Virginia Suffers 77-74 Defeat at Miami

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The Cavaliers led by as many as 15 points in the second quarter on a night when Latasha Lattimore matched her career high with 25 points in her return to the Watsco Center. Virginia (11-11, 3-7 ACC) would ultimately fall to Miami (13-8, 3-7 ACC) by a score of 77-74 on Thursday night (Jan. 30).

A transfer from Miami, Lattimore (25 pts, 10-16 FG, 7 reb) had a career night while freshman Breona Hurd (14 pts, 4-7 FG, 5 reb, 3 ast) also scored in double figures. Kymora Johnson (9 pts, 11 reb, 5 ast,) provided an important lift on the stat sheet as well.

How It Happened
Virginia took an early lead in the first quarter, outscoring the Hurricanes 25-13. The Cavaliers drilled five 3-pointers in the opening period, led by Taylor Lauterbach, who went 2-for-2 from deep, tying a career-high.

In the second, Virginia stretched its lead to as many as 15. However, the Hurricanes responded by outscoring Virginia 17-10 in the period. Miami ended the half on a 12-2 scoring run to cut the UVA lead to just five [35-30]. Latasha Lattimore led the Cavaliers at the break with 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting while collecting four rebounds.

Late in the third, Miami trimmed the Cavalier advantage to three points, but five straight points from Johnson and Olivia McGhee restored an eight-point UVA lead [57-49]. Edessa Noyan and Lattimore each poured in six points in the third.

Miami took its first lead since the opening minutes of the game (7-5, 7:23) following a 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers recaptured the lead quickly and built it up to as many as nine [75-66]. However, the Hurricanes closed the game on an 8-2 scoring run to win 77-44.

Game Notes

• Double figure scorers: Lattimore (25), Hurd (14)
• Lattimore’s 25 points match a season high and mark her fourth 20-point game of the season
• The Cavaliers made five 3-pointers in the first quarter
• Taylor Lauterbach matched a career high in 3-pointers (2)
• Virginia outrebounded Miami 39-33 and falls to 11-3 on the season when outrebounding its opponent
• The Cavaliers outscored Miami 21-7 on second-chance opportunities
• The Virginia bench accounted for 41 points, its second largest output of the season, and largest in ACC play
• The Cavaliers were outscored 17-2 in fast-break opportunities
• Virginia falls in just its second game this season when scoring at least 70 points

Up Next:
The Cavaliers return to action on Sunday (Feb. 2) when they travel to Syracuse. Tipoff at JMA Wireless Dome is set for noon on ACC Network (ACCN).