Virginia Downs Vermont 90-72 in Season Opener

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -Sean Singletary and Virginia didn’t look especially sharp in their season-opener Sunday against Vermont, but coach Dave Leitao got to give plenty of players some minutes as the Cavaliers cruised to a 90-72 victory.

Singletary had 19 points and six assists and Adrian Joseph scored 19 for the Cavaliers, who play Howard on Wednesday before heading west to play No. 17 Arizona next Saturday.

Among the biggest cheers of the afternoon came when the scoreboard showed images of Cavaliers football players Jameel Sewell, Vic Hall and others in the crowd. Virginia won 48-0 at Miami on Saturday night, staying in first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Coastal Division with one game left against Virginia Tech on Nov. 24.

That game will determine which team plays in the ACC championship game.

The Catamounts (0-2), denied a berth in the NCAA tournament last season despite 25 victories, were led by Marqus Blakely with 24 points and Mike Trimboli with 16.

Virginia used runs of 17-6 and 10-2 in the first half to lead 46-32 at the break, and Vermont closed within 10 in the second half before the Cavaliers pulled away.

Calvin Baker, a transfer from William & Mary who sat out last season, added 11 points in his first game for Virginia, and Mamadi Diane had 10 and eight rebounds.

Led by Joseph, who was 5-for-8 from 3-point territory, the Cavaliers made nine shots from behind the arc and finished the game shooting 58 percent from the field.

The Cavaliers used 14 players, and 10 scored. Joseph hit three 3-pointers in the first 6:38 and had 11 points by the break, while Singletary had 10 and five assists.