Cavaliers Conclude Home Slate With 60-57 Victory Over Florida State

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia Cavaliers (15-15, 8-11 ACC) won a 60-57 thriller over Florida State (16-16, 7-12 ACC) in their final home game of the season on Tuesday night (March 4) at John Paul Jones Arena.

Virginia finished with a 39.6 percent (21 of 53) shooting mark from the field and shot 45.8 percent (11 of 24) from behind the arc. Dai Dai Ames earned scoring honors with 18 points off 6 of 11 shooting with three 3-pointers. Andrew Rohde set his UVA high with 17 points (6-15 FG, 4-8 3FG). Elijah Saunders rounded out the double-figure scorers with 12 points (4-6 FG, 3 3FG), along with five rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Cavaliers trailed 28-27 at halftime after shooting 37 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from deep. Virginia held a five-point lead [13-8] after six minutes of play, then surrendered an 8-0 run to put the Seminoles up 16-13. The lead would switch six more times throughout the remainder of the first half as UVA used an Andrew Rohde and-1 to cut the deficit to one going into the break.

Virginia started the second half with a 10-3 run to gain a 38-31 lead. A back-and-forth sequence followed, culminating in a 55-55 tie at the 2:06 mark. Rohde beat the shot clock with a clutch 3-pointer from the right corner to give Virginia a 58-55 lead with 59 seconds remaining. A steal-and-slam brought FSU within one [58-57] with 11 seconds left before a pair of free throw makes from Ames closed out the scoring.

UP NEXT
Virginia closes out the regular season at Syracuse on Saturday, March 8. Tipoff at JMA Wireless Dome is set for 8 p.m. on the ACC Network.