Virginia Hosts Austin Peay on Monday Night

Nov. 12, 2017

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia (1-0) hosts Austin Peay (0-1) in men’s basketball non-conference action on Monday (Nov. 13). Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.

For Openers
– UVA meets Austin Peay for the first time.
– The game is part of the NIT Season Tip-Off.
– UVA improved 19-1 in its last 20 season-opening games.

Broadcast Information
– The Virginia-Austin Peay contest will be streamed online on ACC Network Extra (ESPN3.com) and ESPN App, and broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Athletics mobile app on iTunes or Android.
– Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.

Security Information
– Virginia Athletics has implemented a clear bag policy and enhanced security procedures for home football and men’s and women’s basketball games. The changes in policy and entrance procedures are a result of recommendations for large-scale events held on Grounds by the University of Virginia’s security consultant.
– All bags entering John Paul Jones Arena for home men’s and women’s basketball games must be clear plastic, vinyl or PVC and cannot exceed 12″ x 6″ x 12″. Clear, one-gallon plastic freezer bags (Ziploc bags or similar) are also permitted.
– Additionally, all fans entering the arena will be screened upon entry, typically with walk-through and hand-held metal detectors.
– The new policy does not change the items fans may bring into John Paul Jones Arena.
– Gates open 90 minutes prior to tipoff for all home men’s basketball games. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to John Paul Jones Arena.
– Click here to read the full bag policy and description of game day entry procedures.

The Head Coaches
Virginia: Tony Bennett (Green Bay, 1992), 189-83 in nine seasons at UVA and 258-116 in 12 seasons overall.
Austin Peay: Matt Figger (Eastern Kentucky, 1995), 0-1 in first season at Austin Peay.

UVA Receiving Votes in Preseason Rankings
– UVA received votes in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches’ preseason polls.
– The Cavaliers had been ranked in 64 consecutive AP polls since Feb. 3, 2014.
– UVA was ranked in the top 10 in the preseason rankings in each of the past three seasons (2014-16). – Last season, the Cavaliers ranked No. 24 in the final AP poll and received votes in the USA Today Coaches’ poll.

Last Time Out
– Virginia opened the season with a 60-48 win over UNCG on Nov. 10.
– Kyle Guy tallied a game-high 16 points, made a career-best eight free throws and added a career-high three steals.
– Devon Hall added 13 points and six rebounds, while Isaiah Wilkins chipped in nine points, eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals.
– UVA shot 42.9 percent from the floor and went 20-of-24 (83.3%) from the free throw line.
– The Cavaliers limited UNCG to 29.3% percent shooting (15-of-51) and 15.4 percent from 3-point range (4-of-26).
– UVA allowed 16 offensive rebounds and committed 13 turnovers.

All-Time Against the Ohio Valley Conference
– Virginia is 4-1 all-time against current Ohio Valley Conference members (2-0 vs. Belmont, 1-0 vs. UT Martin, 1-0 vs. Tennessee State and 0-1 vs. Eastern Kentucky).
– UVA meets an Ohio Valley Conference for the first time since defeating Belmont 79-67 in the round 64 in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.
– Virginia has not played Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Jacksonville State, Morehead State, Murray State, SIUE, Southeast Missouri and Tennessee Tech.

There’s No Place Like Home
– Virginia is 151-40 (.791), including a 1-0 mark in 2017-18, in 12 seasons at John Paul Jones Arena.
– West Virginia ended UVA’s JPJ-record, 24-game home winning streak on Dec. 3, 2016.
– The Cavaliers finished undefeated at home (15-0) in 2015-16.
– UVA is 113-24 (.825), including a 78-9 (.897) mark the past six seasons, at home under head coach Tony Bennett.
– Virginia is 41-4 in ACC home games over the past five seasons.
– UVA has won 11 or more home games for eight straight seasons.

Getting Defensive
– UVA held its first 2017-18 opponent to fewer than 50 points with its 60-48 win over UNCG.
– The Cavaliers are 65-2 when limiting their opponents to fewer than 50 points under head coach Tony Bennett.
– In 2016-17, Virginia led the nation in scoring defense (56.4 ppg) for the third time under Bennett.
– Bennett-coached teams have led the nation in scoring defense four times (2008-09, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2016-17) and finished in the top-five nationally in eight of 11 seasons.
– Bennett-coached teams are 90-3 when holding opponents to fewer than 50 points during his 12-year coaching career.

Hoo Are These Cavaliers?
– Virginia returns three starters – Devon Hall, Isaiah Wilkins and Jack Salt – and five other letterwinners including Kyle Guy, Ty Jerome and Mamadi Diakite from last year’s 23-11 team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
– Hall is UVA’s top returning scorer at 8.4 points per game, which marks the third time in school history that UVA started the season without a returning double-digit scorer (1998-99, Colin Ducharme averaged 7.8 ppg in 1997-98 and 1969-70, Chip Case averaged 7.2 ppg in 1968-69).
– Guy leads UVA in scoring at 16 points per game and Hall is averaging 13 points and six rebounds.
– Wilkins is averaging 9.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 blocks and 2.0 steals.
– Center Jack Salt is averaging 6.0 points and 4.0 rebounds, while graduate transfer Nigel Johnson is averaging 7.0 points after averaging 11.3 points for Rutgers last season.
– Jerome takes over the reigns at point guard after backing up All-ACC performer London Perrantes last season.
– Redshirt sophomore Mamadi Diakite and redshirt freshmen De’Andre Hunter and Jay Huff are expected to be key contributors this season.
– Marco Anthony provides depth and fellow rookie Francesco Badocchi is expected to redshirt the 2017-18 season.

About The 2017-18 Schedule
– Seven of Virginia’s opponents are ranked in the AP Top-25 preseason poll (Duke, North Carolina, West Virginia, Miami, Notre Dame, Louisville and Seton Hall), while three (Rhode Island, Virginia Tech and Wisconsin) received votes.
– The Cavaliers will play 17 games against 2017 NCAA Tournament teams: home games against North Carolina, Notre Dame, Louisville, Virginia Tech and Wisconsin; road contests at Duke, North Carolina, West Virginia, Louisville, Florida State, Wake Forest and VCU; and neutral-site tilts against Vanderbilt and either Seton Hall or Rhode Island in the NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn, N.Y.
– Four opponents (Clemson, Georgia Tech, Monmouth, UNC Greensboro and Syracuse) participated in the 2017 National Invitation Tournament.

Virginia Picked Sixth in the ACC
– Virginia was picked to finish sixth in the ACC preseason poll.
– The Cavaliers, who were picked third and finished tied for fifth last season, have finished at or higher than their predicted finish in eight seasons of the last nine seasons.
– Duke is the preseason favorite, followed by North Carolina, Notre Dame, Miami, Louisville, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Wake Forest, NC State, Clemson, Boston College and Pittsburgh.

On The Horizon
– Virginia travels to VCU on Friday, Nov. 17. Tipoff at Siegel Center is set for 4 p.m. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.