Conference Schedule Resolutions for Virginia Basketball

London Perrantes
Here are some stats for two point guards. One of the sets is noted offensive liability Jontel Evans’s much-derided senior season, and the other is what we’ve seen so far from London Perrantes in 2014–2015. Free throw…

Hoops Preview: Georgia Tech

First of all — and unrelated to the Ramblin’ Wreck — whoa, UVa’s Gameday debut! That’s so much fun, and an honor for the program, the Hoo Crew, and everyone who has put in work (and, just as importantly, generated results) to make UVa hoops a “thing.” I was surprised at first…

Basketball Player Preview: London Perrantes

Two years of London Perrantes have given me the impression that while our Cali Swag sporting floor general has been content to submit to his elders thus far, there’s a whole additional dimension to his game boiling under the surface. With all the…

B.J. Stith, We Hardly Knew Ye

Tony Bennett held postseason meetings with the team this week, and the first news has emerged: B.J. Stith is transferring out of the program, and is expected to join his dad Bryant, brother Brandan, and former UVa head coach Jeff Jones at ODU.

Hoops Preview: Louisville

First, the news. It was announced yesterday that Justin Anderson will miss tomorrow night’s game after undergoing an appendectomy. I was ready to write his season off when I first heard the news (and the opinions of the many Holiday Inn Express doctors on Twitter), but a couple of…

Hoops Preview: Oakland

In case you were confused, we are not playing an exhibition against the Golden State Warriors tomorrow night. We’re also not playing the Directional California that I had assumed we scheduled when I first saw our slate before the season. The truth is somewhere in between — it’s not a…

Hoos Preview: Belmont

It didn’t take me long to come to terms with being a two seed. I think seeds should be doled out as a reward for a team’s cumulative body of work (number one worthy, in our case) and as a snapshot of what a team looks like at the end of the season and moving forward (sadly, no). Virginia…

‘Hoos Draw Ohio State for ACC-B1G Challenge

The 2015 ACC-B1G draw was released yesterday, and we actually landed a marquee spot: a meeting with Ohio State in Columbus. The 2016 Buckeyes are losing most of their major contributors (including possible #1 NBA draft pick D’Angelo Russell), but will…

Hoops Preview: Villanova

Tony Bennett and the basketball scheduling elves assembled the 2015 portion of our schedule to test our team against a difficult and diverse slate of opponents, with the idea that even if we lose a couple, we’ll be ready for March no matter who we draw and that no one will be able to…

Basketball Player Preview: Caid Kirven

Caid Kirven is back for his senior year, inheriting the captaincy of the Green Machine from previous elder statesmen Thomas Rogers and Rob Vozenilek. Kirven has been the “center” for that group for the last three years, compiling six points (3–8 shooting) and…

Anderson and Atkins Get Jobs

Two more departing students are now gainfully employed after leaving UVa, as Justin Anderson and Darion Atkins found NBA homes last night.

Anderson, projected to go anywhere from 16th to 27th in the mocks I surveyed beforehand, was selected 21st by the…

‘Hoos Prevail over Irish

Virginia trailed Notre Dame 51–50 at the 4:53 mark of the second half on Saturday night after Pat Connaughton (who had 21 annoying points) nailed his fourth and final three pointer. This set up a test scenario: how would Virginia react, trailing a good team in hostile environs?

‘Hoos Beat FSU, UNC Up Next

There was ultimately more to be encouraged about than discouraged by from today’s game. We had that free-flowing, flawless first few minutes of offense when it felt like no shot would ever go errant again, and played 40 minutes of our A game on defense, harassing Xavier…

Virginia Survives Wake, Blogger Survives Tense Ending

Mixed bags abound from yesterday’s squeaker over Wake Forest.

Good news: we needed one defensive stop to go home (relatively) happy, and we got it. Malcolm’s one-possession thesis on effective one-on-one…

Hoops Preview: West By God Virginia

The difference between Virginia and West Virginia’s respective basketball programs is so great that it’s hard to believe that everyone is playing the same sport. We’ve been good — great, even — at protecting the ball, turning it over just 11.6% of the time so far…

‘Hoos are Charleston Classic Champs

We were never threatened last night. London notched his second career double double (16 points and 11 assists) and Malcolm led four ‘Hoos in double figures with 21 to lead a hot shooting group to an easy win. The offense clicked (57% shooting, 17 assists on 32…

Hoops Preview: Miami

As of the night of December 2nd, Miami was riding high. They’d beaten Florida in Gainesville in their second game of the season, had upheld the honor of the ACC against Illinois in the ACC-B1G Challenge, and were undefeated at 8–0. KenPom had them ranked 19th, and people were debating if…

