You have to dive into the numbers to see who was the key guy for #4 Virginia in its road win at Clemson on Tuesday: Marial Shayok.
Shayok got 23 minutes off the bench as coach Tony Bennett countered Clemson with a four-guard lineup aimed at chopping down Jaron Blossomgame.
Blossomgame had 31 points, but was limited to five in the final 11:32 as Bennett shifted Malcolm Brogdon over to the 6’7” junior.
To do that, Bennett had to go with a lineup that had not even practiced together as a unit: Brogdon, Shayok, London Perrantes, Devon Hall and Anthony Gill as the lone true front-court guy.
Shayok, who had scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds in 68 minutes over his last four games, scored nine on Tuesday, on 3-of-5 shooting, and had five rebounds.
Hall also had a nice night, scoring nine, also on 3-of-5 shooting, with seven rebounds.
Hall and Shayok, both at 6’5”, can play bigger than your typical twos and threes anyway, but their abilities to defend and rebound are key to the lineup flexibility that Bennett needed Tuesday.
Blossomgame was … Blossomgame, hitting 10-of-16 from the field, 4-of-6 from three and 7-of-9 from the line, scoring at times at will.
But in the final 11:32, he had just five points on two shots from the field and three turnovers with Brogdon checking him.
Bennett was able to put Brogs on Blossomgame because he had Hall and Shayok playing so well, efficient offensively, rebounding the ball.
Hall has been giving Virginia good minutes for several weeks now, which is why he has been starting and getting deep minutes.
Shayok more than earned his keep Tuesday.
Another gut-check for Gill
Anthony Gill had a double-double, 11 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn’t your typical AG night. He was just 4-for-11 from the field in 32 minutes, and missed a couple of contested shots in the lane, and faded away on a couple of more shots.
But he had four offensive rebounds, helping fuel a 10-1 second-chance points advantage for the ‘Hoos, and recorded three steals.
And AG had to anchor the last 10 minutes as the center in the four-guard lineup that Bennett used to take control.
All told, good night for Gill.
Clean night for Perrantes
London Perrantes finished with 13 points, four assists and one turnover in 35 minutes.
LP was 4-of-9 from the field, and 3-of-8 from three-point range. His one shot from inside the arc was a 17-footer in the first half, so he didn’t finish anything at the rim.
You maybe want to see Perrantes be more aggressive, but good numbers.
(Mike Tobey?)
If you didn’t pay close attention, yes, Mike Tobey did make the trip.
Tobey was 0-of-2 from the field with one rebound, two assists and three turnovers in 10 minutes.
I continue to say Tobey will play a key role in at least one Virginia win in March. It wasn’t this one.
Little from IW
Isaiah Wilkins was big Saturday night in the win over North Carolina. Not so much Tuesday at Clemson.
Wilkins played just 15 minutes, proving ineffective at checking Blossomgame, and just about everything else.
Wilkins had four points on 1-of-3 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 shooting from the line, with two rebounds and two turnovers.
Wilkins subbed out with 10:15 to go and didn’t get back in.
Minutes Watch
Brogdon played 39, Perrantes 35 and Hall and Gill 32.
Brogdon has gone 39, 38, 35 and 35 in his last four. Perrantes has gone 35, 37, 35, 34 and 39 in his last five.
– Column by Chris Graham
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