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Tony Bennett struggles to push the right buttons in Virginia road loss

Chris Graham

tony bennettVirginia coach Tony Bennett used 11 players for at least five minutes in the Cavs’ 68-64 loss at Georgia Tech on Saturday.

Jack Salt saw his first action of the new year, getting eight minutes, going scoreless on 0-of-2 shooting with two rebounds. Salt had seen action in two games since the Ohio State game on Dec. 1, getting five DNP-Coach’s Decisions in the last seven.

Evan Nolte, who had logged 12 minutes and two DNP-CDs in Virginia’s last five games, started the second half and played 16 minutes, his biggest contribution being foul personal fouls.

(Nolte had a point, an assist, a block and a steal and a +3 rating.)

Mike Tobey started and got 26 minutes, his second-longest stint of the season, and most since going 30 in the loss at George Washington on Nov. 16. Tobey had seven points on 2-of-7 shooting and seven rebounds with a +9 rating on Saturday.

Marial Shayok also got a start in the backcourt, but only played 17 minutes, scoring six points with a +8 rating.

Malcolm Brogdon led UVA with 19 points, but was just 8-of-20 from the field, 1-of-9 from three-point range, and missed a wide-open three with the Cavs down two inside of five minutes at the front end of the five-minute scoreless streak that doomed Virginia in the end.

Brogdon was also just 2-of-4 from the line, didn’t record an assist and had two turnovers – and had a -4 rating.

Anthony Gill had 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, but had just two rebounds as Virginia was outrebounded and outhustled by Georgia Tech by a +12 margin on the boards, and Gill had a -4 rating for the game.

London Perrantes had 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting and was 1-of-4 from three-point range with four assists and two turnovers in 32 minutes with a -1 rating.

Isaiah Wilkins, coming off the bench for the first time since the exam break, scored two points on 1-of-3 shooting from the field with three rebounds and a -3 rating.

– Story by Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham, the king of "fringe media," a zero-time Virginia Sportswriter of the Year, and a member of zero Halls of Fame, is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, or subscribe to his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected].