1/23/02 - Buzz Killer

All day long, Randy Hand tried to drum up the nerve to call University of Virginia football coach Al Groh. Finally, around 4 p.m. Monday, the 6-foot-6, 310-pound Estero High senior offensive lineman picked up the phone and made the toughest decision of his life — he decommitted to the Cavaliers.

"(Groh) was upset, but he wished me luck," said Hand, who had verbally committed to the Cavaliers after visiting the school's Charlottesville, Va., campus in December. "That's the toughest part about the decision. You develop a relationship with some of the coaches and telling them you're not coming is hard."

Doubts crept into Hand's mind shortly after he committed to the Cavaliers. He wasn't sure he wanted to go 1,000 miles from home. He wasn't sure he if he wanted to spend the next five years seeing his family a handful of times a year.

A weekend trip to Gainesville to meet with the University of Florida coaching staff made Hand's decision that much more difficult. Originally, Hand wasn't recruited heavily by the Gators.

"At first, I was just going to not make any more trips," Hand said. "But I thought about it over the break and (Florida wide receivers coach Dwayne) Dixon kept calling me and telling me to come up."

When then-coach Steve Spurrier stepped down to coach the NFL's Washington Redskins two weeks ago, the phone calls became more frequent. Newly-hired Gators coach Ron Zook visited Hand at his San Carlos home last Thursday, and Hand was impressed the coach had stopped by to talk to a player who'd already committed to another school.

"He was all right, a pretty nice guy," Hand said of Zook. "I never really talked to Spurrier. But coach Zook's staff seems to be a lot more involved."

Hand visited Gainesville over the weekend, and by the time he got home, he knew he wasn't so sure about going Virginia anymore.

"I wish I would have waited to make a decision," Hand said. "I was pressured a little bit by them and by my dad (Randy Sr.). Everywhere we went, my dad said go there. This is my decision."

One of the biggest incentives for Hand going to Virginia was playing time. Groh told Hand he would compete for the starting left tackle job next fall. The Gators were more vague on whether Hand could or would play as a freshman.

"They didn't say much about playing time, they just asked me if I thought I could play at Florida," Hand said. "They say they never tell anyone whether they're going to start or if they're going to redshirt because they don't want to disrespect the guys who're already there and they don't want guys coming in thinking they're going to redshirt to not work hard."

Estero head coach Bill Swats said he was a little surprised by the turn of events, but has come to expect it in the ever-changing world of college recruiting.

"I don't know what to say," Swats said. "He mentioned (decommitting) to me and I mentioned to him he's got to pick a place where he's going to be OK for five years. Randy's got a choice to play anywhere in the country, so it's easy for him."

Hand, a second-team Class 4A selection at offensive tackle, said he probably won't take any more trips and will make his final decision — he promises — sometime within the next week.

"It's not really that bad because I know wherever I go is a good decision," Hand said.

Tech lets Virginia escape in final minute
By JOHN HOLLIS
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer

The results are starting to sound disturbingly familiar for Georgia Tech men's basketball fans starved for an ACC victory.

By ANDREW JOYNER
Daily Progress staff writer

ATLANTA — Virginia men’s basketball coach Pete Gillen starts one freshman in the lineup. It was the two that don’t start, however, that powered his team to the program’s first victory in Atlanta since 1995 on Tuesday night.
Elton Brown scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Jermaine Harper hit a key 3-pointer and key layup in the final minutes to lift the No. 7 Cavaliers to a 69-65 victory against Georgia Tech.
Virginia (13-2, 4-2 ACC) had not won in this arena since Feb. 22, 1995, and had lost seven straight total in Atlanta, including last season’s ACC quarterfinal loss to Georgia Tech. It also marked the end of a four-game losing streak to Georgia Tech, which beat UVa three times last season. The win also placed the Cavaliers, who began their ACC campaign 0-2, into a third-place tie with N.C. State.
Georgia Tech, a team that now has struggled several times in ACC play in holding a lead down the stretch, fell to 7-12 overall and 0-6 in the ACC.
“Our players showed great character and we just found a way to win,” said Virginia coach Pete Gillen, who has guided this team to the program’s best 15-game start since the 1982-1983 team also opened 13-2. “I thought Jermaine Harper and a big 3 and that length of the court drive. That was gigantic. Elton Brown was tremendous. Twenty points and 10 rebounds for a freshman on the road is just great.”
Finding a way to win might be the best summation for this contest.
Virginia trailed for most of the game, including four at halftime and by as many as 10 in the first half and as many as six with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
Virginia finally got its first lead of the game when Harper connected on a trey with 3:09 left that gave the Cavaliers the 62-61 advantage. If Virginia’s play until that point was not necessarily pretty, then neither was Harper’s shot. It rattled around the rim and finally dropped in, but after what seemed like an eternity.
“It wasn’t the prettiest but that’s what I’d call a shooter’s bounce. The shot was good and it was a big play,” said Harper, who finished the game with nine points and played a career-high 32 minutes.
Georgia Tech briefly retook the lead on a basket with 2:10 to play by freshman 7-footer Luke Schenscher, who was playing for the first time since Nov. 28 as he’s been out with a foot injury that had Georgia Tech pondering a possible redshirt.
Virginia, however, regained the lead after Travis Watson bulled his way to a rebound and then a layup with 1:30 left that gave UVa a 64-63 advantage.
“When you have to get that big rebound down the stretch, you have to get it,” said Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt. “I think it was Watson who got the rebound and put it back in.”
Two minutes later, Harper made another “big play” when he scooped up a pass from Chris Williams off the floor and raced the length of the court to give UVa a 66-63 lead with 1:12 left. Virginia would never trail again as Brown grabbed a key rebound and made 1 of 2 from the line with 15 seconds remaining to give UVa a 67-65 lead. Then, Chris Williams added two more free throws after he rebounded a game-tying driving layup by Georgia Tech’s Tony Akins that harmlessly glanced off the rim.
“All I know is that we came in here and fought. It was ugly but we got a win,” said Roger Mason Jr., who scored 12 points but is still hampered by a dislocated right shoulder suffered last week against Wake Forest. “They [the Yellow Jackets] had our number so they could say whatever they wanted but that’s not happening anymore.”
Brown, who scored 16 points against Florida State, played 24 minutes in the game and did not start the first or second halves as he still remains behind sophomore J.C. Mathis in Gillen’s pecking order. Brown entered the game with 13:55 remaining in the first half and promptly scored eight points the rest of the half.
Brown then did not enter the game until 15:12 left in the second half when Mathis, who finished with two points and four rebounds, departed the game for good. Brown scored 12 points in that final span including two baskets that tied the game, another that brought his team within one and a free-throw that gave Virginia a one-point lead in the final seconds.
“Tonight it was just a matter of pounding it inside,” said the 6-foot-9 Brown, who nailed three 3-pointers against Florida State. “Tonight was about posting up strong down low, scoring down low and getting rebounds.”
Watson had 10 points and 10 rebounds for Virginia — his 31st career double-double — while Chris Williams had 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists.
Clarence Moore and Ed Nelson each had 15 to lead the Jackets while Tony Akins, the Jackets’ leading scorer (16.6 ppg) and a UVa killer in the past, finished with just two points on 1-for-8 shooting as he was constantly harassed by Harper and fellow freshman Keith Jenifer, UVa’s starting freshman, all game.
“Tony Akins is one of the best players in ACC and to hold him to just two points is outstanding,”
Virginia returns to action against VMI on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at University Hall.

UVa tickets. The Virginia Athletic Ticket Office has announced that 500 tickets for both home men’s basketball games against VMI on Thursday (Jan. 24) and Clemson on Feb. 10 at University Hall will go on sale today at 9 a.m. Tickets may be purchased at the Bryant Hall Ticket Office at Scott Stadium or by calling 1-800-542-8821 or 434-924-8821. VMI tickets are $8, while Clemson tickets are $15. In addition, a limited number of tickets for the Georgia Tech game Feb. 23 will go on sale Feb. 11. Those tickets will be $15.
For all three games, tickets previously held have now become available. As announced earlier, there will be no public sale of tickets for games with Maryland (Jan. 31), North Carolina (Feb. 12), or Duke (Feb. 28).

