It’s seldom easy to win on the road in the ACC — especially not in a marathon matchup exceeding the two-and-a-half-hour mark. The Virginia women’s basketball team proved its resilience Thursday afternoon at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, surviving Wake Forest 109-103 to bounce back from a heartbreaking overtime loss just days earlier.
The Cavaliers (15-6, 7-3 ACC) nearly let a commanding 18-point lead slip away in regulation, but were able to deliver in clutch moments through three extra periods to secure a victory that bolsters both their ACC standing and postseason hopes.
Dominating the glass, Virginia ultimately out-rebounded Wake Forest 54-37 — a season-long strength for a team that ranks among the nation’s leaders in rebounding and shot-blocking — and the Cavaliers turned 23 offensive boards into 22 second-chance points.
Virginia came out determined in the first half, displaying an eagerness to erase the sting of Sunday’s defeat. The Cavaliers’ defense smothered the Demon Deacons (12-10, 2-8 ACC) early, holding the home team to just 25 points by halftime. However, Virginia initially stumbled out of the gate offensively — shooting 6-for-20 in the first quarter and hitting just one of eight three-point attempts. The offense settled in more come the second quarter, where the Cavaliers shot 10-for-15, and junior guard Kymora Johnson went a perfect 3-for-3 beyond the arc.
Virginia’s depth and extra possessions ultimately offset relatively inefficient finishing — the Cavaliers scored 22 second-chance points and got 59 points from the bench despite converting just 33 percent of their layup attempts. Graduate forward Caitlin Weimar provided an early spark off the bench in the post, and by the break, Virginia had built a 40-25 advantage capped by a 19-4 run, seemingly in full command.
But that control began to waver in the second half as Wake Forest refused to fold. The Demon Deacons found an offensive rhythm in the third quarter, nearly matching their entire first-half output in those 10 minutes. Freshman guard Milan Brown caught fire, slashing in the paint and knocking down outside shots en route to a game-high 30 points and a double-double with 11 rebounds and five assists.
Behind Brown’s efforts and a boost from sophomore forward Grace Oliver — who scored 19 points before ultimately fouling out — Wake Forest chipped away at the deficit. Even after the Cavaliers’ lead grew to as many as 18 with just over two minutes left in the third, the Demon Deacons closed the quarter on an 8-0 run to trim the margin to 61-51 entering the fourth.
Wake Forest exploded for 25 points in the fourth quarter, capitalizing on a flurry of Virginia turnovers and defensive lapses. What had been a double-digit Cavalier lead turned into a tense back-and-forth battle down the stretch.
By the final minute of regulation, Virginia’s once-commanding margin had completely evaporated. With the Demon Deacons within a possession, the Cavaliers went to the line, and Weimar converted two free throws with five seconds left to stretch the advantage to 76-73. But Wake Forest had the last word in regulation, where Brown drilled a game-tying three-pointer with one second remaining to knot the score at 76-76 and force overtime. This was a déjà vu scenario for Coach Amaka “Mox” Agugua-Hamilton’s squad.
“We were up by almost 20 points, and we really should have been able to close it out,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “But this is the ACC and it doesn’t matter who you’re playing. It doesn’t matter what their record is, every team is good, and we relaxed a little bit.”
The first overtime was tense and physical, defined by finishes at the rim and the charity stripe with both teams trading blows. Weimar scored first with a layup, then senior forward Tabitha Amanze added another as Virginia pushed ahead 80-76. Graduate and freshman guards Romi Levy and Gabby White kept the Cavaliers afloat, and Virginia appeared to have the game in hand at 84-79 with under a minute left.
White, a proven star for this Cavalier side, had a day, notching career-highs in 22 points and 12 rebounds. She also added six assists, matching her career high as she recorded her first career double-double.
Despite standout performances like White’s, Wake Forest refused to go quietly. Oliver stepped to the stripe, drilling two free throws, then drawing a foul on a three-point attempt with six seconds remaining and making all three to tie the game up once again, 84-84.
The second overtime period swung on threes. The Demon Deacons jumped ahead 87-84 on an Oliver triple, only for Johnson to respond with a three of her own from deep to tie at 87-87. Johnson then buried two free throws to give Virginia a short-lived lead, but junior swingman Mary Carter knocked down a three with a minute to go, Wake Forest up 95-93. Weimar was able to draw contact and sank both free throws with just a second left on the clock to tie the score at 95-95 and extend the afternoon even further.
By the start of the third overtime, both teams were running on fumes. White and Weimar opened the period with free throws, Levy converted an and-one to stretch Virginia’s lead, and the Cavaliers continued to secure extra possessions off of the glass. The Demon Deacons clung on, cutting the deficit to four late, but Virginia shut the door. The Cavaliers capitalized on the stripe, finishing 25-for-31 on free throws, ultimately holding the winning margin.
With 16 seconds left, Johnson hit two free throws to make it 107-101. Wake Forest answered with a two-pointer by freshman guard Caitlyn Jones to cut it to 107-103, but Johnson immediately returned to the stripe and sank two more at the line to seal the 109-103 win.
Johnson, as usual, led the way with 26 points and eight assists while playing every minute of the game. Weimar also stood out, powering Virginia inside with a season-high 25 points along with 10 rebounds, going 9-for-10 at the line and adding two blocks.
When the final buzzer mercifully sounded after the 55 minutes of live play, the Cavaliers had outscored the Demon Deacons 14-8 in the third overtime to come away with the hard-fought victory.
“I am just really proud of our resiliency,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “We got discombobulated, we weren’t on the same page and we had to find a way to push through that. We were able to do that, and I’m just very proud of our group.”
With eight ACC games remaining, Virginia is possibly in the mix for a coveted top-four finish and the ACC Tournament double-bye that comes with it. Perhaps more importantly, Thursday’s result bolsters the Cavaliers’ NCAA Tournament resume — this thrilling road win demonstrates growth, grit and, as Agugua-Hamilton stated, resilience. But the schedule offers little respite — Virginia faces a quick turnaround with a 2 p.m. rivalry game at Virginia Tech looming Sunday in Blacksburg, which will be streamed on ACCNX.
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