Basketball Features 
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Basketball Features
UVa men's basketball has extended an offer to Onalaska (WI) 2-guard Matt Thomas, who now has collected official offers from Boston College, Iowa State, Marquette, Minnesota, Northwestern, Virginia and Wisconsin. Wisconsin Playmakers Director Jason Jesperson took some time to discuss the standout junior, who suits up for the Playmakers on the AAU circuit.
After hanging on for a tough 61-60 win at NC State, UVa returns home on Tuesday night for a battle with the Clemson Tigers, the Cavs' third contest in six days. With a win over Brad Brownell's squad, Tony Bennett's Hoos (17-3, 4-2 ACC) would move three games above .500 in the ACC for the first time since February 2010, when a home win over NC State had the team at 5-2 in conference. Can the Cavs tame the Tigers?
Tony Bennett's basketball philosophy is rooted in defense. Prevent easy buckets, challenge all shots, and guard as a group not as individuals.
So when Virginia's game with NC State on Saturday came down to one final possession, the Cavaliers looked at each other and embraced the defense at the heart of their program. One stop later, the Hoos had a 61-60 victory against the Wolfpack and a 17-3 record to celebrate. Virginia is 4-2 in ACC play.
After bouncing back from the Virginia Tech loss with a 66-49 win over Boston College, UVa heads down Tobacco Road to face NC State at the RBC Center on Saturday night. Like the Hoos on Thursday night, the Wolfpack are coming off a devastating loss to their in-state rivals, a 74-55 defeat at UNC in a game that was even more of a blowout than the final score indicates. Can the Cavs pull out a tough road win in a game that could end up determining which team finishes in the top 4 of the ACC and maybe even which team makes the Big Dance?
Virginia guard Jontel Evans knew he needed to expand his offensive repertoire in order to combat defenses that wanted to focus their attention on UVa's other players. Too often during his sophomore season, defenders would drop off of him to help on other players when he didn't have the ball and they would sag back to cut off driving lanes that lead to drive-and-kick opportunities when he had the ball. While those tactics have continued this season, the junior's offseason work is paying dividends more frequently for the Hoos' offense.
On Sunday night, Virginia suffered a heartbreaking loss to arch rival Virginia Tech at John Paul Jones Arena. Several key stats stand out from the defeat. The Cavaliers shot 1-14 from beyond the arc and missed eight free throws in the contest. Fast forward four days later and a completely different story unfolded as Virginia used a big second half to top the Boston College Eagles on Thursday, 66-49. Virginia shot 50.9% on the game and was a perfect 8-8 from the charity stripe.
After a heartbreaking home loss to Virginia Tech on Sunday night, the Virginia Cavaliers are back in action Thursday night against the Boston College Eagles. Tabbed by many as the worst Power 6 conference team during out of conference play, BC has looked a bit better in the early stages of ACC competition, winning home contests against Clemson and Virginia Tech. Can the Hoos move back above .500 in ACC play with a win against Steven Donahue's squad?
For Virginia fans the aftermath of Sunday's loss to Virginia Tech ranged from disappointment to worry. The frustration heavily hinged on the fact that the loss came to rival VT at home. The concern, on the other hand, stared at the long-term ramifications. In other words, did the Hokies provide a blueprint for knocking off the Cavaliers?
The University of Virginia men's basketball program extended a scholarship offer to Gil St. Bernard's (Gladstone, N.J.) point guard Jaren Sina in December, and this past Sunday the 6'2", 180-pound junior traveled to Charlottesville for an unofficial visit.
Off to its best start in 30 years with a 10-game home winning streak in tow, the Virginia men's basketball team couldn't find a way to shake its in-state rival Virginia Tech on Sunday. The Hokies, who entered the game winless in the ACC, executed a superb defensive game plan and pulled off the upset against No. 15 UVa, 47-45, in front of a sold-out crowd at the John Paul Jones Arena.
After crushing Georgia Tech on the road 70-38 Thursday night to move to 15-2 (2-1 ACC) on the season, the Hoos return home to face another Tech on Sunday: the cross-state rivals from Blacksburg. The Hokies are reeling, having lost their first four ACC games, culminating in a 82-68 loss at The Barn to UNC on Thursday in which the Gobblers fell apart in the second half. Can the Cavaliers win their third straight against the Hokies?
Virginia won it's first ACC game of the season over Miami at JPJ Arena on January 7th, a 52-51 nail biter that ended as Miami missed a shot at the buzzer. Please check out this free photo gallery of 58 images of the event, many of them of Mike Scott. Superman wears Mike Scott pajamas!