When Elton Brown announced he was coming to Virginia, his high school basketball coach guaranteed that the Warwick wide body would raise some eyebrows around the ACC immediately. He wasn’t wrong.
Brown, a hulkish 6-foot-9, 265-pound post player has lived up to all of Coach Ben Moore’s promises. Moore didn’t just think Brown might play well, he guaranteed that he would become an impact player. He guaranteed that Brown would score down on the block against anybody in the ACC.
Tuesday night, with the Cavaliers fighting from behind all night, taking wobbly Georgia Tech’s best and perhaps last desperate shot, Brown played a big role in Virginia coming back to wreck the Yellow Jackets, 69-65. Taking advantage of Tech’s lack of size, depth and experience in the paint, Brown turned in the best performance of the season with career highs of 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Combine that with his last outing, a 16-point, four-rebound performance against Florida State (including hitting all three of his 3-point attempts), Brown has the Wahoo nation pushing for the power forward to start ahead of sophomore J.C. Mathis.
While Coach Pete Gillen has great appreciation for Brown’s contributions, he is steadfast in his belief that Mathis should keep the starting job. That wouldn’t hold up under a popular vote, but neither did electing a president, and Virginia’s basketball program isn’t a democracy.
“We’ll consider [starting Brown] but I think we’re going to stay with our same lineup,” said Gillen after escaping Tech with UVa’s first win in Atlanta since 1995. “J.C. does a lot of things that go unnoticed, like interior defense and screening.
“Certainly, Elton has been playing great and that has to be in the mix,” said Gillen. “The last couple of games, against [Darius] Songaila and Nigel Dixon, [Mathis] guarded the post and did a great job. But we needed scoring tonight and Elton certainly gives us that.”
With that in mind, Mathis took a seat with 15 minutes to play in the game and did not return. Up to that moment, Mathis produced two points and four rebounds, had two turnovers, one block and an assist in 15 minutes of time as UVa struggled to overcome another slow start.
During the final 15 minutes of the game, Brown scored 11 of Virginia’s 30 points, including a free throw that kept the Cavs ahead 67-65 with 15 seconds to play, following a key rebound of a Chris Williams’ missed layup.
After Brown’s free throw, Tech’s Tony Akins missed a short jumper, allowing Williams to ice the Cavaliers’ 13th victory of the season and tying them for third in the ACC with a 4-2 mark with a four-game winning streak.
“I don’t think there’s anybody who wouldn’t want to start,” said Brown, who obviously understands his role on the team. “I’m supposed to bring energy and rebounds off the bench.”
The 3-pointers and all the rest are just icing on the cake, things that Ben Moore never talked much about. At first glance, Brown might not impress some fans. He’s not the kind of guy who is going to dazzle coaches with his athleticism. He can barely jump over the Sunday paper. But he knows his way to the basket the way muggers know the way to Central Park.
For a freshman to walk into such a hostile environment as Brown did and walk out with his kind of numbers was dazzling.
“I thought he was capable of doing it,” said Travis Watson, who pushed the freshman in practice every day. “He finished, got rebounds and put himself in position to score. This was the type of game we needed from him. If he does that every night, it’s going to be some long nights for our opponents.”
Brown doesn’t do it the fancy way. He’s like a bull down in the lane, with opposing players waving red capes between him and his destination.
“I just wanted to help any way I could,” said Brown. “That’s why I came to Virginia, to step up in big games.”
He owes a lot of his improvement to Watson, who has taken him under his wing and gives him tips about what mistakes to avoid and things to watch out for in ACC play.
“He’s always running the floor so fast in practice and I have to guard him every step of the way,” said Brown, who will never be mistaken for a speed merchant. “I’ve got to get back on defense and if he gets the ball down low, he’s always to the hoop. So, it’s hard to stay with him all the time.”
But that’s just part of the routine. Watson, one of the ACC’s best rebounders, expects a lot from the freshman.
“Travis tells me that if he doesn’t get the rebound, that I had better get it,” said Brown. “I’m trying to step up and help us have a strong frontcourt.”
Roger Mason Jr., said he is pleased to see Brown’s game continue to progress as such a hot pace. Raining 3-pointers on Florida State was one thing, but getting big rebounds and scoring inside in games such as the comeback against Tech was what he was brought to UVa to do.
“It’s nice to see results from all the extra work that Elton is putting in,” said Mason.
What extra work?
Brown has dropped some weight, worked on his conditioning by working extra on the treadmill after practice, by working extra in the weightroom to make himself stronger and more durable against the big uglies who loom in the paint in the wars of the ACC.
“I told him that as a freshman who is expected to produce that he can’t just do regular stuff, that he has to be better than that and the only way to do that is to work harder that everybody else,” said Mason.
The work is paying dividends for Brown, the frontcourt and UVa’s win-loss record.
While there is evidence there to support the drive for Brown to start and get significant playing time, Pete’s the boss. It’s his team. It’s his decision. Until then, Brown and his supporters are going to have to be content not with who starts, but with who finishes.

