Two weeks ago, Virginia men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett met Muhammad Ali. The former heavyweight boxing champion was visiting Bennett’s neighbor, who introduced the two.
Bennett, moved by his meeting with the inspirational Ali — the paradigm of an athlete-activist, having stood against both the Vietnam War and racial discrimination in the United States — told his team about the experience and what he took from it.
Ali, 72, now suffers from Parkinson’s disease, and according to junior guard Malcolm Brogdon, Bennett emphasized that every athletic career, no matter how great, must eventually conclude. The implication: the current Cavaliers only have so much time to turn their hardwood dreams into reality, and they would be wise to make the most of it.
“He talked about how humbling it was to see [Ali] in that condition and that state, but at the same time, just to remember how great he was at one point,” Brogdon said. “You know, just the transition back and forth and how it all comes to, you know — it slows down for all of us, and to appreciate when we do have it.”
The No. 9 Cavaliers will look to stay in the present this Tuesday night at John Paul Jones Arena, where the team will host South Carolina State. Virginia (2-0) dispatched Norfolk State and James Madison during the weekend, and will attempt to improve to 3-0 for the first time since 2010-11.
South Carolina State dropped its first two games of the year, the first by 18 points at Washington and the second by 39 at San Francisco. The Bulldogs struggled shooting the basketball both times out, hitting just 32.9 percent of their field goal attempts Friday against the Huskies before sliding to 29 percent Sunday night against the Dons. Sophomore guard Karon Wright led the team in scoring both games, putting up 14 points against Washington and 13 versus San Francisco.
The slow start falls in line with South Carolina State’s performance in 2013-14, when the Bulldogs shot a tick below 40 percent and finished the regular season at 9-21 (5-11 MEAC), eventually falling to fifth-seeded Savannah State in the first round of the conference tournament. The Bulldogs sank just 28.2 percent of their 3-pointers and 65.2 percent of their free throws on the year while putting up 63 points per game.
South Carolina State, though, has also struggled defensively during coach Murray Garvin's second year. The Bulldogs yielded 72.7 points per game last year, ranking 247th in the nation in scoring defense, and have not looked any stingier to start this season.
Wright, a reserve in his team’s first two games, has looked to shoot in the team’s first season following the graduation of leading scorers forward Matthew Hezekiah and point guard Adama “Louis” Adams. Hezekiah was the only Bulldog to average double figures in points last year as Garvin shuffled the starting lineup constantly, giving none of his players more than 14 starts through the first 23 games of the season. This season also welcomes South Carolina State junior power forward Darryl Palmer, the team’s leading rebounder and shot blocker from a year ago, back in the mix.
If Virginia shoots the ball as it did against James Madison and Norfolk State, the Bulldogs could be in for a long night. The Cavaliers knocked down 10 of their first 11 shots Friday against the Dukes and sank 10 of 21 3-pointers Sunday against the Spartans. Bennett said his team enjoyed success shooting the 3-pointer against Norfolk State partly because of the quality of looks it got against the Spartans’ 2-3 matchup zone.
“We are not a heavy 3-point shooting team, but in a game like this where there is a lot of zone and it’s condensed, there is some real rhythm looks we will take,” Bennett said. “I think our identity will be good balance and an inside-outside approach. It will be determined by how the team is playing you, but some of them we just had to take. When you take shots with balanced feet set, obviously, percentages go up for us.”
Virginia has benefited from excellent depth early in the season. Freshman guard Marial Shayok, freshman forward Isaiah Wilkins and redshirt freshman guard Devon Hall have all provided quality minutes in their first collegiate games, as has freshman guard B.J. Stith in limited minutes.
Shayok showed a nice shooting touch against the Spartans, knocking down two 3-pointers and another jump shot off the dribble. However, the Canadian guard missed his next four shots and sounds far from satisfied with his play.
“I feel like I need to work better on my close-outs defensively,” Shayok said. “I just need to keep working and get better throughout the game.”
The Cavalier front court looks especially deep. Juniors forward Anthony Gill and center Mike Tobey started both games, with senior forward Darion Atkins, junior forward Evan Nolte and Wilkins contributing off the bench.
“Right now, I feel comfortable playing 10 [guys],” Bennett said following the Norfolk State game. “The positives are depth, competition in practice, and different looks. The negatives: it can be hard to know exactly which rotation to go with.”
Tipoff against South Carolina State is set for 7 p.m.
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