No. 6 Virginia Travels to No. 22 Miami Tuesday
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – No. 6 Virginia (8-1, 1-0 ACC) travels to No. 22 Miami (11-1, 2-0 ACC) in ACC action on Tuesday, Dec. 20. Tipoff at Watsco Center is set for 8:30 p.m. on ACC Network.
For Openers
• Virginia and Miami meet as ranked foes for the first time since March 11, 2016, when the No. 4 Cavaliers topped the No. 11 Hurricanes 73-68 in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament.
• Virginia has a six-game winning streak vs. Miami.
• UVA’s 8-0 start was its longest since starting 16-0 in 2018-19.
• Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga served as an assistant to Terry Holland at UVA from 1979-86.
• UVA is 3-0 away from home, including a 1-0 true road record.
• UVA ranks sixth nationally in turnovers per game (9.8), 11th in assist/turnover ratio (1.56), 12th in free throws made per game (18.1), 15th in free throw attempts per game (25.1), 16th in scoring defense (59.1 ppg) and 33rd in blocks per game (5.0).
Broadcast Information
• The Virginia-Miami 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 324-118 (.733) mark in 14 seasons at UVA and 393-151 (.722) career mark in 17 seasons as a head coach.
• Bennett needs three wins to pass Terry Holland (326-173, 16 seasons) as the all-time winningest coach at UVA.
• Bennett needs seven 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. 6 in Latest AP Poll
• UVA is ranked No. 6 in the latest AP national poll and has been ranked in the top-6 for the past five weeks.
• UVA’s No. 2 ranking was UVA’s highest since spending the last four weeks at No. 2 in 2018-19.
• UVA returned to the top-5 for the first time on Nov. 21 since a No. 4-preseason ranking in 2020-21.
• Prior to this season, 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.
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 (11.3 ppg, 5.3 apg), Reece Beekman (9.3 ppg, 4.7 apg, 1.5 spg), Jayden Gardner (11.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg), Kadin Shedrick (9.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.9 bpg) and Armaan Franklin (10.9 ppg, 42.5% 3FG) have started all nine games for the Cavaliers.
• Transfer Ben Vander Plas (6.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg), freshmen Isaac McKneely (4.7 ppg, 38.7% 3FG) and Ryan Dunn (3.0 ppg, 2.4 rpg), Francisco Caffaro (2.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg) and Taine Murray (2.0 ppg) provide depth.
• Isaac Traudt and Leon Bond III are redshirting this season.
All-Time vs. Miami
• Virginia is 15-12 all-time vs. Miami in the series that began in 1965-66.
• UVA has a six-game winning streak vs. Miami, including a three-game winning streak at Watsco Center.
• The Cavaliers are 4-7 against the Hurricanes in Coral Gables.
• Thirteen of the last 15 meetings between the teams have been decided by 10 points or less.
• UVA has limited Miami to 58 or fewer points in six of the last seven meetings.
• Head coach Tony Bennett is 12-6 all-time against Miami.
Last Time vs. The Hurricanes
• Jayden Gardner scored 23 points and Kihei Clark added 17 as Virginia recorded a 74-71 win at Miami on Feb. 19, 2022.
• Kadin Shedrick added 13 points and career-high 13 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
• Kameron McGusty led Miami with 20 points and four steals.
• Virginia used a 23-4 run to gain a 53-44 second half lead and converted 19 of 25 free throws to complete its first two-game regular season sweep over the Hurricanes.
• Clark became the 50th Cavalier to reach 1,000 career points by scoring 14 points in the second half.
Scoring Surge
• UVA is averaging 70.9 points per game, most since averaging 71.4 points in 2018-19.
• UVA scored 70 or more points in its first six games for the first time since 2003-04 (eight games).
• UVA has scored 62 or fewer points in the past three games.
• UVA scored at least 70 points in six straight games for the first time since December of 2014.
• UVA is 150-11 when scoring 70 or more points under Bennett.
• The Cavaliers are shooting 46.6 percent from the field, including 38 percent from 3-point range and 70.8 percent free throws.
• UVA shot 44.9 percent from the field, including 32.3 percent from 3-point range, last season.
Last Time Out
• No. 2 Virginia (8-1) had its eight-game winning streak snapped as No. 5 Houston (11-1) knocked off the Cavaliers on their home court 69-61 at John Paul Jones Arena on Dec. 17.
• UVA started the game on a 9-0 run, but Houston gained a 21-19 advantage at 6:07 of the first half and never relinquished the lead.
• Kadin Shedrick led UVA in scoring with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting and made both of his attempts at the line. Jayden Gardner (13 points, 4-8 FG, 6 rebounds) and Armaan Franklin (10 points, 3-6 FG, 6 rebounds) also scored in double figures for the Hoos.
• UVA shot 41.7 percent and converted just 6 of 22 3-pointers.
• Houston shot 49 percent and made 8 of 21 3-pointers.
• Jarace Walker led five Cougars in double figures with 17 points.
On The Horizon
• No. 6 Virginia returns to action against UAlbany on Wednesday, Dec. 21. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 6 p.m. on ACC Network.