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CHARLOTTESVILLEThe Virginia men’s basketball team opens play in the 56th annual Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament on Thursday (March 12) at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Ga. The Cavaliers are seeded 11th in the tournament and play sixth-seeded Boston College in a game that is scheduled to begin approximately 20 minutes after the conclusion of the game between seventh-seeded Maryland and 10th seeded NC State that is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. The Virginia-Boston College game will be televised by Raycom.
The game will also be on V Pass Live Audio at VirginiaSports.com.
Virginia enters the tournament with an overall record of 10-17 and the Cavaliers were 4-12 in the ACC during the regular season. UVa is coming off a 68-63 victory over Maryland on Saturday (March 7) at John Paul Jones Arena in the final game of the 2008-09 regular season.
Senior guard/forward Mamadi Diane, one of two seniors on the Virginia roster, led the Cavaliers to their victory over Maryland. Diane scored a season-high 23 points against the Terrapins and made a three-point basket to give UVa the lead for good with 38 seconds left in the game. He was 7-12 from the field, including 3-4 from three-point range, and 6-7 from the free throw line.
Freshman guard Sylven Landesberg scored 14 points and had four rebounds in the win over Maryland, while sophomore forward Mike Scott had his eighth double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Landesberg led the Cavaliers in scoring and minutes played during the regular season. He is averaging 16.8 points and 34.1 minutes played a game. Landesberg is also averaging 6.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists a game, and is shooting 80.3 percent (143-178) from the free throw line.
Landesberg is a unanimous selection to the 2009 ACC All-Freshman Team and an honorable mention selection to the 2009 All-ACC Team.
Scott is the only other Virginia player averaging in double figures in scoring. He is averaging 10.5 points a game and leads the team in rebounding with an average of 7.3 a game. Scott is shooting 55.3 percent (110-199) from the field and leads the team in double-doubles with eight.
Junior guard Calvin Baker is averaging 8.6 points a game for the Cavaliers and has scored in double figures in five of the last six games. Baker is averaging 12.3 points a game in the last six games. He is also averaging 2.7 assists a game for the season.
Freshman guard Sammy Zeglinski is averaging 8.0 points a game and leads Virginia in three-point field goals made (33), assists (84) and steals (36). Zeglinski is averaging 3.1 assists a game.
Junior forward Jamil Tucker is averaging 7.2 points and 3.8 rebounds a game, and sophomore guard Jeff Jones is averaging 6.6 points a game. Jones has started the last nine games and is averaging 10.1 points a game over the last 10 games.
Freshman center Assane Sene is averaging 4.7 rebounds a game and leads the team in blocked shots with 34.
UVa has an overall record of 30-54 in ACC Tournament play and won the tournament in 1976. Thursday’s game marks the first time Virginia and Boston College have met in the ACC Tournament.
Virginia and Boston College met once during the regular season with the Eagles winning 80-70 at John Paul Jones Arena on Feb. 4. Landesberg scored a season-high 32 points for UVa in the loss to Boston College earlier this season.
Boston College enters the tournament with an overall record of 21-10 and the Eagles were 9-7 in the ACC during the regular season. Boston College enters the tournament after a 67-66 victory over Georgia Tech on Saturday (March 7).
Senior guard Tyrese Rice leads the Eagles in scoring and assists. Rice is averaging 17.4 points and 5.4 assists a game. He is also averaging 3.8 rebounds a game. Rice is shooting 86.0 percent (160-186) from the free throw line and 35.6 percent (58-163) from three-point range.
Sophomore forward Joe Trapani is averaging 13.6 points and leads the team in rebounding with an average of 6.5 rebounds a game. Sophomore guard/forward Rakim Sanders is averaging 12.8 points and 4.5 rebounds a game, and sophomore forward Corey Raji is averaging 9.8 points and 6.2 rebounds a game.
Al Skinner is in his 12th year as the head coach of the Eagles. His Boston College teams have compiled an overall record of 231-147 and participated in the NCAA Tournament six times. Skinner was also the head coach at Rhode Island for nine years (138-126) before taking over the head coaching responsibilities at Boston College.
Virginia leads the series with Boston College 6-2.