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March 2, 2007
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. –
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The Game
Virginia enters today’s Atlantic Coast Conference regular season finale against Wake Forest with a 20-8 overall record and an 11-4 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Cavaliers, who are in the “Others Receiving Votes” portion of The Associated Press and 25th in the ESPN/USAToday Top 25 polls, are coming off a 69-56 win over No. 21 Virginia Tech (March 1) at the John Paul Jones Arena. The victory over the Hokies clinched at least a share of the ACC regular season title for Virginia, which has won 11 of its last 13 games.
Wake Forest is 13-15 overall and 4-11 in the ACC this season. The Demon Deacons have lost their last two games and are coming off a 73-66 loss at NC State (Feb. 28).
Television
Today’s game will be televised by the Raycom-Lincoln Financial Network. Tim Brant will handle the play-by-play. Eddie Fogler is the analyst.
Radio
All UVa games are heard on the Virginia Sports Network originating at the Charlottesville Radio Group and WINA-AM/WWWV-FM in Charlottesville. Mac McDonald calls the play-by-play. Jim Hobgood provides the analysis.
The Series vs. Wake Forest
Wake Forest leads the series with Virginia 63-59. The Demon Deacons have won 17 of the last 27 games in the series, including four of the last seven. In the first meeting of the season, UVa notched an 88-76 win (Jan. 21) at the John Paul Jones Arena for its second consecutive victory in the series. Virginia snapped a two-game losing streak to Wake Forest with a 75-73 win (Feb. 4) at University Hall in the only meeting between the two teams last season.
The Demon Deacons swept a pair of games in 2004-05, winning 89-70 (Jan. 2) in Charlottesville in the first meeting and 90-68 (Feb. 27) in Winston-Salem. The Cavaliers’ loss in the first meeting snapped a four-game home winning streak over Wake. It also halted a steak of eight consecutive wins by the home team in the series.
The two teams split the 2003-04 series. The Deacs registered a 91-78 win (Jan. 31) in the first meeting in Winston-Salem, while Virginia won 84-82 (Mar. 2) in Charlottesville.
Neither team has won more than two consecutive games in the series in 10 years. Wake won three consecutive games in the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons. After splitting the regular season series in 1995-96, the Demon Deacons won 70-60 (Mar. 8) in the 1996 ACC Tournament. Wake then swept the 1996-97 series, winning 58-54 (Jan. 15) in Winston-Salem and 66-60 (Feb. 22) in Charlottesville.
UVa is looking for its first season sweep of the Deacs since the 1988-89 season – the last of four consecutive season sweeps by the Cavaliers. A win today would also give UVa its third consecutive win over Wake. The last time Virginia won at least three straight games in the series was a nine-game winning streak between 1985-86 and the first meeting of the 1989-90 season.
Virginia has not had much luck on the western end of Tobacco Road. The Cavaliers are 3-13 in the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum and 11-34 all-time in Winston-Salem against Wake Forest. Virginia has lost its last five games at Wake Forest and 10 of the last 11. UVa snapped a five-game losing streak to the Deacs at Lawrence Joel Coliseum with a 76-67 win in the 1999-00 season (Jan. 30). Previously, the Cavaliers’ last victory at Wake was a 61-59 win on January 26, 1994.
Tough To Shoot Well vs. Wake Forest
Virginia has had a rough time on the offensive end against Wake Forest since the 1989-90 season (UVa is 16-21 vs. Wake Forest since 1989-90). The Cavaliers have shot 46 percent or better against Wake Forest just 11 times in the last 38 games. Nine of the 11 games resulted in Virginia wins with the two losses coming when UVa shot 52.0 percent (26-50) in a 75-71 loss (Feb. 23, 2003) in Winston-Salem and in 2003-04 when the Cavaliers shot 50.0 percent (31-62) in a 91-78 loss (Jan. 31) in Winston-Salem.
UVa’s 52.7 percent (29-55) shooting from the field in the first meeting this season is its highest against Wake Forest since the 1995-96 season when the Cavaliers shot 60.5 percent (23-58) from the floor.
Virginia has shot 42.2 percent from the floor and averaged 68.1 points per game against Wake Forest since 1989-90.
Similarly, the Cavalier defense has been almost as stingy as Wake’s. The Deacons have made 44.4 percent of their field goal attempts over the last 38 meetings and have averaged 70.9 points per game.
Wake Forest topped 50 percent shooting from the floor nine times since 1989-90. Last season, the Deacs shot 51.0 percent (25-49) from the floor and it marked the first time since the 1989-90 season they lost to UVa when shooting 50 percent or better from the field.
8-0 at Home
The Cavaliers were a perfect 8-0 at home in ACC play and are the only ACC team with an unblemished conference record at home this season. It marks the first time Virginia has won eight ACC home games in a season (the ACC started playing a 16-game schedule in 1991-92). Prior to UVa this year, the last ACC teams to go 8-0 at home in league play were North Carolina and Wake Forest in 2004-05.
Virginia has been perfect at home in conference play twice before this year – 7-0 in back-to-back seasons in 1980-81 and 1981-82.
11 ACC Wins
With its 11 ACC victories, UVa has reached double figures in conference wins for just the fifth time since the start of ACC play in 1953-54.
The Cavaliers were 12-4 in 1994-95, 12-2 in both 1982-83 and 1981-82, and 13-1 in 1980-81.