The talk around the UVA Basketball program the past few months was, we’re going to play a faster pace.
Um, no – StatBroadcast had the Virginia-Campbell season opener at 55 possessions per team.
The Cavaliers averaged 60.1 possessions per game last season, and that ranked last in D1.
There were some tweaks that had been in the works since the summer, when Tony Bennett was still the head coach.
Tempo was supposed to be one.
Interim head coach Ron Sanchez, who took over the UVA Basketball program when Bennett stepped down, stunningly, last month, went with a starting lineup of two guards, two forwards and a center.
Which is what most teams go with, but in 15 years of Tony Bennett basketball, it was three guards, two forwards.
The offense had some mover-blocker, the screen-heavy offense that was the base in the Bennett years, but not a lot – there were more ball screens, five-outs and clear-outs for post-entry passes.
Familiar was the 32 minutes that Andrew Rohde got as the surprise starter at point guard, and his lack of productivity in those minutes – one point, five assists, four turnovers.
Virginia led by 12 early in the second half, but couldn’t pull away, and it was a game for most of the second half, with the ‘Hoos finally closing it out at the line, connecting on 6-of-7 at the stripe in the final 1:35 to notch the 65-56 win.
Breathe: it’s one game
Campbell was picked 13th in the 14-team CAA in the preseason, but credit to the Camels for hanging around after first getting down 12 late in the first half.
Campbell shot just 37.5 percent, but the three-heavy offense – the Camels were 11-of-29 from behind the arc – kept them in it.
Virginia shot 57.1 percent for the game, was 6-of-13 from three, but as efficient as it was on offense, UVA never could shake Campbell, which cut the lead to five twice in the final two minutes.
The glaring issue for this team is at point guard. Rohde, the Summit League Freshman of the Year at St. Thomas in 2022-2023 before transferring to Virginia ahead of last season, looked like the guy from last season who can’t shoot, or at least won’t, and shows flashes (the five assists) against a backdrop of head-scratching mental errors.
Kansas State transfer Dai Dai Ames was the guy expected to start at the point, but Ames only logged 10 minutes off the bench, scoring two points.
The other guy expected to contribute at the point, redshirt freshman Christian Bliss, was on the bench in sweats for the opener.
The guy who stole the show was freshman Jacob Cofie, who in 28 minutes off the bench had 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting, 2-of-3 from three, and also contributed six rebounds.
Cofie, at 6’9”, can play in the post, on the perimeter, and he was used to help bring the ball up the court against the Campbell press.
San Diego State transfer Elijah Saunders had a nice debut in a UVA Basketball uniform himself, going for 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting in 18 minutes, demonstrating nice touch around the rim.
Sophomore Blake Buchanan had a stat-sheet-stuffer of a game – 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
One other guy to note: Isaac McKneely, a double-digit scorer last year, had 11 points and a team-best +13 plus/minus.
Video: First assessment of 2024-2025 ‘Hoos
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Chris Graham
