No. 5 Virginia Hosts Maryland Eastern Shore Friday
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – No. 5 Virginia (4-0) hosts Maryland Eastern Shore (2-3) in nonconference action on Friday, Nov. 25. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 6 p.m. on ACC Network.
For Openers
• No. 5 Virginia returns to the top-5 in the national rankings for the first time since a preseason No. 4-ranking in 2020-21.
• UVA is 4-0 for the first time since starting 7-0 in 2019-20.
• Continental Tire Main Event MVP Reece Beekman earned his first ACC Player of the Week award for his efforts in Las Vegas.
• UVA is shooting 46.9 percent from 3-point range compared to 32.3 percent in 2021-22.
• UVA is 89-10 in non-conference action under Tony Bennett at John Paul Jones Arena
• UVA ranks first nationally in free throws made per game (22.5)and free throw attempts per game (30.5), fifth in 3-point percentage (46.9%), 11th in assist/turnover ratio (1.72) and 19th in turnovers per game (10.0).
Broadcast Information
• The Virginia-Maryland Eastern Shore game will be televised on ACC Network and streamed online at WatchESPN.com.
• 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 has a 320-117 (.732) mark in 14 seasons at UVA and 389-150 (.722) career mark in 17 seasons as a head coach.
• Bennett needs seven wins to pass Terry Holland (326-173, 16 seasons) as the all-time winningest coach at UVA.
• Bennett needs 11 wins to reach 400 career wins.
• Bennett has guided the Cavaliers to five ACC regular-season titles (2014, 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2021), two ACC Tournament titles (2014 and 2018) and one NCAA national championship (2019).
• The three-time National (2007, 2015 and 2018) and four-time ACC Coach of the Year (2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019) guided UVA to its 10th consecutive postseason berth in 2021-22.
UVA Ranked No. 5 in Latest AP Poll
• UVA is ranked No. 5 in the latest AP national poll.
• UVA returns to the top-5 for the first time since a No. 4-preseason ranking in 2020-21.
• The Cavaliers’ last top-5 ranking during the regular season was on Dec. 2, 2019.
• The Cavaliers were ranked No. 18 in the AP Preseason poll.
• UVA was ranked in the preseason AP top-25 for the fifth straight year and ninth in the last 10 seasons under Tony Bennett.
About The Cavaliers
• UVA returns all five starters from last season’s team, which finished 21-14, 12-8 in the ACC (sixth) and advanced to the NIT quarterfinals.
• We play defense, take quality shots, pass the basketball, limit turnovers and transition points, rebound and play more defense.
• The Cavaliers return 91.4 percent of its scoring from last season, most among all NCAA Division I teams (Portland 91.1%, Dayton 89.4% and Penn 88.5%).
• Returning starters Kihei Clark (9.0 ppg, 4.5 apg), Reece Beekman (11.0 ppg, 6.0 apg), Jayden Gardner (7.8 ppg, 5.5 rpg), Kadin Shedrick (10.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.5 bpg) and Armaan Franklin (16.0 ppg, 45.5% 3FG) lead the way for the Cavaliers.
• Transfer Ben Vander Plas (9.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg), freshmen Isaac McKneely (5.3 ppg, 50% 3FG) and Ryan Dunn (5.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg), Francisco Caffaro (4.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg) and Taine Murray (3.5 ppg) provide depth.
• Isaac Traudt and Leon Bond III are redshirting this season.
All-Time vs. Maryland Eastern Shore
• Virginia is 2-0 all-time vs. Maryland Eastern Shore.
• The Cavaliers meet the Hawks for the first time since Dec. 27, 2011, when UVA defeated UMES 69-42 at John Paul Jones Arena.
• Mike Scott led the Cavaliers with 17 points and Darion Atkins added 13.
• UVA shot 50 percent in the win and limited the Hawks to 27.8 percent (15 of 54).
• The Cavaliers won the first meeting between the teams, 104-63, on Nov. 26, 2006 at John Paul Jones Arena.
Last Time vs. Maryland Eastern Shore
• Virginia is 2-0 all-time vs. Maryland Eastern Shore.
• The Cavaliers meet the Hawks for the first time since Dec. 27, 2011, when UVA defeated UMES 69-42 at John Paul Jones Arena.
• Mike Scott led the Cavaliers with 17 points and Darion Atkins added 13.
• UVA shot 50 percent in the win and limited the Hawks to 27.8 percent (15 of 54).
• The Cavaliers won the first meeting between the teams, 104-63, on Nov. 26, 2006 at John Paul Jones Arena.
Scoring Surge
• UVA is averaging 79.5 points per game, which is the highest in the Tony Bennett era.
• UVA has scored 70 or more points in its first four games for the first time since starting 2018-19 with five games of 70 or more points.
• UVA is 148-11 when scoring 70 or more points under Bennett.
• The Cavaliers are shooting 49 percent from the field, including 46.9 from 3-point range.
• UVA shot 44.9 percent from the field, including 32.3 percent from 3-point range, last season.
Last Time Out
• Then-No. 16 Virginia (4-0) scored 13 unanswered points late in the second half and held on to defeat then-No. 19 Illinois (4-1), 70-61, in the championship game of the Continental Tire Main Event Sunday (Nov. 20) at T-Mobile Arena.
• Virginia was led by guard Reece Beekman, who finished with a game-high 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting and was named the event’s Most Valuable Player.
• Thirteen of Beekman’s 17 points came in the second half, when he also recorded all three of his steals. Jayden Gardner (12 points, 3-5 FG) and Kihei Clark (12 points, 4-9 FG) also scored in double figures for the Cavaliers.
• With victories over Baylor and Illinois, UVA recorded back-to-back ranked wins for the first time since the end of the 2019-20 season (52-50 vs. No. 7 Duke and 57-54 vs. No. 10 Louisville).
On The Horizon
• No. 5 Virginia plays at Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Tuesday, Nov. 29. Tipoff at Crisler Arena is set for 9:30 p.m.