Virginia opens ACC play at Louisville on Wednesday, Dec. 28. Tipoff at KFC Yum! Center is set for 7 p.m. ET. The game will be televised by ESPN2.
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