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Notebook: Inside #2 UVA win over Pitt

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uva basketballFans show up in big numbers: The official attendance per the UVA sports media office was 13,593. Can’t verify that independently, because I was among the masses who had to miss the game because of the heavy snow (and a mountain pass separating my home office from the John Paul Jones Arena), but watching the game on TV (as excruciating as that was), it did seem that there was a decent crowd in the house.

UVA coach Tony Bennett, a native of Wisconsin, where it doesn’t quite snow year-round, though it may seem like it, thanked UVA Nation for the turnout.

“I know the weather is a big deal for Charlottesville people,” Bennett said. “Those who came out were loud and active. They had fight just like I challenged the team to, and I hope everyone is getting home safe. I really appreciate it, because I know it is uncomfortable for the southern drivers to be out in this.”

Well, yeah, Coach. I mean, the governor did declare a state of emergency a couple of hours before the game.

Even then, we were thisclose to rather stupidly getting into the car and heading over the Blue Ridge.

If Virginia was as flat as Wisconsin, there’s no doubt about it.

 

Eye test vs. data test: It seemed like there were long stretches of bad, bad offense from Virginia, and there were.

Breaking down the game stretch by stretch:

– The Cavs had seven points in the first 8:23 on 3-of-11 shooting.

– Then 11 points in the next 3:38 on 5-of-5 shooting.

-Then 18 points in the next 19:34 on 8-of-25 shooting.

– Then 13 points in the next 5:19 on 3-of-5 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 shooting from the line.

– Then 12 points in the final 2:09, closing the game shooting 10-of-12 from the line and getting a dunk on a breakaway.

Take out the final 2:09, when Pitt started sending UVA to the line to try to extend the game, and the Cavs scored 49 points on 48 possessions, 1.02 points per possession.

Not world-beating, but still better than the production on Saturday in the 61-60 win over Wake Forest (.953 ppp) and last week in the 51-47 win over N.C. State (.911 ppp).

Factor in the final two minutes, and Virginia was at 1.134 ppp, a sliver better than its season average of 1.132 ppp.

 

Pitt closed off the boards in the second half: Virginia had an 18-8 advantage on the glass at the break, and had eight offensive rebounds in the first 20, but the ‘Hoos could manage only one more offensive board in the second half.

Virginia ended up with a slight 31-29 margin on the boards in the final tally. But Pitt, which had just one offensive board in the first half, grabbed eight in the second half.

 

Brogdon heats up: Malcolm Brogdon had a nice outing shooting the ball, going 5-of-10 from the field and 2-of-2 from three-point range. The junior was also 6-of-6 from the line en route to posting a team-high 18 points.

Brogdon had shot 13-of-40 from the field and 1-of-13 from three in his past three games, trying to carry the load in the absence of Justin Anderson, perhaps.

“It’s frustrating when your shots aren’t falling and you can’t get things going offensively,” Brogdon said after the game, in which he recorded his 1,000th career point. “But at the same time, as long as we were getting stops, we couldn’t be too frustrated with ourselves. As long as we get stops, we have something to lean on.”

– Column by Chris Graham

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