Roster Resolutions

It’s that time of year again, where people see the dawn of a new year as the opportunity to launch all kinds of self-improvement mandates (or simply vow to maintain ones they’ve already started). As a result, you might have to lurk creepily for a shot at a treadmill at the gym, hear about your…

‘Hoos Gut Out Win over FSU

This one wasn’t fun to watch. At its best — while our defense was rendering FSU helpless in the first half — it was only tolerable, because the same guys keeping FSU from making baskets were seemingly incapable of making one themselves. Just like against Pitt six days prior, a…

The Defense Rests, Hoos Fall to Heels

Yesterday was North Carolina’s third game in third days, but it was Virginia that looked gassed. The Heels looked positively spry and happy to be there (they shot 55%, scored 1.06 points per possession, hit half of their threes, dunked a lot) while our guys…

‘Hoos Sneak By Hokies

My undaunted belief in this team was finally shaken a little on Sunday afternoon.

In case you missed it or drank it away immediately afterward, an undermanned and outgunned Virginia Tech team ran off 16 consecutive points (as part of a greater 30–9 run that spanned…

‘Hoos Muscle Past Morgan State

By the numbers, we would have had to try to find a more overmatched opening opponent than this 324th-via-KenPom Morgan State team. On paper, the mismatches were even more obvious — the Bears didn’t start anyone weighing over 200 pounds against a Virginia team that starts a…

‘Hoos Lose to GW

Part of being very highly ranked is that people make a big deal out of it when you lose. It’s OK, and it’s OK for you to calm down. Basketball season is long, and this was in a separate time zone from an upset like Chaminade from 1982 and not in the same neighborhood as our defeats at the hands of…

Virginia Fans, Bring It In For a Second.

I wanted to bring you all together for a second before the postseason tips off this afternoon.

If you’re like me, you’re plenty nervous this morning. You’re confident in this coach and this team, but you’re nervous because you’re a…

Basketball Preview: Ohio State

It feels good to be assigned Ohio State in the ACC-B1G Challenge, even if this isn’t one of Thad Matta’s stronger collections of Buckeyes. OSU is considered one of the conference’s hoops standard bearers (along with Michigan State and Wisconsin) and boasts a big, fervent…

Hoops Preview: George Mason for All the Marbles

The loss to George Mason in the 2013 season opener feels like an eternity ago. Justin Anderson wasn’t very good yet. Mike Tobey and Evan Nolte were callow freshmen trying to figure out where they belonged in their first games in college. With Bub…

‘Hoos Roll Past ‘Nova

I left yesterday more impressed by this team than ever. Villanova is a very good basketball team (they entered the day top-10 in KenPom’s efficiency ratings for both offense and defense) coached by one of the best in the biz, and we were just better. Aside from a dicy stretch that bridged…

‘Hoos Add Huff to 2016 Class

What appears to be a glowing 2016 class for Tony Bennett shines a little brighter after last night with the commitment of Durham forward Jay Huff. Huff chose us over Duke (yes, that Duke — he even got a visit from K), East Carolina, and Wofford, and joins a class that already…

Hoops Preview: NCSU

NC State’s most recent visit to JPJ was a memorable one: an electrifying 58–55 win where we had to claw back against State over the final minutes to secure the win. The crowd led the way, but we also got 22 from Joe, a 14 and 11 double-double from Akil, and 13 from Tobey. C.J. Leslie scored 20…

Out With the Old, In With the New

First, I’ll answer two lingering questions that I’ve seen floating around on Twitter:

• Is this the peak of what a Tony Bennett team is capable of?

Basketball Player Preview: Malcolm Brogdon

Let’s start the 2015–2016 previews at the top. Everyone associated with the Virginia program from the coach to the fans is proud of Tony Bennett’s five pillars and how his team espouses them on and off the court, and no one is more emblematic of those…

Hoos Earn Triumphant Return to CWS Championship

Florida is probably a better baseball team than we are. They rolled through college baseball’s toughest conference, possess what feels like an infinite array of capable hitters, and could probably compete for the title in a AA league tomorrow…

#ACCTourney Preview: FSU

No amount of quiet rooting could get Clemson the entire way back from 20 down, and so Florida State and Xavier Rathan-Mayes are our opponent tomorrow. I wanted Clemson for a couple of reasons: first, no X R-M, second, they’re generally a smaller, less-athletic, less-antagonistic group…

Hoops Preview: NCSU

Best Possible Result of the Justin Anderson Injury:

“One Shining Moment” is playing, CTB is wearing a baseball cap again, London Perrantes has a net on his head, and Maleek Frazier is giving a disproportionate piggyback ride to Jack Salt, this whole Justin Anderson…

Basketball Preview: Notre Dame

This is almost as fun as January college basketball can get (for “actually as fun as January college basketball can get,” please refer to January 31st). A big conference road game against a ranked opponent at night on ESPN2? Bring it on.

