Don't call it a comeback, just call it coming home.
After dropping three consecutive away games, the Virginia men's basketball team returned to University Hall Saturday night ready to plays with home-court advantage against N.C. State. Two hours and one hard-fought 88-82 victory later, the Cavaliers couldn't have been happier to be back in Charlottesville.
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"It was great to be home after such a long road trip," second-year forward Chris Williams said. "For the fans to be behind us like they were was just tremendous. Out there on the court, you hear them screaming and the yelling, and it gives you a lot of energy."
It took the Cavs (16-8, 6-5 ACC) an entire half to get back into the swing of being home. North Carolina State (15-7, 5-6) took a 19-12 lead early, and although Virginia was able to stay close by tying and jumping ahead sporadically, the Cavs were unable to solidify a lead in a half marked by aggressive defense and fast paced offensive drives.
"The entire game was just a frenetic blur," Wolfpack Coach Herb Sendek said. "Virginia plays at the fastest pace in our league, and their quickness is incredible."
The win secured a fourth-place spot in the ACC standings for the Cavs, but, more importantly, it served as a confidence builder after disheartening losses to Maryland, Duke and Georgia Tech.
"It was a great win, and we needed it badly after the road trip," Gillen said. "This league is an unforgiving league, and it kept kicking us and we really wanted to get a victory."
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Guard Donald Hand had an uncharacteristically silent first half, going 0-for-4 from the field and 0-for-2 from the foul line. The slump was only temporary, however, as he came back in the second half to sink 11 free throws and three field goals for a total of 17 points, second only on the Cavaliers to Travis Watson's 20-point finish .
Hand "had a tough first half but we wanted to stick with him," Gillen said. "He wasn't hitting his jumper, but he was playing good defense. He's a warrior, and in the second half, he stepped up big."
Guard Keith Friel stepped off the sideline late in the first half to give Virginia some additional scoring power. The third year nailed two consecutive three-pointers to tie the score at 27 and ignite a Cavalier spark that would spur them into the lead.
But the tide belonged to N.C. State as the Wolfpack squelched the run in the waning minutes and managed a 10-5 run to float into the locker room ahead by five.
"At halftime, we didn't change anything very much," Gillen said. "We just told them to play harder and play tougher. We wanted to make it ugly, and we wanted to move the ball quickly because the quicker it was, the better for us."
Virginia entered the second half with enough speed to take the lead with 17:15 left to play. Williams snatched a rebound and hurled the ball downcourt to forward Adam Hall, whose dunk put the Cavs ahead by one.
Virginia lost its lead seconds later, but Hall once again regained it with a three-point jumper. The team never lost its lead again.
N.C. State stayed in the game largely due to the performance of center Damon Thorton, who registered six rebounds and eight points. When Thorton fouled out with 5:09 left to play, the Wolfpack hit a roadblock.
"He's a key player for us, and it has a tremendous effect every time he's not on the floor," Sendek said. "It's very difficult when he can't play in the final minutes, and it really hampers us."
Thorton wasn't the only center in foul trouble. Watson headed to the bench with his fourth foul with over 10 minutes to play in the second half, but Gillen made the decision to send him in with 9:42 left, despite the chance of losing the first year to a fifth foul.
"In the end, I'll always roll the dice and gamble with my best players," Gillen said. "He was scoring, and we needed him out there. It backfires in my face sometimes, but I'd rather do that than what's politically correct. We're taking chances because we're playing to win"
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