I couldn’t pull the trigger on scheduling myself to go to the Bahamas with UVA Basketball, which I’m now regretting, with light snow in the forecast for the Valley on Thursday and Friday.
Silly me, prioritizing being around to cover the football team try to get to six.
The opener in the two-day tournament in one of the warmer parts of the world for the ‘Hoos has #11 Tennessee on Thursday (9:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network).
The Vols (4-0) have a nice road win at Louisville, a 77-55 hammer from Nov. 9 that was in control from the get-go.
UVA coach Ron Sanchez might want to go with the three-guard lineup in this one, because that’s what Rick Barnes will use – with his two starters in the post, 6’11” junior Felix Okpara (9.3 ppg, 6.5 rebs/g, 62.5% FG) and 6’10” senior (and former ‘Hoo) Igor Milicic (14.0 ppg, 6.3 rebs/g, 67.6% FG, 33.3% 3FG), and two bigs off the bench in 6’9” sophomore Cade Phillips (7.5 ppg, 5.5 rebs/g, 72.2% FG) and 6’11” sophomore JP Estrella (4.7 ppg, 2.7 rebs/g, 66.7% FG).
Those four combined for 70 minutes in the win over Louisville, and 73 in the 80-64 win over Gardner-Webb in UT’s season opener on Nov. 4, suggesting that Barnes will go for stretches with a four-guard lineup.
The point guard, 5’9” senior Zakai Zeigler (15.5 ppg, 7.8 assists/g, 54.1% FG, 47.6% 3FG) had 19 points, seven assists and 11 (!) turnovers in the Louisville game.
That’s the matchup for UVA’s point guard, Kansas State transfer Dai Dai Ames (7.7 ppg, 47.1% FG, 50.0% 3FG).
I like Ames, who has gotten 30 minutes and 36 minutes in starts in Virginia’s past two games.
ICYMI: UVA Basketball
- Notebook: UVA Basketball gives glimpse of its ceiling with effort in ‘Nova win
- UVA Basketball: Four observations from 70-60 win over Villanova
- UVA Basketball: I was ready to write this team’s obituary; now I’m writing psalms
Chaz Lanier, a 6’5” grad transfer from North Florida, where he averaged 19.7 points per game as a senior last season, is averaging 13.8 points, shooting 48.8 percent from the floor and 50.0 percent from three for Tennessee.
The other starter for the Vols is 6’5” senior Jahmai Mashack (7.8 ppg), with 6’4” senior Jordan Gainey (11.0 ppg, 60.0% FG, 36.4% 3FG) getting 25.3 minutes off the bench, a chunk of that when Barnes goes four-guard.
I anticipate that Barnes will put Mashack on UVA’s leading scorer, 6’4” junior Isaac McKneely (16.0 ppg, 64.0% FG, 64.7% 3FG).
If it was me running the show on the Virginia side, I’d start 6’9” freshman Jacob Cofie (13.0 ppg, 7.7 rebs/g, 60.9% FG, 45.5% 3FG) as my three, since Cofie can play like a big guard, and have him go head-to-head with Milicic as much as possible.
I don’t know that he’ll go the route of starting Cofie, not yet.
I imagine that Sanchez will still want to start his three-forward lineup, with 6’8” junior Elijah Saunders (10.3 ppg, 5.3 rebs/g, 50.0% FG, 40.0% 3FG) and 6’11” sophomore Blake Buchanan (5.7 ppg, 5.0 rebs/g, 40.0% FG).
Duke transfer TJ Power, a 6’9” sophomore averaging 3.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 18.0 minutes per game, has gotten the start in each of UVA’s first three games, I’m guessing because he practices better than we’ve seen him play so far.
I see Sanchez starting Power, Saunders and Buchanan, with Cofie and Andrew Rohde (7.0 ppg, 4.5 assists/g) coming off the bench, and the latter two almost certainly getting starter-level minutes, with Sanchez needing to go three- and four-guard to counter Barnes.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see both teams going double-digit minutes with four guards, and Milicic and Cofie as the fives.
That would be aesthetically pleasing to watch, too, for what that’s worth.
Video: UVA-Tennessee preview
Share
Chris Graham