Parade taps P.A.'s star linebacker as All-American
The Virginian-Pilot
© January 23, 2002

The honors continue to pour in for Princess Anne linebacker Kai Parham, who was named to Parade magazine's 39th annual All-America High School Football Team.

Parham is the first South Hampton Roads player to make Parade's All-America football team since current Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress of Green Run made it in both 1995 and 1996.

The only other South Hampton Roads players to make Parade's team are Aaron Sparrow of Wilson in 1990, Matt Darby of Green Run in 1987, D.J. Dozier of Kempsville in 1983, Larry Stewart of Wilson in 1975 and Robert Powell of Wilson in 1971.

In his senior season, Parham had 152 tackles, 19 sacks, 14 tackles for a loss, five interceptions and six fumble recoveries.

He was named first-team all-state on both the coaches' team and the Associated Press team.

He was first-team All-Tidewater and All-Beach District as a sophomore, junior and senior.

Parham remains one the most highly sought recruits in the country, and he has narrowed his many scholarship offers to Tennessee and Virginia.

He visited Tennessee the weekend of Jan. 11 and was at Virginia this past weekend.

``With Tennessee, I really like the caliber of football they play and the atmosphere there,'' Parham said. ``But Virginia was also nice. I like the people there, the coaches and the education they offer.

``I'm just going to think about it a little longer. I may wait until the signing date (Feb. 6) to decide.''

Recruiters project Parham as a weakside defensive end in college, and he is regarded as the nation's No. 1 prospect at that position.

Other Virginians on this year's Parade All-America team are Warwick quarterback Marcus Vick, Heritage running back Michael Johnson and Hylton linebacker Ahmad Brooks.

Elton Brown and Jermaine Harper help lead the Cavaliers to their first win in Atlanta since 1995.

ATLANTA - Virginia couldn't win in Atlanta. Georgia Tech couldn't win anywhere, at least in the ACC. Something had to give Tuesday night at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

Elton Brown, a freshman with little sense for the recent history of the series, was the difference for seventh-ranked UVa as it rallied for its fourth straight victory, 69-65.

Brown came off the bench to hit nine of 11 shots from the field and finished with career highs of 20 points and 10 rebounds. Brown has 36 points in 41 minutes over the last two games, including a 91-74 victory Sunday against Florida State.

"I tell him every day, 'You've got to be a threat,'" said junior center Travis Watson, who had 10 points and 10 rebounds for his 31st career double-double, second behind Ralph Sampson in UVa history. "He takes a lot of pressure off of me."

In the absence of injured senior Adam Hall, UVa (13-2, 4-2) used four freshmen in its eight-man rotation and Brown wasn't alone in impacting the game Tuesday night. Virginia never led until freshman guard Jermaine Harper hit a 3-pointer to make it 62-61 with 3:12 remaining.

After the teams traded baskets, Harper took an outlet pass from Chris Williams and raced the length of the floor to give the Cavaliers their first three-point lead, 66-63, with 1:12 left. Harper, pressed into extended service when point guard Keith Jenifer got into foul trouble and eventually fouled out, had nine points in a season-high 32 minutes.

Virginia had lost three games to Georgia Tech last season - no other team defeated the Cavaliers more than once - and had not won in Atlanta since 1995. Tech had won nine of the previous 10 games in the series and 20 of the last 26.

The Cavaliers had talked about ending the streak; yet, after controlling the opening tap, they fell behind 8-0 before taking a shot. Coach Pete Gillen called his first timeout after one minute, 30 seconds - quick by even his standards.

It didn't take long for the Cavaliers to tie the score at 15-15, one of seven ties in the game, but Georgia Tech went on a 10-0 spurt to make it 33-23 and give cause to Gillen's timeout. UVa has trailed by 11, seven and 10 points in the first half of its last three games.

"I write 'War and Peace' on the blackboard before the game; I tell them, 'Do this and do that,' and obviously it doesn't make a damn bit [of difference],'" Gillen said. "They don't listen to me. I'm not going to give a postgame talk anymore. I'm going to give a postgame talk for pregame."

Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt is searching for answers, too. The Yellow Jackets (7-12, 0-6) have lost seven of their last eight games, including a 92-87 home loss to then-No.4 Maryland.

"I'm definitely proud of them," Hewitt said. "But, in the end, one of the things that's been bugging us is our rebounding and our inability to keep people from getting second shots late in the game. The reality is, we didn't do what we needed to do to close the game out.'"

Virginia, which outrebounded Florida State 22-7 in the second half Sunday, had a 20-11 advantage in the second half Tuesday. That, and 55.6-percent shooting from the field in the second half, helped offset 19 turnovers.

None of the rebounds was bigger than a tip controlled by Watson after misses by Roger Mason Jr. and Williams with the Cavaliers down 63-62. Watson ducked under 7-foot freshman Luke Schenscher for a layup that gave Virginia the lead for good at 64-63.

"To be honest with you, I didn't even know Georgia Tech had a 7-footer," Watson said. "We only had one day to get ready for them."

It was the first appearance since Nov.28 for Schenscher, who suffered a broken foot against Wisconsin in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge but declined Hewitt's offer to take a hardship appeal.

Freshman Ed Nelson had 15 points to share scoring honors for Tech, but senior Tony Akins was 1-for-8 from the field, missing a layup in traffic that could have tied the score with four seconds left.

VIRGINIA 69 GA. TECH 65

ATLANTA - For the first time in what seemed an eternity, the Virginia Cavaliers left this city with smiles on their faces.

Freshman reserves Elton Brown and Jermaine Harper helped U.Va., which had dropped seven straight to Georgia Tech in the capital of Georgia, avoid more heartbreak last night. The 6-9, 265-pound Brown totaled 20 points and 10 rebounds - both career highs - and the 6-3 Harper scored five points in the final 3:09 to lift the seventh-ranked Cavaliers to a 69-65 victory before 6,287 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

"We don't win this game tonight without those two," said junior guard Roger Mason Jr., who was hampered by his injured right shoulder and scored only 12 points, nearly seven below his average.

In part because of starting point guard Keith Jenifer's foul problems, Harper played 32 minutes - 11 more than his previous career high. He contributed nine points and helped shut down Cav killer Tony Akins, who missed 7 of 8 field-goal attempts and scored only two points.

"He did a very, very good job," Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt said of Harper's defensive effort.

U.Va. hadn't won in Atlanta since Feb. 22, 1995. Brown was 11 then, and Harper 13.

"Nah, I don't remember that win," Brown said with a smile.

He won't soon forget this one. Two nights after he went 3 for 3 from 3-point range and scored 16 points, Brown made 9 of 10 shots from inside the arc (9 of 11 overall). The Cavaliers' starting power for- ward, sophomore J.C. Mathis, had four rebounds, two points and two turnovers in 15 minutes. Mathis sat the final 15 minutes and 12 seconds.

Brown played a career-best 24 minutes and didn't squander his opportunity.

"He's physical, and he does take a lot of pressure off me," said junior center Travis Watson (10 points, 10 rebounds), who posted his ACC-leading 10th double-double of the season.

Georgia Tech (0-6, 7-12) dropped its fifth straight game. U.Va. (4-2, 13-2) stretched its winning streak to four games and moved into a tie for third in the ACC with N.C. State (4-2, 14-4). The Cavaliers' record after 15 games is their best since 1982-83.

"We're thrilled with the victory," fourth-year coach Pete Gillen said, "and to have the freshmen come up and make such big plays makes it even more special."

Harper might have made the biggest play. His 3-pointer from the top of the key hit the rim and bounced in and out and then back in to give Virginia its first lead, 62-61, with 3:09 left.

"In my mind I was just thinking, 'Go in, go in, go in,'" Harper said.

After the Yellow Jackets regained the lead, Mason missed a 3-pointer, but senior forward Chris Williams (19 points, nine boards, five assists) came down with the rebound. Williams missed a follow attempt, but Watson pulled down his third offensive rebound and then scored on a textbook up-and-under move.

Tech's Marvin Lewis misfired at the other end, and after a scramble for the rebound, Williams, on the floor, came up with the ball and tossed it out to Harper.

"I just took it coast to coast," said Harper, whose driving layup gave U.Va. a 66-63 lead with 1:10 left.

Georgia Tech again sliced its deficit to one, and U.Va. again grabbed a decisive offensive rebound. This time it was Brown, who pulled down a miss by Williams and was fouled on the put-back attempt with 15.8 seconds left..

Brown bricked his first free throw then settled down and made his second for a 67-65 lead.

"The second shot, I just took my time and said, 'We need this win,'" he said.

The Jackets had one last chance, but Akins' contested scoop shot with 4 seconds left didn't drop, and Williams came up with the rebound. He was fouled with 1.9 seconds remaining and hit both ends of a one-and-one to close the scoring.

Virginia, which plays host to Virginia Military Institute tomorrow night, shot 55.6 percent from the floor in the second half and 47.4 percent overall. It also continued its torrid free-throw shooting, hitting 13 of 16 from the line. Equally important, the Cavs played terrific defense, holding the Yellow Jackets to 38.2-percent accuracy from the floor.

"Our players just wouldn't give in," Gillen said.

The University of Virginia football team might not open with Florida State next season after all.

Athletic Director Craig Littlepage said yesterday that U.Va. is interested in adding a 13th game to its 2002 schedule, which the Atlantic Coast Conference released last week. The Cavaliers hope to play it in August at Scott Stadium, where they already have six games scheduled for 2002.

"It'd be a nice way to give us a buffer," Littlepage said, going into the Aug. 31 game at Florida State. A week later, U.Va. plays host to South Carolina, which like FSU is coming off a bowl victory.

The Cavaliers finished 5-7 in 2001, their first season under coach Al Groh.

Division I-A teams are allowed to play 12 regular-season games in 2002. They may play 13 if one is a "preseason" game, such as the Eddie Robinson Classic, in which U.Va. lost to Wisconsin in the 2001 opener.

Because Virginia played in a preseason game last season, it would need a waiver from the NCAA to play in another one in 2002, Littlepage said. Teams generally are limited to one appearance every four seasons in such games.

Littlepage said he's not sure which team U.Va. would play if a 13th game is added. "We're real early in this," he said. "We're just starting putting the pieces together."

The matter is likely to be resolved soon. Virginia hopes to mail out season-ticket applications for 2002 in the next week or so, Littlepage said.

By Ray Glier
Special to The Washington Post
Wednesday, January 23, 2002; Page D03

ATLANTA, Jan. 22 -- The most important thing about Virginia's 69-65 victory here tonight wasn't breaking the misery of a seven-game road losing streak to Georgia Tech. It was finding two freshmen the program might be able to trust the rest of the season.

First-year forward Elton Brown scored 20 points and had 10 rebounds and freshman point guard Jermaine Harper scored five key points down the stretch as No. 7 Virginia improved to 13-2 overall and 4-2 in the ACC.

"Simple, we don't win without those two," said Roger Mason Jr., Virginia's leading scorer at 18.6 points per game who tied a season low with 12 points. "Coach [Pete Gillen] has said it since the beginning of the season: 'We need something from the freshmen.' Tonight we got it. That's the way it has to be the rest of the season."

Gillen was pleased with Brown's play tonight and seemed almost ready to insert him into the starting lineup in place of sophomore J.C. Mathis. Brown, a 6-foot-9 force inside, made 9 of 11 shots in 24 minutes; Mathis received just 15 minutes of playing time.

"We'll consider [starting Brown], but I think we'll stick with our starting lineup," Gillen said. "Certainly, Elton has been playing great, but that's got to be in the mix, yes. We needed scoring tonight and Elton certainly gives us that."

Harper made just 3 of 9 shots, but he had only two turnovers in 32 minutes against Georgia Tech's constant full-court pressure. Harper also made two of the game's biggest baskets down the stretch.

Virginia was trailing 61-59 when Harper was left open at the top of the key as Georgia Tech rushed to double-team Mason. The 6-3 Harper, who is averaging 5.1 points, floated a three-point shot that hit the front of the rim and dropped through to give Virginia its first lead, 62-61, with 3 minutes 9 seconds to play. "Shooter's touch," Harper said with a smile.

Tech regained the lead, but Virginia center Travis Watson took it back for good with an offensive rebound and basket to make it 64-63 with 1:30 to play. After a Georgia Tech miss, Harper went nearly the length of the court for a fast break layup, and it was 66-63 with 1:12 to play.