Dominant. Offense, defense, scoring, rebounding, shooting. Pick a category. That adjective describes Virginia's effort across the board against Georgia Tech in Atlanta on Thursday. The No. 15 Cavaliers picked up their first ACC road win of the season to the tune of a 70-38 demolition of the Ramblin' Wreck at Philips Arena. The Hoos improved to 15-2 and 2-1 in the ACC with the win.
After seeing a 12-game winning streak snapped at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Cavaliers hit the road again and seek to return to their winning ways against Georgia Tech on Thursday night. But the game won't be at the Alexander Memorial Coliseum, which is being renovated and rechristened the Hank McCamish Pavilion. Instead, the game will be held at Philips Arena, the home of the NBA's Hawks. Will the Hoos be able to continue their recent success against the Rambling Wreck, one of two teams whom Tony Bennett has not lost against in his tenure at UVa?
A little more than midway through the season with the meat of the ACC schedule up next, the Virginia Cavaliers find themselves with a top 20 ranking (No. 15 in the latest Associated Press poll) and a 14-2 record. At 1-1 in the ACC, the Hoos, who just lost a nail-biter to No. 6 Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium, are at an interesting juncture in the season. This team, and even the very program that Tony Bennett is building, is at a potential crossroads.
Riding the program's longest winning streak since 1981-82 at 12 games, the Virginia men's basketball team couldn't snap a different streak against Duke on Thursday night. The No. 16 Cavaliers dropped a hard-fought 61-58 decision to the No. 8 Blue Devils, marking the Hoos' 15th straight defeat at Cameron Indoor Stadium. UVa fell to 14-2 with the loss.
On Saturday evening, the UVa men's basketball team exorcised last year's demons by hanging on to beat Miami, 52-51, and win its ACC home opener and move to 14-1 on the season. On Thursday night, the Hoos will look to exorcise demons of a different kind: Blue Devils, to be specific. It's almost 17 years to the day since Virginia and current assistant coach Jason Williford entered Cameron Indoor Stadium and left with a win (91-88 in double OT) on January 14, 1995. There are reasons to believe, though, that the losing streak in Durham might not be long for this world.
Apparently there's just something about the Miami matchup for the Virginia men's basketball team that guarantees the ending will be of the nerve-rattling variety. For the third straight meeting, after all, the Hurricanes staged a late-game rally and threatened to steal another win from the Hoos. On Saturday night in Charlottesville, however, Virginia survived a final possession shot on defense to claim a 52-51 victory in its ACC opener.
When Malcolm Brogdon joined the UVa men's basketball team as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Georgia Player of the Year, one thing that looked promising about the incoming freshman was his versatility. It's what coach Tony Bennett calls being a complete player, one who can contribute in multiple categories and different ways to the team. So far Brogdon hasn't disappointed.
The Virginia men's basketball team soared to a 13-1 record during non-conference play, including what has grown to an 11-game winning streak. The Cavaliers hope to keep grabbing victories when ACC play begins Saturday night at the John Paul Jones Arena. First up on the conference schedule is Miami, a team coached by former UVa assistant coach Jim Larranaga. Get ready for the Hurricanes with this Miami Primer.
The Virginia men's basketball team wrapped up non-conference play with another solid road win on Monday night as it took down LSU 57-52 in Baton Rouge. It's been a long time since the Cavaliers have played this well. With Monday's win, they clicked off a 13-1 start for the first time since 1981-82 when Ronald Reagan was eating jelly beans in the White House and Ralph Sampson was making University Hall his house. The Hoos have won 11 straight games for the first time since 1992-93 when coach Tony Bennett was playing his rookie season in the NBA.
With a shooting percentage only slightly higher than the opponent's losing streak, the Virginia men's basketball team survived a sluggish offensive night at the John Paul Jones Arena on Friday. The Cavaliers made just 34.8% of their shots as they handed visiting Towson its 32nd straight loss, 57-50. Despite the struggle, UVa improved to 12-1 for the first time since 1982-83.
The Virginia men's basketball team continued its hot start to the season with a 69-42 dismantling of Maryland Eastern Shore on Tuesday night at the John Paul Jones Arena. The Cavaliers, who had a season-high 22 assists in the win, are 11-1 for the first time since 2000-2001. The team's nine-game winning streak is the longest since 2001-2002.
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