After a pair of games, Virginia bounced back by leading Morgan State wire-to-wire in a 77-44 victory. Senior guard Reece Beekman led the Cavaliers (10-2, 1-0 ACC) with 17 points and seven assists, while sophomore guard Ryan Dunn chipped in with a spectacular two-way performance, notching eight points, 10 rebounds and a pair of steals. Virginia held the Bears (4-11, 0-0 MEAC) to their lowest offensive output since a 2018 matchup with the Cavaliers.
Virginia won the opening tip, but both teams failed to score on their first possessions. Instead, senior forward Jake Groves splashed a three-pointer to open the scoring on the Cavaliers’ second trip up the floor. The teams traded scoreless possessions until Morgan State hit a two to get on the board 3 minutes into the game. Beekman immediately responded with a jumper, then fed sophomore guard Andrew Rohde for a deep three-pointer above the right break. Senior Bears forward Trent Edwards drew a bucket and a foul on Groves and sank the ensuing free throw, but Beekman once again extended the lead with another mid-range jumper.
Moments later, Rohde and Beekman each added baskets to open the lead up to 14-5. After a 2 minute scoreless drought for both teams, Morgan State hit a tough two before Groves one-upped the Bears by sinking a three-point shot over two defenders. Morgan State responded with another two — they would not hit a three-pointer until the last shot of the half — before redshirt freshman forward Leon Bond III found Beekman for an open three-pointer.
Moments later, Dunn hit a tough layup through contact and hit a free throw for a successful and-one, then drew another foul on the next possession and made the first of two from the line. Just a minute later, Dunn picked a Morgan State pocket then scored off a Beekman give-and-go, but missed the free throw — he would finish just 2-6 from the line.
With a 28-12 lead, Coach Tony Bennett started to give the bench players a run. Graduate forward Jordan Minor — averaging just seven minutes per game — missed an easy dunk on his first touch, but grabbed an offensive rebound and fed Bond an easy layup and some redemption. Rohde then found Minor for a layup of his own on the next possession.
Bond and Minor again sank a pair of layups after the next media timeout to bring the score to 34-13 late in the first half, tying Virginia’s largest lead of the night. Beekman added a layup, then fed Rohde for a three-pointer. Bond registered a block then cashed a layup, and Dunn slammed home a dunk to bring the crown to their feet with 17 seconds left in the half after a Bears three-point shot. The Cavaliers shut down Morgan State’s final attack of the half, and Virginia entered the half up 43-16. The Cavaliers shot 8-8 to end the half, while the Bears managed just 1-9 on the wrong end of a 17-4 run.
Virginia continued a season-long theme of starting the second half poorly as Morgan State scored eight consecutive points to start the period before Beekman finally scored from midrange to stem the tide. Rohde then forced a steal and then fed Groves who was fouled and hit a single free throw. The Cavaliers then forced a turnover and then got the ball to sophomore guard Isaac McKneely, who ended a weeks long shooting drought by cashing a three-pointer from the corner.
The teams traded contested baskets on either side of the half’s first media timeout, then a Dunn turnover led to a Bear three-pointer. McKneely responded with another shot from beyond the arc, then Bond forced a stop and drew a foul, hitting both shots to reup the lead to 56-30. The Bears responded with a basket and a free throw on consecutive possessions, but Beekman found junior guard Taine Murray for a long three-point shot to keep the lead at 26.
Morgan State used a three-pointer and two individual free throws to go on a mini 5-0 run, but Virginia recovered those points with McKneely — taking some reps as a point guard — assisting a Groves three-pointer and Rohde and Beekman each scoring layups to give the Cavaliers a 28-point lead.
As the minutes ticked away, Bennett started to give their reserves more run once again, and the teams traded baskets down until under 90 seconds were left to play. Bennett then inserted fan-favorite walk-ons, senior forward Tristan How and junior guard Bryce Walker. How hit a quick jumper within seconds of entering the game, and Walker hit a contested corner three-point shot in the game’s waning seconds to put the exclamation point on the 77-49 final score.
The Cavaliers recovered to their normal standard for three-point shooting on the season after two rough games previously, going 10-23 from three-point range. They also managed a rare win on the glass, out-rebounding the Bears 39-33. Overall, Virginia seemed to want to use this game as a get-right game — getting back to the right process looked to matter more to the Cavaliers than the end result, and were rewarded with good vibes and an easy victory. Bennett was pleased with the output, especially because it gave the Cavaliers the chance to play deeper into the rotation.
“[Morgan State] were not at full strength, but guys got some good opportunities and good minutes,” Bennett said. “We’ll study the film a little bit and prepare to keep being better and better in certain areas.”
Virginia have exited the non-conference portion of their schedule and will close 2023 with a game against Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. Saturday. The Cavaliers will take on the Irish (5-7, 0-1 ACC) in a noon tip-off. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network.
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