Virginia outscored Virginia Tech in the paint by 10, had five more shot attempts at the rim, five more makes in the paint, and somehow, attempted 15 free throws, to Tech’s 41.
The ‘Hoos were whistled for 27 fouls to the Hokies’ 16, in a game where the teams were battling each other for offensive rebounds – Tech had 20, Virginia 17 – forcing the other into turnovers (UVA 17, Tech 14), were challenging shots at the rim (Tech had seven blocked shots, Virginia five).
Bottom line: it’s hard to win an otherwise evenly played game when you’re outscored 28-11 at the stripe.
Virginia Tech (12-2, 1-0 ACC) was 18-of-24 at the line in the three OTs on its way to the 95-85 win.
Virginia (11-2, 0-1 ACC) from the line in the OTs: 7-of-9.
Even factoring out the four-foul-shot advantage for the Hokies in the final minute of the third OT that resulted from Virginia trying to stop the game clock, damn, that’s glaring.
Anyway, big win in the scorebook for the Hokies, who were without Tobi Lawal for an eighth straight game, and also had to play this one without starting guard Tyler Johnson and backup center Antonio Dorn.
Coach Mike Young got 40-plus minutes from four guys, with backup point guard Ben Hammond shining, putting up a career-high 30 points, hitting 16-of-18 at the line.
Freshman seven-footer Christian Gurdak, in his second career start, had 17 points and 19 rebounds in 46 minutes for the Hokies.
Tech, ranked 242nd nationally in rebounding margin coming in, outworked Virginia, ranked 26th nationally coming in, on the boards, finishing with a 60-54 rebound advantage.
That included pulling down 20 offensive boards, and posting a 35.1 percent offensive rebound rate, while limiting UVA, which came in fifth nationally with a 40.9 percent offensive rebound rate, to 17 offensive boards, and a 29.8 percent offensive board rate.
UVA Basketball player notes
- Malik Thomas had 26 points (8-of-20 FG, 2-of-9 3FG, 8-of-11 FT) in 29 minutes to lead Virginia. Mystifying Thomas stat: Thomas subbed out with 15 points with 3:04 left in regulation, then didn’t sub back in until the 14-second mark of the second OT. At which point, he converted an and-one, then a three, helping the ‘Hoos rally back from a five-point deficit to force the third OT.
- Thijs de Ridder finished with 22 points (9-of-20 FG, 3-of-11 3FG) and 13 boards. Most of that damage was done late: he had just five points before hitting a three with 5:31 to go in regulation.
- Chance Mallory was the other guy in double-digits, with 11 points.
- Johann Grunloh had nine points (4-of-10 FG, 1-of-4 3FG), six rebounds and four blocks. Odd: for a guy who can make threes, he sure wasn’t looking for his shot on the perimeter; Tech defenders sagged off him in the high post, as he was focused on distributing the ball to the guards. He’s got to be willing to take those shots.
Game notes
Shooting by zone
- Rim: Virginia 16-of-25, Tech 10-of-20
- Paint (including rim): Virginia 22-of-40, Tech 17-of-39
- Midrange: Virginia 0-of-4, Tech 3-of-15
- Three: Virginia 10-of-45, Tech 9-of-28
Editorial note: the team that chucked up 15 gd midrange shots got to the line 41 times.
Bullsh*t, and that’s not even debatable.
Video: Breaking down UVA-Virginia Tech ACC opener
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Chris Graham
