If there is one obstacle the Cavaliers have yet to overcome this season, it is sustaining momentum. Coming off a 38-point home win against Pittsburgh on Thursday, Sunday presented a chance to build on that success and showcase the roster’s talent.
Instead, Virginia kicked off the matchup unable to buy a bucket against the smothering NC State defense. The Cavaliers suffered from two different scoring droughts of three minutes or longer in the first quarter, going 2-18 from the floor and notching just six points.
The disastrously slow start limited the impact of Virginia’s second-half offensive momentum, which could have otherwise propelled the team in front. The Wolfpack’s ball pressure disrupted the Cavaliers’ offensive rhythm early, forcing Virginia into rushed shots on the perimeter and lackluster touches inside.
The Cavaliers (14-6, 6-3 ACC) fought back relentlessly in the second half, falling to the Wolfpack (14-6, 7-2 ACC) 78-76 in overtime. Both teams shot below the 40 percent mark from the field, but NC State’s versatility around the rim and clutch performance from junior guard Zoe Brooks clinched the victory.
“We [have] got to start games out better,” Coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton said. “We got to have competed for 40 minutes because we're talented enough to do it, and we let one slip away.”
Beginning the third with an 11-point deficit, the Cavaliers finally found their groove — Virginia was playing with a renewed sense of determination both individually and collectively, starting the half with a 7-0 run headlined by junior guard Kymora Johnson. Johnson began to assert her influence over the game in the second half.
“We played with more urgency, took more high percentage shots,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “[Johnson] took over the game. I thought she played hard and controlled it from our end, for 40 minutes, we were able to kind of pick them apart in ball screens … and play with pace.”
Johnson finished with 26 points and nine assists, knocking down six shots from three on 14 attempts. Her aggressiveness ignited the offense and helped the Cavaliers steadily chip away at NC State’s lead.
In the fourth quarter, the game unfolded as a back-and-forth clash, defined by Virginia’s explosive three-point shooting and NC State’s composure at the free-throw line. The Cavaliers exploded with eight three-point shots in the period, repeatedly clawing back after the Wolfpack responded.
With 26 seconds left and Virginia trailing 64-60, an unsuccessful NC State challenge gave the Cavaliers the ball back. Off the inbounds pass, senior guard Paris Clark found senior guard Jillian Brown, who knocked down a contested three, cutting the deficit to one. Brown and Clark were crucial to the comeback effort, each totaling six points on two late-game threes.
On the opposite side, Brooks buried clutch free throws, finishing with a John Paul Jones Arena record-breaking 19-20 from the line — the most by any Cavalier opponent — to extend the Wolfpack’s lead to three. Johnson drilled a 28-foot three-point shot to eliminate Virginia’s deficit. An empty possession from NC State kept the game tied at 66 at the end of regulation.
“I'm proud of the way we fought back,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “The game wasn't going our way in the first half, we could have not fought back, but we did.”
Turnovers mounted in overtime for both squads. The Wolfpack began with three consecutive giveaways, but the Cavaliers only recorded one bucket off of the turnovers — a failed opportunity to preserve momentum. Despite Virginia showing flashes of a synergistic offense with great ball movement across the perimeter and into the paint to cash in on high-percentage looks, NC State’s disruption in the passing lanes forced too many errors for the Cavaliers to return from.
Brooks once again delivered at the line in this period, scoring half of the Wolfpack’s 12 overtime points — finalizing a career-high of 37 points along with five rebounds and five assists.
The loss squandered a chance for Virginia to climb in the ACC standings and underscored the significance of consistency in conference play. With two road games ahead, Virginia will look to apply the lessons from Sunday’s loss by playing with a steady pace and level of execution for the entire 40 minutes.
“I think we just have to get back to work, get back to us and come out strong next game,” Johnson said.
The Cavaliers will return to play Wake Forest Thursday, Jan. 29 at 6 p.m. in Winston-Salem. This match will be followed by the season’s first rendition of the Commonwealth Clash at Virginia Tech Sunday, Feb. 1 at 2 p.m.
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