Virginia led 67-65 when the Yellow Jackets cleared the middle of the court on their last possession for point guard Tony Akins. Akins drove the lane with four seconds remaining but missed an off-balance chance and Chris Williams rebounded for Virginia. Williams made two free throws to seal the win.

While the freshmen were key in the victory, the Cavaliers' defensive scheme on Akins was just as vital. Gillen had his team run a mini-trap on Akins, who was averaging 16.6 points mostly by shooting three-pointers coming off screens by Georgia Tech's big men. If Akins tried to use a screen from center Ed Nelson to get loose for a three-point shot, Virginia big men Brown or Travis Watson would jump out and try and squeeze Akins with Harper, the Virginia point guard.

Akins shot 1 of 8 and had just two points. He missed all four of his three-pointers and his poor shooting was a big reason Georgia Tech made just 38 percent.

"We just tried to keep the ball away from him," Gillen said. "Once we scored we tried to deny him the ball full-court and sometimes put two guys on him. We know he can beat us; he's beat us many times in the past. He's the key to their team so we just tried to wear him down."

The freshmen and the defense helped trump a disjointed performance on offense for the Cavaliers. Virginia committed 19 turnovers and Mason made just 4 of 12 shots.

No. 7 UVa wakes up, ends six-year slump at Georgia Tech
By Steve Argeris
The News & Advance
ATLANTA - In a city where so many Virginia dreams have died, the No. 7 Cavaliers tossed and turned through a rough night and woke up just in time, surging past Georgia Tech in the final three minutes for a 69-65 victory.

Fittingly, it was a pair of freshmen, unfamiliar with Virginia's drought along Peachtree Street, who were most responsible for the Cavaliers exorcising a six-year demon here, compensating for 19 turnovers and long lulls on offense.

Power forward Elton Brown scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, both career highs, in 20 minutes, making a stronger case for starting in lieu of sophomore J.C. Mathis, who sat with his arms folded for the final 15 minutes after a 2-point, 2-turnover performance helped by 4 rebounds. It was Brown's second consecutive strong performance, coming on the heels of a 16-point effort against Florida State that included three 3-pointers. This was a more conventional effort: 9 of 11 from the field, mostly put-backs and layups.

Guard Jermaine Harper came up with the 3-pointer that gave the Cavaliers their first lead of the game, 62-61, with 3:09 remaining, and dashed coast-to-coast for a layup two minutes later that put Virginia ahead 66-63 heading into the final minute. Harper scored 9 points and played 32 minutes, by far his career high, as senior Adam Hall missed his third game due to a foot injury and freshman point guard Keith Jenifer fouled out with 7 minutes to go. Harper assumed Hall's defensive stopper duties with a vengeance, limiting Tony Akins, the Yellow Jackets' leading scorer at 16.6 points per game, to a season-low 2 points.

"We are thrilled with the victory," Virginia coach Pete Gillen said. "And to have freshmen come up and make so many big plays makes it even more special."

Virginia (13-2, 4-2), which moved into a tie for third place in the Atlantic Coast Conference with N.C. State, had not won in Atlanta since 1995, a span of six straight regular season games and a first-round exit in last year's ACC Tournament at the Georgia Dome. That was also courtesy of the Yellow Jackets (7-12, 0-6), who beat the Cavaliers three times last season. Recently, they all were at crucial times of the year: the 1999 loss ended an upstart NIT bid, the 2000 game helped keep them out of the NCAA Tournament and the 2001 losses helped contribute to the lowered NCAA seeding.

Then throw in four straight football defeats, including the dramatic, last-second 1998 losses to Georgia Tech and Georgia in the Peach Bowl. And the Cavaliers barely made it Tuesday. Ahead 67-65 with 15 seconds left, Akins drove the lane and missed a runner; the ball bounced around before Chris Williams recovered; he was immediately fouled and made both free throws to seal the game. Williams finished with 10 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists.

Virginia had played from behind for almost the entire game. The Cavaliers went down 8-0 before taking their first shot; both halves opened with three consecutive turnovers. Georgia Tech built a 33-23 lead late in the first half, but Virginia closed the gap over the final four minutes and trailed just 35-31 at halftime.

Just as the Cavaliers were unable to recover until the game's final stages, the Yellow Jackets were never able to pull away despite long lulls in Virginia's play. Tech got 15 points from Ed Nelson and Clarence Moore, and Elder scored 14, but talented sophomore Marvin Lewis was limited to 7 points and Akins was all but neutralized, contributing 7 assists and 3 turnovers.