Hoops Preview: UNC

This is one instance where I’m in favor of the quick turnaround. Less than 48 hours after the final horn of a potentially dispiriting loss to Duke, our guys tip off against a UNC team that I would have called the ACC’s hottest if they hadn’t been subject to a 34–15 dumptrucking over the final…

Basketball Preview: Lehigh

Tomorrow night’s game against Lehigh presents one last chance to catch our collective breath before we dive into a stretch of five consecutive games against teams ranked in Ken Pomeroy’s top 100, two of which come away from the JPJ. The Mountain Hawks have experience (they start…

‘Hoos Survive Cal

‘Hoos Tar Heels

The difference between Duke and North Carolina these days is that while both teams trot out rosters full of McDonalds types (though Duke’s are more combos and UNC’s the dollar menu), Duke presents the additional challenge of trying to keep up with the churning basketball brain of Mike Krzyzewski on…

‘Hoos D Up, Send NC State Packing

Last night was my wife’s 32nd birthday, so I didn’t get to watch last night’s game from JPJ, on TV with Sean Singletary at Citizen Burger Bar, or live from my couch. I’m working from a late-night run through the DVR’d version, which was, considering the aesthetic…

Hoops Preview: FSU

My goals with Justin out were twofold:

1. Keep our heads above water: win enough to maintain our top-four spot in the ACC and the accompanying Tuesday/Wednesday ACC Tournament bye.
2. Develop the guys who inherited his minutes enough to be a better…

Basketball Player Preview: Jack Salt

Anyone who claims to know exactly what Virginia has in young Jack should have their opinion taken with a grain of… well, you know. We don’t know what the 6'11'’ redshirt freshman will develop into yet, and you can play a fun game of point/counterpoint if you try to…

‘Hoos Fall to Spartans, Season Ends Early

Our recent history of low starts and offensive lulls were the elephant in the room whenever I tried to talk myself into a long NCAA run. This wasn’t the same Virginia team after Justin Anderson’s injury, and the impact it had on both sides of the court is…

Welcome Aboard, Austin Nichols

CTB landed a big fish earlier this week, as Memphis’s Austin Nichols announced that he was transferring in. Nichols is a 6'9,’’ 230 pound frontcourt player, and he’ll be available for the 2016–2017 season with two seasons of eligibility remaining. Nichols is a fun get. He’s…

Hoops Preview: Tech

The trip to Winston-Salem went better than anyone expected — most prognosticators thought we’d win, but some didn’t, and no one saw the demolition that ultimately transpired. The most notable takeaway from that game wasn’t a stat or a strategic decision, but rather the team’s aggressive…

Bennett, Brogdon, Atkins, Anderson, Perrantes, Gill Honored by ACC Media

The Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association (how does one join that? could I?) was very kind to the ‘Hoos today, voting CTB a return appearance as Coach of the Year, Malcolm Brogdon, Justin Anderson…

Hoops Preview: Syracuse

The team doesn’t have to invent ways to get motivated for tonight: a victory at Syracuse tonight would, in order of importance, give this team a win in their first appearance in the Carrier Dome since it has been an ACC venue, propel them to 28–1 (the best start in team history), and…

Hoops Preview: Wake

If there’s any silver lining to Justin’s injury, it’s that he waited until we were approaching the end of a tough stretch of schedule to get hurt. We gutted out wins over Louisville and NC State, and now play six straight games against teams ranging from 61st to 158th in KenPom and get four of…

‘Hoos Roll in Second, Ground Mountain Hawks

Down 35–30 and with the ball after a Jack Salt turnover one minute into the second half, Lehigh had a chance to get within a possession and throw a scare into the large pre-holiday crowd at JPJ. They disappeared instead. Three missed shots and four…

Hoops Preview: Duke (Arrrrre You Rrrrrrrready…?)

