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CHARLOTTESVILLEThe Virginia men’s basketball team opens the Atlantic Coast Conference portion of its schedule on Sunday (Dec. 28) when the Cavaliers play at Georgia Tech. The game is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. and will be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net.
UVa enters the game with an overall record of 5-4 after winning two of its last three games. The Cavaliers are coming off a 74-48 victory over Hampton at John Paul Jones Arena on Tuesday (Dec. 23).
Sophomore forward Mike Scott led the Cavaliers with 17 points and 15 rebounds in the victory over Hampton. It was his third double-double of the season and the fifth of his collegiate career.
Scott and freshman guard Sammy Zeglinski each scored six points as Virginia sprinted to a 19-6 lead just 5:31 into the game against Hampton. The Pirates narrowed the Cavaliers’ lead to five points (27-22) with 4:18 to play in the first half, but UVa built the lead back to 11 points (38-27) at halftime. Hampton got no closer than 10 points in the second half as the Cavaliers took control of the game with a 10-0 run that gave them a 52-32 lead with 11:27 left to play. Scott scored four points in the run.
Zeglinski finished with 11 points, four assists and a career-high four steals against the Pirates.
“Any time you go into a holiday, you want to do it on a good note,” Virginia head coach Dave Leitao said after the win over Hampton. “I thought over the course of the game that we evened ourselves out in terms of not having as many highs and lows. We started off really quick sharing the basketball, pushing the basketball, and it led to some high percentage shots that we fortunately made. Our defense was sound enough to get us the ball back.
“Individually I thought Mike (Scott) came back and rebounded the way he has the potential to do. We’ve got to try as best we can to get him to continue to do that mentally because he can do it physically. Assane (Sene) again was a presence defensively and I think we’ve just got to continue to get him more growth.”
“I thought Sammy (Zeglinski) did a much better job of leading us today and having guys understand what he wants from them.“
Sophomore guard Mustapha Farrakhan added a career-high 10 points and junior forward Jamil Tucker also scored 10 points for the Cavaliers against Hampton. Sene, a freshman center, had six rebounds, blocked two shots and scored two points.
“Mustapha played loose, confidently,” Leitao said. “He played through the good and the bad. He came in and missed the layup but it didn’t really affect him and he guarded, I thought, pretty well. And as a result, he played confidently and when he does that he’s as good a shooter as we’ve got on the team. He was able to get open looks and knock them down. He attacked as well and I was pleased with the way he played mentally more than even physically to be honest with you.”
Virginia has three players averaging in double figures in scoring. Freshman guard Sylven Landesberg is averaging 18.3 points a game to lead the team in that department and he is also averaging 5.8 rebounds a game. Zeglinski is averaging 12.6 points a game and leads the team with an average of 3.6 assists a game, and Scott is averaging 10.4 points a game and leads the Cavaliers with an average of 9.6 rebounds a game. Junior guard Calvin Baker is averaging 9.1 points a game.
As a team, Virginia is averaging 75.6 points a game and allowing an average of 70.0 points a game.
Georgia Tech leads the series with UVa 38-29 and the Yellow Jackets are 22-8 against the Cavaliers in Atlanta.
Tech enters Sunday’s game with a record of 7-3. The Yellow Jackets are coming off a two-game trip to California where they defeated Pepperdine (86-58, Dec. 20) and lost to Southern California (76-57, Dec. 22).
Four players are averaging in double figures in scoring for Georgia Tech. Senior guard Lewis Clinch has played in the last three games and is averaging 18.3 points a game, while sophomore forward/center Gani Lawal is averaging 16.7 points and 9.7 rebounds a game. Lawal is shooting 57.0 percent (65-114) from the field. Senior forward/center Alade Aminu is averaging 13.8 points and 9.0 rebounds a game while shooting 57.9 percent (62-107) from the field. Freshman guard Iman Shumpert is averaging 11.3 points a game and leads the Yellow Jackets in assists with an average of 6.0 a game. Junior forward Zachery Peacock is averaging 9.6 points and 4.5 rebounds a game.
As a team, Georgia Tech is averaging 76.0 points a game and allowing an average of 64.6 points a game.
Paul Hewitt is in his ninth season as the head coach at Georgia Tech. His Georgia Tech teams have compiled an overall record of 149-115. In 12 seasons as a collegiate head coach, his teams have an overall record of 215-142.
Following the game at Georgia Tech, Virginia closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule with home games against Xavier (Jan. 3, 2:00 p.m.) and Brown (Jan. 6, 7:00 p.m.).