Cavaliers Host Panthers in ACC Opener Friday Night
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia (5-3) hosts Pitt (2-5) in its ACC opener on Friday, Dec. 3. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 8 p.m. on ACC Network.
For Openers
• Virginia (5-3) opens its 69th season of Atlantic Coast Conference action vs. Pitt.
• The Cavaliers have a 13-game winning streak in ACC openers and are 12-0 in ACC openers under head coach Tony Bennett.
• Virginia is 33-35 all-time in ACC openers.
• The Cavaliers posted a 50-49 win over Notre Dame in last year’s ACC season opener at John Paul Jones Arena.
Broadcast Information
• The Virginia-Pitt game will be televised on ACC Network and streamed online at WatchESPN.com and ESPN App.
• The game will also be broadcast on Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Sports app.
• Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.
The Head Coach
• Dean and Markel Families Head Men’s Basketball Coach Tony Bennett as a 300-106 (.739) mark in 13 seasons at Virginia and 369-139 (.726) career mark in 16 seasons as a head coach.
• Bennett won his 300th game at Virginia with the 61-43 victory against Lehigh on Nov. 26, 2021.
• The three-time National (2007, 2015 and 2018) and four-time ACC Coach of the Year (2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019) guided the Cavaliers to their 10th ACC regular-season championship in 2020-21.
• In 2018-19, Bennett led the Cavaliers to their first NCAA national championship, a share of their ninth ACC regular-season title and a school-record 35 wins.
• Bennett has led UVA to 10 consecutive postseason appearances (2012-21) and seven consecutive NCAA tournaments (2014-21).
Hoo Are These Cavaliers?
• We play defense, take good shots, share and take care of the basketball, rebound, and play more defense.
• UVA is led by its returning backcourt of Kihei Clark (10.9 ppg & 4 apg) and Reece Beekman (7.3 ppg, 3.8 apg & 2.5 spg), and the additions of transfers Jayden Gardner (14 ppg & 8.3 rpg) and Armaan Franklin (11.8 ppg).
• Clark has played 101 games at UVA and has a 10-game 3-point streak dating back to last season, while Beekman ranks seventh nationally with 20 steals.
• The Cavaliers added transfers Gardner (East Carolina) and Franklin (Indiana) to fill the void left by standouts Sam Hauser (16 ppg), Jay Huff (13 ppg) and
• Trey Murphy III (11.3 ppg).
• Gardner averaged 18.5 points and 8.9 rebounds in 79 career games at East Carolina, while Franklin averaged 11.4 points and shot 42.5 percent from 3-point range for the Hoosiers in 2020-21.
• Kadin Shedrick (6.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg & 3 bpg) and Francisco Caffaro (4.3 rpg) anchor the paint, while Taine Murray, Igor Miliĉić Jr., Malachi Poindexter, Kody Stattmann and Carson McCorkle provide perimeter depth.
Virginia All-Time vs. Pitt
• Virginia is 17-4 all-time vs. Pitt in the series that dates back to 1957-58.
• UVA has won six straight contests vs. the Panthers, including a 73-66 tilt last season at John Paul Jones Arena.
• Virginia has won 13 of the last 14 games against Pitt, including a 7-1 record in Charlottesville.
• UVA is 10-1 against Pitt since 2013-14 when the Panthers joined the ACC.
• Tony Bennett is 10-2 all-time vs. Pitt.
Last Time vs. the Panthers
• Sam Hauser scored a season-high 23 points and Tomas Woldetensae added 14 points off the bench in then-No. 14 Virginia’s 73-66 win over Pitt on Feb. 6, 2021.
• UVA broke the game open with a 16-0 second-half run, highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers from Jay Huff and two more from Hauser.
• Hauser shot a blistering 8 of 9 from the field, including 3 of 4 3-pointers, while Woldetensae matched season highs in points and 3-pointers (4).
• UVA shot 53.2 percent from the field (50 percent from 3).
• Justin Champagnie led Pitt with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
• The Panthers outrebounded the Cavaliers, 33-27, and scored 42 of their 66 points in the paint.
Last Time Out
• Jordan Bohannon scored a game-high 20 points to lead Iowa to a 75-74 win over Virginia in a Big Ten/ACC Challenge contest on Nov. 29 at John Paul Jones Arena.
• UVA trailed by 21 points in the first half but gained a 71-70 lead on a 3-pointer by Taine Murray at 1:36 of the second half.
• Joe Toussaint’s bank shot with eight seconds left won it for the Hawkeyes, who shot 53.6 percent (10 of 21 from 3).
• Kihei Clark’s (15 points) floater with two seconds left bounced off the rim.
• Murray gave the Hoos a lift off the bench with a career-high 14 points, while Jayden Gardner led UVA with 18 points.
• UVA tied a season high with nine 3-pointers (7 in the second half).
On The Horizon
• Virginia travels to JMU for a nonconference tilt on Tuesday, Dec. 7. Tipoff at Atlantic Union Bank Center is set for 6:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.