Fans showed out in force to John Paul Jones Arena, a packed house for what was shaping up to be the biggest home game of the season. A rivalry game against visiting No. 22 North Carolina, it was Virginia’s first ranked matchup at home this season, one that the fans deemed consequential, remaining raucous from buzzer to buzzer.
The Cavaliers (16-3, 5-2 ACC) started the game strong, building a double-digit lead through the first half, but lost steam in the second as the Tar Heels (16-4, 4-3 ACC) clawed their way back into the game and finished just strong enough to take the game 85-80. Defensive lapses lost the game for the Cavaliers, allowing North Carolina to execute in transition, handing Virginia its first home loss of the Coach Ryan Odom era.
After some sloppy play from both teams to start the game, Virginia appeared to gain control, going on a 10-0 run early and establishing a lead it would hold for much of the game. Outrebounding the Tar Heels 26-16 in the first half, the Cavaliers also held the visitors to only 35 percent from the field, largely nullifying the impact of junior center Henri Veesaar.
“I think offensively, the ball was moving,” graduate guard Dallin Hall said. “We were putting them in rotations a little bit more, and that’s really how we like to play offensively. But I think really it comes down to the defensive end for us — that’s when we’re a top team in the country, when we’re locked in defensively, [when] we’re executing the scout. In the first half, I thought we did a really good job of that, [we] made their lives hard.”
Through the first half, two Tar Heels generated most of their offense — freshman forward Caleb Wilson and junior guard Luka Bogavac. Wilson, a high-flying, lanky forward, scored 10 in the first 19 minutes of play, while Bogavac added eight of his own. The Cavaliers’ only double-digit scorer, freshman forward Thijs De Ridder, had 13 while seven other players combined for Virginia’s other 30 first-half points.
After a fastbreak three-pointer by graduate guard Malik Thomas to extend Virginia’s lead to 15 late in the first half, it seemed that all signs were pointing towards a statement win for the Cavaliers. However, the Tar Heels finished the half strong with a seven-to-one run — including two three-point makes from Bogavac and freshman guard Derek Dixon — carrying the momentum into the locker room amidst the liveliness of JPJ.
“Going into the half only down by nine was huge [for our] momentum,” North Carolina Coach Hubert Davis said. “Those two threes, that last minute, minute and a half, where we cut the lead to single digits, [were] huge.”
After the break, the Tar Heels did not let off the gas pedal. By the first media timeout, North Carolina had cut Virginia’s lead to three after consistently strong distance shooting from Dixon and senior guard Seth Trimble. After mentioning the first “killer” of the game — that seven-to-one run by the Tar Heels — Odom pointed to lapses in defensive communication and coverage that allowed room for North Carolina to operate.
“Beginning of the second half, another killer,” Odom said. “We did not come out with enough fire on the defensive side of the ball to make things harder for them. It's hard to get really good and talented teams out of that mode, and our guys battled.”
From there, Virginia and North Carolina traded baskets and short scoring runs, keeping the game within reach. The Tar Heels found a lot of their second-half scoring from junior forward Jarin Stevenson, including a crucial lead-taking layup and-one. Stevenson, an Alabama transfer, after playing only four first-half minutes, became a deciding factor in the game — scoring all 17 of his points in the second half. A tough layup by Wilson with 31 seconds to go sealed the game for the Tar Heels, as they converted enough free throws to take the game with a five-point cushion.
Pointing to defensive communication lapses and poor transition coverage, Odom noted just how dangerous a team the visitors were off rebounds and turnovers. At several points in the second half, North Carolina found players in movement off of defensive rebounds or well-timed steals, getting easy rim attempts and kick-outs that maintained their lead. At the end of the game, the Tar Heels had scored 19 points off turnovers, including 14 in the second half.
“Key to the game for us, certainly, was every time that we missed a shot … our transition defense was not where it needed to be throughout the entire night,” Odom said. “The defensive intensity was not where we needed it to be. The communication was lacking, and a poor defensive performance overall.”
Next, the Cavaliers will travel to South Bend, Ind. for a Tuesday evening match against Notre Dame, which will be streamed on ESPN 2. The Fighting Irish (10-9, 1-5 ACC) are on a five-game losing streak, with the chance to right the ship against a poor Boston College side tonight. Led by junior guard Markus Burton, who averages over 18 points per game, Notre Dame is a strong team on the defensive glass with wins over Rutgers, TCU, Missouri and Stanford.
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