I don’t want to get caught in the wave of hype and overestimate the importance of this game. The winner is not guaranteed to win the ACC Tournament, advance deeper into the NCAAs, or earn the right to eventually be forgotten as the ACC regular…

Hoops Preview: Bradley

We haven’t played Bradley since their 96–85 win in the 2008 CBI ended Sean Singletary’s Virginia career. The two programs have taken disparate paths since then. We suffered through one more terrible year of Dave Leitao before the hiring of CTB opened the heavens. The Braves only have…

Hoops Preview: Michigan State

Yellow Jacked

There’s a line between being a discerning member of the new media and evaluating (and even nitpicking) a performance, and just being a fan and reveling in some of the cooler parts first. Forgive me, but when we summon the kind of defensive performance that leaves our opponent dazed and bewildered with…

‘Hoos Cruise over ‘Cuse, Lock Up ACC Regular Season

I’ll get to the game in a minute, because we’ve got some celebrating to do.

University of Virginia’s men’s basketball team has now won 49 of 53 games (and 32 of 35 conference regular season games) since the calendar…

Hoops Blows By Bradley, Long Beach State Up Next

Bradley hung tight for a few last night, using the time-honored dent in the Virginia armor of a fast-paced, spread out offense to get quick shots (specifically threes), hitting four triples early to claim a 22–19 lead at the 7:39 mark and set…

Duke Rallies, Hand ‘Hoos First Loss

When teams with our talent level face off against the blue bloods of college hoops, there’s less of a margin for error. You can’t afford as many mistakes, and may need to pick up some breaks here or there. It’s the way it is: talent goes a long way. Our guys are good…

Hoops Preview: Cal

Eight days shy of two years since we were pasted by Tennessee in what was ultimately the turning point in a special season, we’re hosting a mini-reunion from that game at JPJ. Five of our guys return from that game, and they’ll be joined by Darius Thompson and second-year Cal coach Cuonzo…

‘Hoos Wrangle Mountaineers

Things got really bad for a while last night. Bob Huggins’ crew came out with more vim and vigor and ruled the first 17 minutes, benefiting from 10 Virginia turnovers and our flat, emotionless demeanor to open up a 33–21 lead with 3:25 to play in the half. It seemed dire. Not only…

Football Preview: UNC

While the winning percentage is identical, Mike London has actually struggled more with our rivals to the South than he has with the more bitter rivalry to the Southwest. While 0–5 against each, his Virginia teams have lost to Tech by an average of 17 (with only two losses of 21+) while…

Hoops Preview: BC

CTB has a win on the road against 10 of the 15 ACC schools that he’s faced. He’s got three of them against Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, NC State, and Maryland. He’s got a win in Chapel Hill (the lone happy moment of the Sylven Landesberg-Tony Bennett partnership) and has broken the Florida curse…

Welcome Aboard, Mamadi Diakite

What seemed like the worst-kept secret in recruiting (at least, according to all the gurus saying “it’s a sure thing, just wait) is now public knowledge, as 247 five-star prospect Mamadi Diakite ended a long courtship process by committing to Virginia this afternoon. Diakite…

‘Hoos Survive Louisville, Lose Anderson

A pall of sadness fell over last night’s win when a terse press release following the festivities confirmed what we all suspected when Evan Nolte started the second half in his spot — that Justin Anderson would miss four to six weeks with a broken finger on…

Darion Has Senior Moments, ‘Hoos Smack Hokies

That’s how a Senior Day is supposed to go. Darion Atkins — the lone scholarship senior on this year’s team — got the start and played 35 minutes, scoring 16 points with six rebounds, three assists, two steals, two blocks, and two thunderous dunks in…

Hoos Win, Uphold Conference’s Honor

I’m obviously glad that we won last night’s game. I’m not going to act like I’m not, considering we stole a win from a talented team in their gym without the benefit of London Perrantes’ steady guidance. Wins are better than losses.

Basketball Preview: Clemson

Clemson is the least likely of our next four opponents to keep us from being unbeaten when Duke arrives at JPJ on January 31st.

Look at our other opponents. CTB has yet to record a win in the deserted house of horrors that is Conte Forum (0–3), and BC…

Virginia Survives BC

The ‘Hoos survived an 0–8 game from Justin Anderson and a surprising flurry of points from BC’s Patrick Heckmann, using a 25–13 final 10 minutes to roll to a deceptive 66–51 final.

For much of the game, the offense fell into the same stagnant pattern that we’ve seen…

‘Hoos Repel Grizzlies

Before the season tipped off, I said that the opposition was such that I would understand if we lost two or three games. With 2016 12 hours away and our team 11–1, I’m no less impressed by our opponents, but am even more impressed by our guys and the versatility and resolve they’ve shown…

Virginia Destroys Deacons

After injuries to Justin Anderson and London Perrantes and close call after close call, everybody associated with Virginia basketball needed a nice relaxing win like last night’s 70–34 stomping of Wake Forest. Even if the players were still just as confident as they were in December…

‘Hoos Gut out Win

Last night’s game didn’t do much for the Pat Forde’s of the world. The two teams scored 0.91 and 0.81 points per possession, logged effective field goal percentages of 39.2 and 36.0, and played a game that looked more like a rock fight than a ballet.

