Balanced Scoring Leads Virginia Past Syracuse, 74-69, in ACC Road Opener
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Four different Cavaliers in Kihei Clark (17), Armaan Franklin (17), Jayden Gardner (15) and Kadin Shedrick (12) all scored in double figures to lead Virginia to victory, 74-69, over Syracuse (7-6 1-1 ACC) at the Carrier Dome Saturday night in UVA’s first ACC road contest of the season. With the win, Virginia improved to 8-5 overall and 2-1 in conference play.
Despite four lead changes and a tied score at the break, Virginia led for over 37 minutes of play and nearly matched its season high in field goal percentage after shooting 30-of-57 (52.6 percent) from the floor. The Cavaliers knocked down 17 of their 27 second-half field goal attempts (63 percent) and Clark scored seven of Virginia’s final nine points of the contest to seal the victory for the Hoos.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Back-to-back made baskets in the paint by Gardner to start the game opened up perimeter shooting for Virginia, which grasped an early 7-0 lead after making its first three field goals attempts. Franklin, who connected on his first two attempts from behind the arc, scored eight of his 10 first-half points in the first nine minutes of play. Both teams relied heavily on the three early on as UVA and the Orange combined to scored 21 of the game’s first 27 points from downtown. Eight unanswered points by the Cavaliers later in the half gave UVA a 25-13 advantage – their largest lead of the half – at the 7:36 mark. The Orange closed out the opening half on a 20-8 run of their own and tied the score, 33-33, on a contested look as time expired. Shedrick pulled down eight of his 11 total rebounds in the first 20 minutes of play, while Taine Murray and Kody Stattmann chipped in six and four points, respectively, off the bench in the first half.
The Cavaliers found themselves up 61-52 after orchestrating a 16-5 run in the middle or the second. The Orange cut the UVA lead to 65-62 on a made 3-pointer with 3:51 to play, but Clark drained a three from well behind the arc on the next trip down the floor to give the Cavaliers a six-point cushion once again. Down the stretch, Clark made a pair of free throws with 22 seconds remaining to make it a two-possession game and ultimately put the contest out of reach for the Orange.
THE GAME BALL GOES TO:
Kadin Shedrick. Shedrick matched a career-high 12 points and set a career high with 11 rebounds to post his second career double-double. Shedrick registered his first career double-double (10 points and 10 rebounds) along with three blocks in Virginia’s win over Coppin State (Nov. 19) earlier this season. Tonight, he also swatted two Orange field goal attempts to tally his 10th multi-block game of the season. Shedrick converted an and-1 midway through the second half to cap off seven unanswered UVA points, a run that flipped the score and gave UVA a 52-47 lead.
UP NEXT
Virginia travels to Clemson (9-4, 1-1 ACC) on Tuesday, Jan. 4. Tipoff at Littlejohn Coliseum is set for 9 p.m. on Regional Sports Networks (RSN).