The UVA Basketball team, coming off an unimpressive 65-56 win over Campbell in the season opener last week, faces an overmatched Coppin State team on Monday at JPJ.
The game is being broadcast on ACC Network Extra. Good luck logging on.
I’ll be covering the game from the back row of the media section, my assigned seat being appropriate for the unofficial official fringe media of UVA Athletics.
ICYMI: UVA Basketball
- ‘Hoos in the G League: Reece Beekman starts strong with Santa Cruz
- ‘Hoos in the NBA: Cavs coach, teammates sing praises of Ty Jerome
- UVA Basketball: ‘Hoos host Coppin State from the MEAC in JPJ on Monday
- UVA Basketball: More questions, some answers, with win in season opener
- UVA Basketball: New-look ‘Hoos, victorious in season opener, obviously have a lot of work to do
What to watch for tonight
- Does Andrew Rohde start again? This team has loads of talent on the perimeter and in the post, but if Rohde, who averaged 4.3 points per game and shot below 30 percent from the field last year, and had one point, five assists and four turnovers in 32 minutes in the opener, is going to be the guy, this team is going to struggle to make the ACC Tournament, much less an NCAA Tournament.
- Does Jacob Cofie start ahead of TJ Power? Power, the former five-star transfer from Duke, started the opener and played 19 mostly ineffective minutes, shooting 1-of-3 from the field, recording three rebounds, and he had a plus/minus rating of -7. Cofie, the four-star freshman, got 28 minutes off the bench, and had 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting, 2-of-3 from three, with six rebounds and a +11 plus/minus.
- Does Ron Sanchez go with a three-man frontcourt again? Sanchez, in his first game as the interim coach, started Power, Elijah Saunders and Blake Buchanan in the frontcourt in the opener. Tony Bennett made a living out of starting a three-man backcourt.
The fringe media thing
Looking down at the two rows ahead of me here in the media section, I see one guy who writes for a website that doesn’t pay him, another who is a stringer that might not be in the business in two months, and two guys not only don’t get paid, but have to pay third-party companies a hefty monthly fee.
I’m up here with a kid from The Cavalier Daily.
Whatevs.
Fringe media.
Starting lineups are out
Dai Dai Ames, the Kansas State transfer, is starting at point guard, so that answers one question from above.
Ames got 10 minutes off the bench in the opener.
Buchanan, Saunders and Power are starting in the frontcourt.
There’s the answer to the second and third questions.
Early action: UVA 8, Coppin State 3, 14:30/1st
Coppin State is in a zone, and Virginia is shooting jumpers: 1-of-4 from three, missed one in the midrange.
Ames got an and-one on a nice drive to the hoop, and Saunders scored on a post-up.
The ball movement against the zone has been just OK. Need to reverse it more quickly.
Midway point: UVA 11, Coppin State 8, 11:16/1st
Ishan Sharma came in off the bench to spell Ames, so, Rohde, who is in sweats, may not be available tonight.
The offense doesn’t look good: 4-of-10 shooting and four turnovers on 14 possessions.
Still a slog: UVA 18, Coppin State 10, 7:39/1st
Virginia is 6-of-15 from the floor, 3-of-9 from three, has just the one make at the rim, and one post-up basket by Saunders.
Buchanan has missed a couple of relatively easy short jumpers.
Tempo: 20 possessions in 12:21, translates to 64.8 possessions pace.
Final first-half media TO: UVA 23, Coppin State 14, 3:36/1st
I like what I’m seeing out of Dai Dai Ames. It’s against a team that won two games last year, and they’re playing zone, but he’s getting some dribble penetration, and scoring at three levels: he has an and-one, a short jumper, and a three.
Three threes from McKneely open it up at the half
Who’s got #11 on the perimeter?
Isaac McKneely made three threes in a 1:51 stretch there to give Virginia separation.
It’s 32-16 ‘Hoos at the half.
Quick stat analysis:
- Virginia was 7-of-16 (43.8 percent) from three, making its last four, and 11-of-27 (40.7 percent) from the floor.
- 32 points on 30 possessions: 1.067 points per possession.
- Shooting by sector: 7-of-16 from three, 1-of-3 at the rim, 3-of-8 in the midrange.
- McKneely led the way with 12 points. Saunders has nine, Ames eight.
- Coppin State shot 7-of-25 (28 percent) from the floor and was 0-of-7 from three.
Quick trigger for Power
Sanchez lifted TJ Power 1:27 into the second half, and I’m not sure why.
He sent Jacob Cofie to the scorer’s table after a Coppin State made three, but it was Blake Buchanan who was late rotating on that one.
UVA leads 38-24, 15:43/2nd.
Would be nice to see some more separation. Virginia had a 12-point lead a couple of times in the opener, but could never extend it, and that one was a game until the final couple of minutes.
Choppy, but OK: UVA 46, Coppin State 27, 11:02/2nd
Virginia is just 4-of-12 from the field in the second half, but is 6-of-7 from the line.
I like the rotation at PG with Ames and Sharma. I know that Rohde will be back in the mix when his bad back heals up, though.
That’s the Virginia Way.
Tight eight-man rotation tonight.
The defense hasn’t left us: UVA 55, Coppin State 29, 7:24/2nd
Coppin State has 29 points in 33 minutes.
Tempo: 48 possessions in 32:36, translates to a 58.9-possession pace.
Under four: UVA 57, Coppin State 34
With Rohde and Christian Bliss not available tonight, I don’t know that there are a lot of garbage-time guys.
Anthony Robinson just checked in. Then there’s Desmond Roberts and Bryce Walker.
Two rotation guys are going to have to play with them to close out the final couple of minutes.
9-0 Coppin State run makes it look better
Final: UVA 62, Coppin State 45
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Chris Graham
