Virginia Wins 56-53 at Virginia Tech in Commonwealth Clash
Postgame Notes – Virginia Tech | Boxscore
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Kihei Clark (Woodland Hills, Calif.) hit a three-pointer with two seconds remaining to give Virginia (20-7, 12-5 ACC) the 56-53 win at Virginia Tech (15-13, 6-11 ACC) on Wednesday night at Cassell Coliseum.
Three players finished in double-figures for the Cavaliers. Mamadi Diakite (Conarky, Guinea) had a game-high 19 points with six rebounds and two blocks. Clark finished with 10 points and had six assists. Braxton Key (Charlotte, N.C.) recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Cavaliers were 42.9 percent from the field, while Virginia Tech shot 37.3 percent. UVA led in rebounds (34-23).
HOW IT HAPPENED
Virginia scored first and had a 12-4 lead at the 12:05 mark in the first half. The Cavaliers were up 20-11 and closed the first half on a 6-0 run to lead 26-11 at halftime.
UVA was leading 38-26 with 13:40 to go in the second half when Virginia Tech used an 11-2 run to cut it to 40-37 with 8:20 on the clock. The Hokies tied it up 44-44 and took their first lead of the game, 47-46, with 4:51 to go. The teams traded the lead and Virginia Tech was up 51-50 when Casey Morsell (Fort Washington, Md.) hit a three to put UVA back in front. The Hokies tied it 53-53 before Clark hit is game-winning three.
THE GAME BALL GOES TO
Diakite had a game-high 19 points, Key finished with a double-double and Clark hit the game-winner to lead Virginia to the road-win.
COMMONWEALTH CLASH
• The Commonwealth Clash encourages a friendly, statewide rivalry between the two schools across all school-sponsored sports with 21 individual event points on the line.
• The school that accumulates 11 points or more will be crowned the winner and take home the Virginia529 Commonwealth Clash trophy.
• The UVA-VT game is worth a half point in the Clash. The Cavaliers lead this year’s Clash 6.5-3.5.
• UVA captured the Clash in 2015, 2016 and 2019, while Virginia Tech has won the Clash in 2017 and 2018.
NOTES
• UVA has won 20 or more games in nine consecutive seasons
• UVA has a five-game winning streak
• UVA clinched a double bye for the ACC Tournament
• UVA led 26-11 at the half, fewest first-half points allowed by UVA since allowing seven points at Pitt on Feb. 24, 2018
• UVA has a four-game winning streak in the series and three-game winning streak at Cassell Coliseum
UP NEXT
Virginia returns home to host No. 7 Duke at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 29, at John Paul Jones Arena. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.