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Cavaliers Open ACC Home Schedule With Georgia Tech On Wednesday
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CHARLOTTESVILLE—The Virginia men’s basketball team opens its Atlantic Coast Conference home schedule on Wednesday (Jan. 13) when the Cavaliers host nationally ranked Georgia Tech at John Paul Jones Arena.
The game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. and reserved seat tickets are available at a cost of $30. Wednesday’s game will be broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network and a live video webcast will also be available through Raycom and ACC Select on theACC.com.
UVa enters the game with an overall record of 9-4 and a 1-0 record in the ACC. The Cavaliers have won their last five games, including a 70-62 win at NC State on Saturday (Jan. 9). The winning streak is the longest for UVa since the Cavaliers won the first five games of the 2007-08 season.
Georgia Tech is 12-3 overall and 1-1 in the ACC. The Yellow Jackets are coming off a 71-67 home victory over Duke on Saturday (Jan. 9). Georgia Tech is ranked No. 18 in this week’s ESPN/USA Today coaches poll and No. 20 in The Associated Press poll.
The Yellow Jackets are the second nationally ranked team Virginia has faced this season. UAB was ranked No. 24 in The Associated Press poll when the Blazers lost to UVa 72-63 on Dec. 30.
Sophomore guard Sylven Landesberg scored 23 points and had five rebounds in the Cavaliers’ victory at NC State. Junior forward Mike Scott scored 14 points and had seven rebounds, while sophomore guard Sammy Zeglinski added 10 points and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds.
Junior guard Jeff Jones came off the bench to scored eight points (3-3 FG, 2-2 3FG) for Virginia.
UVa trailed the Wolfpack by 10 points (43-33) with 12:35 left to play before rallying for the victory. The Cavaliers made their last 17 free throw attempts and shot a season-high 95 percent (19-20) from the free-throw line. Virginia took the lead for good at 54-53 on a layup by Scott with 3:53 remaining in the game.
“Our guys showed some real resiliency, especially when we were down by 10 points, and they fought back hard,” UVa head coach Tony Bennett said. “They got some tough stops on defense and made adjustments on the other end. They wanted it so badly, and they were so tough mentally.”
The Cavaliers shot 45.5 percent (5-11) from three-point range in the game and out-rebounded the Wolfpack 36-30.
Landesberg leads Virginia in scoring, assists and minutes played. He is averaging 17.0 points, has 34 assists and is averaging 31.2 minutes played a game. Landesberg is second on the team in rebounding with an average of 5.4 rebounds a game. He ranks sixth in the ACC in scoring.
Scott leads UVa in rebounding and is second in scoring. He is averaging 8.6 rebounds and 13.8 points a game. Scott is shooting 57.4 percent (58-101) from the field. He ranks third in the ACC in field goal percentage and sixth in rebounding.
Zeglinski is the third Virginia player averaging in double figures in scoring. He is averaging 10.8 points a game and is shooting 50.8 percent (32-63) from three-point range. Zeglinski ranks second in the ACC in three-point field goal percentage and tied for third in three-point field goals made per game (2.5).
Senior guard Calvin Baker has 31 assists on the season and just eight turnovers.
As a team, the Cavaliers are averaging 70.2 points a game and allowing an average of 59.0 points a game. UVa is shooting 46.1 percent from the field, including 42.3 percent from three-point range, and 74.7 percent from the free-throw line. Virginia is also averaging just 10.5 turnovers a game. The Cavaliers rank first in the ACC in three-point field goal percentage, second in free throw percentage, and third in scoring defense, three-point field goals made a game (6.8) and assist to turnover ratio (1.3).
Georgia Tech has four players averaging in double figures in scoring. Junior forward Gani Lawal leads the Yellow Jackets in scoring and rebounding. Lawal is averaging 15.7 points and 9.4 rebounds a game. He is shooting 57.7 percent (79-137) from the field. Lawal ranks second in the ACC in field goal percentage, third in rebounding and ninth in scoring.
Freshman forward Derrick Favors is second on the team in scoring and rebounding with averages of 11.7 points and 8.7 rebounds a game. He ranks fifth in the ACC in rebounding. Freshman guard Mfon Udofia averages 10.9 points a game and leads the team in assists with an average of 2.7 a game, and senior forward Zachery Peacock averages 10.1 points a game.
As a team, Georgia Tech is averaging 76.1 points a game and allowing an average of 61.8 points a game. The Yellow Jackets are shooting 46.2 percent from the field, including 34.1 percent from three-point range, and 69.3 percent from the free-throw line. Georgia Tech is out-rebounding its opponents by an average of eight rebounds a game.
Paul Hewitt is in his 10th season as Georgia Tech’s head coach. His Yellow Jacket teams have compiled an overall record of 166-134 and have participated in the NCAA Tournament four times, finishing as the national runner-up in 2004. Hewitt was the head coach at Siena for three years prior to becoming the head coach at Georgia Tech. His overall record as a collegiate head coach is 232-161.
Georgia Tech leads the series with Virginia 38-30, but the Cavaliers lead in games played in Charlottesville 17-11. The teams have split the two games played at John Paul Jones Arena. The visiting team has won the last three regular season meetings, including UVa’s 88-84 overtime victory in Atlanta last season.
The game with Georgia Tech is the first of a three-game homestand for Virginia. The Cavaliers return to action on Saturday (Jan. 16) when they host nationally ranked Miami in a game that is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. The Virginia-Miami game will be televised by ESPNU.