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Cavaliers Down Hokies 61-59 in Blacksburg
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BLACKSBURG-Senior forward Mike Scott had game-high totals of 20 points and nine rebounds to lead the Virginia men’s basketball team to a 61-59 Atlantic Coast Conference victory over Virginia Tech at Cassell Coliseum Tuesday night (Feb. 21).
Junior guard Jontel Evans added 13 points and five assists for UVa and senior guard Sammy Zeglinski had 13 points, six rebounds and three assists.
The victory improves Virginia’s overall record to 21-6 and the Cavaliers are 8-5 in the ACC. UVa is ranked 25th in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll.
The loss drops Virginia Tech’s overall record to 15-13 and the Hokies are 4-9 in the ACC.
Junior guard Erick Green led Virginia Tech with 19 points. Green was the only Hokie to score in double figures.
Virginia Tech led by as many as nine points (31-22) with 3:29 left in the first half before UVa rallied to trail by three (35-32) at halftime. Scott had 15 first half points to help keep the Cavaliers close.
With the score tied 37-37 early in the second half, Virginia Tech went on a 10-2 run to take a 47-39 lead with 14:50 to play. Green scored eight points in that run by the Hokies.
UVa still trailed by seven (49-42) with 13:00 remaining in the game, but the Cavaliers scored 14 consecutive points to take a 56-49 lead with 4:49 left. Zeglinski, who scored all 13 of his points in the second half, scored seven points in that stretch for the Cavaliers.
Virginia still led by eight points (59-51) when Evans banked in a three-pointer with 3:04 remaining.
Virginia Tech then outscored the Cavaliers 8-2 to close within 61-59 with 26 seconds left in the game. Green scored seven of those points for the Hokies.
When UVa sophomore forward Akil Mitchell missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity with 22 seconds remaining to play, the Hokies had an opportunity to tie or take the lead. Virginia Tech’s possession ended when Virginia freshman guard Malcolm Brogdon stole the ball and was fouled with 1.9 seconds remaining. Brogdon missed the front end of a one-and-one, but the Cavaliers had the victory.
The win was Virginia’s sixth true road win of the season, the most for the Cavaliers since UVa won six road games in 1994-95.
Scott’s 25 points enabled him to move into 19th place on Virginia’s career scoring list with 1,431 points. He has scored in double figures in 14 consecutive games, the longest streak of his career.
Evans had his 11th game this season with at least five assists and Zeglinski now has 302 career assists. Zeglinski is the 12th player in Virginia history to record 300 assists.
The Cavaliers got a boost from freshman guard Paul Jesperson who scored a career-high seven points, tied his career high with three rebounds and had a career-high three assists.
Virginia shot 59.5 percent (25-42) from the field, including 40.0 percent (6-15) from three-point range, and 50 percent (5-10) from the free-throw line. The Cavaliers out-rebounded Virginia Tech 24-21.
Virginia Tech shot 45.0 percent (18-40) from the field, including 50 percent (8-16) from three-point range, and 71.4 percent (15-21) from the free-throw line.
Virginia returns to action on Saturday (Feb. 25) when the Cavaliers host North Carolina at John Paul Jones Arena. That game is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. and will be televised by ESPN. The Virginia-North Carolina game is sold out.