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​No. 2 Cavaliers prepare for showdown against No. 4 Duke

Virginia defense looks to limit Blue Devil freshman phenom Okafor

The collective eyes of the men’s college basketball world will focus on Charlottesville this Saturday when No. 2 Virginia welcomes fourth-ranked Duke to John Paul Jones Arena. This clash of titans is one of the marquee matchups of the season, and its outcome will likely affect the race for the ACC title as well as NCAA Tournament seeding come Selection Sunday.

That two highly ranked programs are readying to clash is a surprise to very few, as both teams have been ranked in the top 10 for the entire season — the Cavaliers (19-0, 7-0 ACC) slowly worked their way up from No. 9 while Duke has been top-five throughout.

This is not to say that either team has played pristine ball on a night-in-night-out basis. Virginia has hiccupped once or twice along the way and nearly dropped what should have been a rout against Virginia Tech (9-11, 1-6 ACC) last Sunday in Blacksburg — a game where the Cavaliers trailed by double digits midway through the second half.

The typically efficient Virginia offense sputtered for much of that game against the Hokies until a late 12-0 run put the Cavaliers ahead for good. The nerveracking affair showcased some of the Cavaliers’ offensive vulnerabilities, but it also exhibited their resolve.

“I think the experience of our guys helped,” coach Tony Bennett said. “We have stuff to work on, and I told our guys that. I’m proud that they did stay steady enough and made some big shots.”

The Blue Devils (17-3, 4-3 ACC) suffered two defeats in three days in mid-January, and did not look like a top-10 team in the process. Duke lost by 10 points on the road to North Carolina State before being blown out by then-unranked Miami, 90-74, at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

More significantly, the Blue Devils threw away their game against No. 8 Notre Dame on Wednesday night, 77-73. Freshman center Jahlil Okafor went off for 22 points and 17 boards, but senior guard Jerian Grant made more big plays down the stretch for the Fighting Irish (20-2, 8-1 ACC).

Defensive shortcomings cost Duke in all three games. The Wolfpack and Hurricanes shot a combined 53 percent from the floor and converted 20-of-36 three-point attempts. In South Bend, Notre Dame closed out the game on a 22-8 run which erased a 65-55 deficit. On the whole, the Blue Devils are not a suffocating team on the defensive end — they allow 94.4 points per 100 possessions and are 127th overall in opponent’s points per games.

The Cavaliers’ defensive prowess is well-noted — the team leads the NCAA in scoring defense and is second in adjusted defense. Equally important, however, is the effect a string of defensive stops has on Virginia’s offense.

“We know that when our defense is good our offense starts to click,” junior guard Justin Anderson said. “It [is] good for us to get our defensive game going early because our offense [starts] to roll and guys [start] to get it going.”

As Anderson goes, so do the Cavaliers. He leads the team in scoring at 13.9 points per game and is knocking down 51.9 percent of his shots from downtown. When No. 1 started finding the bottom of the net in Blacksburg — 10 of Anderson’s 12 points came in the second half — the Cavaliers got back into the game.

Anderson has a chance to build to his legacy — and his draft stock — with a big game against the Blue Devils. The last time Duke came to Charlottesville, Joe Harris scored a career-high 36 points and led unranked Virginia to a 73-68 upset of the No. 3 Blue Devils.

Any conversation on Duke begins with Okafor. The presumed first overall selection in the 2015 NBA Draft is averaging 18.5 points and nine boards a game, while shooting 67.1 percent from the field. He presents a combination of size and talent the Cavaliers have not seen this season.

“[Okafor] is a really good player,” Bennett said. “We have to be sound and consistent on defense. We’ll make it as hard on him as possible, but you can’t leave everyone else alone.”

Virginia has the depth and the scheme to slow down Okafor. The pack-line defense identifies the post as a danger zone, and the Cavaliers almost always trap using their other big — hoping to neutralize scoring from that area and make the opposing big men facilitators, rather than scorers.

While only junior center Mike Tobey can match Okafor in height, Virginia has enough bodies to harass the Chicago native. Tobey, senior forward Darion Atkins and junior forward Anthony Gill have all started games this year, and all three will undoubtedly spend time on Okafor.

“Our depth and our experience has been a strong point this season,” Bennett said. “Our front court is competitive and they challenge one another. They push each other, and that is making us better.”

But the Cavaliers cannot fall asleep on the other four Blue Devils on the court. Okafor is surrounded by dangerous offensive threats like fellow freshmen Tyus Jones and Justice Winslow, who contribute 10.7 and 10.5 points per game, respectively. Sharpshooting senior guard Quinn Cook and junior guard Rasheed Sulaimon have the ability to light it up from outside should Virginia’s defense focus too intently on the paint.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast nationally as part of ESPN’s College GameDay — the first time the show has ever come to Charlottesville.

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