Most of the responsibility for covering Akins fell to Harper, who aggressively shaded Akins all over the court, limiting his touches and all but preventing him from taking an open 3-point shot (he missed all four he attempted). Akins scored 19 and 16 points in his previous two games against Virginia.

"Tony Akins is a great player, one of the best in the ACC, and to hold him to two points is outstanding," Gillen said. "I know that he has hurt us many times in the past. … We wanted to try and wear him down. We felt like he is the key to their team and if we could wear him down, we would have a chance."

And Brown was effective inside, particularly when paired with center Travis Watson (of Brookneal), who had 10 points and 10 rebounds for his 31st career double-double. While Mason struggled from outside (1-for-7 on 3-pointers) and tied his season low with 12 points, Brown was dominant inside, pouncing on every loose ball around the basket and exhibiting the touch of his five previous games scoring in double figures. He also had by far his best rebounding game, showing what a dangerous inside tandem he and Watson could become.

Not even Virginia can help Jackets
Mark Bradley - Staff
Wednesday, January 23, 2002

When it's getting near February and you haven't yet won in the high-falutin' ACC, a fog of urgency descends. Given that every conference game is beamed up and down the Eastern Seaboard by some network or another, this is a bad league to be bad in. Lose a bunch in Conference USA and maybe nobody notices. Lose a slew in the high-falutin' ACC and the whole wired world sees you flail.

For Georgia Tech, hope arrived Tuesday in a curious form. The nation's No. 7 team was in town, and ordinarily the nation's No. 7 team is a formidable assemblage. But the nation's No. 7 team this week is Virginia, and Virginia turns to jelly at the sight of Tech.

Tech had won 20 of the past 26 meetings. Last season the Cavs split with Duke and Maryland and North Carolina. Against the more modest Jackets, Virginia was 0-3.

This isn't as inexplicable as it sounds. Just as styles make prizefights, a dearth of style undoes a college basketball game. Virginia, which never has much size, gives you a ton of motion to no clear effect. Tech, which had Alvin Jones last season and saw the 7-footer Luke Schenscher return for this game, gives you purpose with its motion. Both teams run and trap and hoist treys and take pride in their defense, and in the end what dooms Virginia is that Tech has a dollop of creativity.

Tony Akins had an aggregate 35 points in Tech's last two victories over the Cavs. This time Akins, a senior, would be matched against Keith Jenifer, a freshman. That in and of itself gave the Jackets hope. Then the game began and hope turned to sweet reality. Jenifer threw a bad pass on the game's first possession, lost the ball on the second. Akins had three assists in the first 86 seconds, by which time his team led 8-0. So much for game plans.

"I'm not going to give any more pregame speeches," said Pete Gillen, the Virginia coach. "I'm just going to say, 'Just do it.' Or, 'Let's shake these dudes.' I write 'War and Peace' on the blackboard every night, and they don't listen to me."

Dragged down by that frightful start, the nation's No. 7 team needed 37 minutes just to nose in front of an opponent that has won once since Christmas. Tech led by 10 points in the first half and by six in the second, and with 2:10 left the angular Schenscher sank a hook to put the Jackets ahead 63-62. But Travis Watson scored on a follow to give the Cavs a skinny lead, and a minute later the freshman Elton Brown --- not to be confused with Elton Brand, though there's a definite blocky resemblance --- took another offensive rebound, got fouled and made a free throw.

"It was our inability to stop people from getting second shots," Paul Hewitt said. "[Brown] got the rebound and we didn't."

Fifteen seconds left, Virginia by two. Akins took the ball up high and flashed down the lane. His runner hung on the rim before dropping off. It was Akins' seventh miss in eight shots, and it meant the Tech hex had been broken. Give Virginia some measure of credit: It defended Akins nicely.

"He's beaten us many times in the past," Gillen said. "We wanted to stop his threes. If he drove by us and beat us, so be it."

Thus did another chance go ungrasped by the straining Jackets. "This will pass," Hewitt said. "I know it will." But just when, he wouldn't (or couldn't) say. This weekend, which brings a trip to Wake Forest, looks unlikely, but next week Florida State and North Carolina play here. If Tech hasn't won in the ACC by Super Bowl Sunday, it could be a long and barren winter.

Estero's Hand changes mind about Virginia, may land at UF