No. 18 Virginia Plays at No. 12 Clemson Saturday
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – No. 18 Virginia (8-2, 4-0 ACC) travels to No. 12 Clemson (9-1, 3-1 ACC) on Saturday, Jan. 16. Tipoff at Littlejohn Coliseum is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN and Virginia Sports Radio Network.
For Openers
• As of Jan. 14, Virginia ranks second nationally in turnovers per game (8.3), fourth in personal fouls per game (13.8), eighth nationally in free throw percentage (79.8), 11th in assist/turnover ratio (1.6), 12th in scoring defense (59.4) and 24th in field goal percentage (49.7).
• The Cavaliers have a four-game winning streak and have started 4-0 in the ACC for the first time since 2018-19.
• UVA meets its second ranked opponent (0-1).
• UVA is 12-0 in its last 12 ACC games dating back to 2019-20.
Broadcast Information
• The Virginia-Clemson game will be televised on ESPN and streamed online at WatchESPN.com and ESPN App.
• The game will also be broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Sports app.
• Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.
• Join the Voice of the Cavaliers Dave Koehn and special guest Jay Huff for the “Wahoo Walkthrough” at 5 p.m. on the Virginia Sports App, VirginiaSports.com and select stations on the Virginia Sports Radio Network.
The Head Coach
• Three-time National and four-time ACC Coach of the Year Tony Bennett has a 285-98 (.744) mark in 12 seasons at Virginia and 354-131 (.730) career mark in 15 seasons.
• Bennett led the Cavaliers to their eighth straight season with 23 or more wins in 2019-20.
• In 2018-19, Bennett led the Cavaliers to their first NCAA national championship, a share of their ninth ACC regular-season title and school-record 35 wins.
• UVA is 140-58 (.707) in ACC play (79-20 at home & 61-38 away), 159-29 (.846) at home and 145-40 (.784) in non-conference action (82-7 at JPJ) under Bennett.
• Bennett ranks fifth all-time in winning percentage at .707, among ACC head coaches with 100 or more ACC regular-season wins.
All-Time vs. Clemson
• Virginia is 78-52 all-time vs. Clemson, including a 25-35 road mark, in a series that dates back to 1935-36.
• UVA defeated the Tigers 51-44 in the lone meeting last season at John Paul Jones Arena.
• UVA has a 10-game winning streak in the series, limiting the Tigers to 44 or fewer points in five of the wins.
• The Cavaliers have a three-game winning streak against the Tigers in Clemson, including a 63-43 win in the last meeting at Littlejohn Coliseum in 2018-19.
• The Cavaliers are 12-2 in their last 14 meetings against the Tigers.
• Head coach Tony Bennett is 12-3 all-time vs. Clemson.
Last Time vs. the Tigers
• Braxton Key tallied a season-high 19 points to guide Virginia to a 51-44 home win over Clemson on Feb. 5, 2020.
• Mamadi Diakite added 13 points and eight rebounds and Jay Huff collected a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
• UVA jumped to a 14-2 lead and overcame scoring droughts of 5:27 and 3:56 in the second half to record its third straight win.
• Kihei Clark chipped in a game-high 10 assists and Virginia matched a season low with eight turnovers.
• UVA shot 35 percent from 3-point range (7 of 20) and owned a 35-34 rebounding advantage in its 10th straight win vs. Clemson.
Hoo Are These Cavaliers?
• Kihei Clark, Sam Hauser and Jay Huff lead the Cavaliers into action against Boston College.
• Clark, who has recorded 14.4 points and 3.6 assists per game the past five games, has averaged 10.8 points and team-high 3.6 assists.
• Hauser leads the team in scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (7.5 rpg), and is shooting 48.2 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range (17 of 51).
• Huff leads the team in blocked shots (2.5 bpg) and is second in scoring (12.9 ppg) and rebounding (5.8 rpg).
• Trey Murphy III (10.9 ppg) leads the team in 3-pointers (23) and 3-point percentage (48.9%).
• Reece Beekman has a team-high 17 steals, 23 assists and 24 rebounds.
• Casey Morsell (6.9 ppg) returned from a two-game absence with a season-high 15 points on 6 of 7 shooting (3 of 3 3FGs).
• Justin McKoy (4.7 ppg and 3.7 rpg), Tomas Woldetensae (34.8% 3FG) and Kadin Shedrick (3.5 ppg & 2.9 rpg) have added depth, while Kody Stattmann (4.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg) remains sidelined with a non-COVID-19 related cardiac issue.
UVA Ranked No, 18 in Latest AP Poll
• Virginia is ranked No. 18 in the latest Associated Press poll.
• UVA was ranked No. 4 in both preseason polls, marking its third AP preseason top-5 ranking in school history (No. 1 in 1982-83 and No. 5 in 2018-19).
• UVA has been ranked in the top 25 in the preseason rankings in nine of the past 10 seasons.
• UVA has been ranked in the top 25 of the AP poll for 10 straight weeks over the past two seasons.
Last Time Out
• Jay Huff matched his career high in scoring (18 points) for the second straight game as No. 18 Virginia rolled to an 80-68 win over Notre Dame on Jan. 13 at John Paul Jones Arena.
• Sam Hauser and Casey Morsell each added 15 points, and Kihei Clark and Trey Murphy III chipped in 12 and 10 points, respectively.
• Morsell shined with 6 of 7 shooting, including 3 of 3 from 3-point range, after missing the past two games.
• Hauser added a game-high nine rebounds and Reece Beekman chipped in three steals.
• Virginia shot 54.4 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 85.7 percent from the charity stripe.
On The Horizon
• No. 18 Virginia hosts NC State on Wednesday, Jan. 20. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 7 p.m. on ACC Network and Virginia Sports Radio Network.