Basketball Player Preview: Jared Reuter

Jarred Reuter offers promise for the future, but I think he’s going to get caught in a numbers game in 2016. Reuter — a slab of a power forward at 6'7" and 243 pounds — is very much an interior player, which means that he’ll have to claw his way past Anthony…

What’s Next for Justin Anderson?

With the season over, it’s time to take stock of what we’re losing (a farewell to Darion is coming soon), what we’re bringing back, and who we’re welcoming to the fold. All of that sits on solid ground, with the exception of Justin Anderson’s plans. His options are thus…

Justin Anderson Undergoing Hand Surgery, Out 4–6 Weeks

The guys beat Louisville last night, and I’ll have more on that later. Alongside the big win came a bigger loss: Justin Anderson broke a finger on his shooting hand in last night’s game, will undergo surgery today, and will miss what…

Hoops Preview: Louisville

Louisville, like UNC, has flown a little under the ACC radar this season so far. Maybe it’s because people keep forgetting that they’re in the ACC now, or maybe it’s because they’ve skipped the compelling story lines. They didn’t go undefeated through the first (almost) three months…

‘Hoos Escape Belmont

Playing teams like Belmont or Davidson in basketball is much like playing someone like Georgia Tech in football. Everything you’re used to is turned on its head, and your defense needs to either quickly adapt or be swept away.

Bennett Hires Lindenwood’s Brad Soderberg

CTB brought a superb group of assistants with him when he arrived in 2009, which prompted some worry about what direction we’d go in if and when one of them eventually (and inevitably) moved on. With Richie McKay packing his car to head back down 29 last…

‘Hoos Topple Cavalanche Onto Clemson

Clemson doesn’t have the talent to hang with the ACC’s best yet. Brad Brownell is a good coach, but even the best coaches need players, and Clemson doesn’t have many. A young guy like Jaron Blossomgame is a good start, but he’s largely going it alone: Landry Nnoko…

Hoops Preview: Pitt

We saw 10 minutes of excellent basketball on both ends against Wake, which the optimistic among us — myself included — can take as a glimmer of spring in this winter of Justin Anderson-less discontent. That 10 minutes — where we outscored the Deacons 27–7 to turn a seven point deficit into a…

Hoops Preview: William & Mary

This first sentence serves as the door of this post. Leave your assumptions about William & Mary here. The Tribe are not to be confused with the Radfords, Libertys, and such of the world — they’re good, better than your average December in-state foe. Ken Pomeroy ranks them…

‘Hoos Survive Miami

Everyone was tested during last night’s meeting with Miami. The ‘Hoos had to survive some adversity and close a game without Malcolm Brogdon. CTB had to keep his composure in the face of a Jamie Luckie masterpiece of refereeing inconsistency. London Perrantes had to suddenly thrive as our only…

‘Hoos Fall in Finale

“From here on out, it’s one and done.” — Tony Bennett

We went down double digits to start the game just like we did against Syracuse on their senior night, but couldn’t leave this one victorious, falling for the first time on the road this season and the second time…

Hoops Preview: Tech

The people who think Tech can pull the upset tomorrow because “strange things happen in rivalry games” are the type of people who will walk a mile out of their way to avoid stepping on a crack in the sidewalk. They’re either superstitious to the point of obsession or so ignorant of current…

Killeya Softly: ‘Hoos Welcome Sacha Killeya-Jones to 2016 Class

The ‘Hoos’ 2016 class added some needed height today, as Virginia Episcopal power forward Sacha Killeya-Jones announced his commitment. Killeya-Jones, who also had offers from Georgetown, ECU, and UNC-Charlotte (edit…

Basketball Player Preview: Austin Nichols

It isn’t very often you have the opportunity to add a guy who not only was a five star prospect but has validated that rating at the college level and has two years of eligibility remaining, so when you get the chance, you have to pounce. Tony did, and…

‘Hoos Shave Pitt

This was a game in three parts. We dominated Pitt with our defense in the first half (they shot 35.3% and scored 0.66 points per possession), but couldn’t get it going ourselves. Pitt was actively fronting and denying our post players, but the resulting steady diet of jumpers didn’t fall (42.6%…