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Cavs Play With Purpose, Pull Out Win
Virginia 61, North Carolina State 58
By Jim Reedy
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, February 10, 2003; Page D09

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Feb. 9 -- This time last week, the Virginia Cavaliers were starting to feel a bit desperate. They had lost four of their past six games, a slide that dropped them to 12-7 and dealt a damaging blow to their hopes for an NCAA tournament bid.

"There was a tremendous sense of urgency," junior guard Todd Billet said.

That urgency was on display this afternoon as the Cavaliers -- three days removed from a win at eighth-ranked Maryland -- continued to revive their flagging fortunes with a 61-58 win over recent nemesis North Carolina State.

Virginia (14-7, 5-4 ACC) pushed its conference record above .500 for the first time this season and ended a streak of five straight losses to the Wolfpack with a sterling defensive performance. North Carolina State shot 42 percent, including 4 for 20 on three-pointers, failed to score on its last four possessions and finished with the fewest points any ACC team has scored against Virginia in four years.

Despite its offensive problems, the Wolfpack (12-7, 5-4) led 58-57 after Julius Hodge sliced past two defenders for a fast-break basket with 2 minutes 56 seconds remaining. For most of the second half, Hodge came through whenever his team needed him, but the Cavaliers clamped down on him in the closing minutes, forcing him into two turnovers and keeping him from getting a good look at a three-pointer on the game's final play.

Senior Travis Watson and freshman Derrick Byars each made a pair of free throws to put the Cavaliers up by three, but North Carolina State had one last chance when Majestic Mapp missed a short jumper with 34 seconds left.

The Wolfpack called a timeout with 12 seconds left, then gave the ball to Hodge (15 points) to try to tie the game. Chased by Jason Clark with help from Byars, Hodge struggled to find an opening while dribbling frantically around the perimeter. He rose up in desperation just before the buzzer, but Byars was right on him and the shot rattled out.

"Virginia did a good job defending us," Wolfpack Coach Herb Sendek said. "The defender was draped on Julius. He was a little bit off-balance. Still, with his athletic ability, he was able to get it up on the rim, but it certainly wasn't an open look. . . . A couple of guys earlier in the possession could have had a more open look, but we worked it and that's what we ended up with."

Watson led Virginia with 15 points and 14 rebounds, including nine in the second half, and a career-high four steals. His efforts on the defensive boards down the stretch ensured the Wolfpack, which grabbed nine offensive rebounds in the first half, would not get any second chances after missed shots. Watson committed seven turnovers, but just one in the last 17½ minutes.

With the win, the Cavaliers improved to 10-0 at home this season and proved, they said, that Thursday's 86-78 win at Maryland wasn't a fluke.

"A lot of teams could have just kind of lived off that win, [beating] an eighth-ranked team on the road, and been a little complacent today," said Billet, who had seven assists and no turnovers this afternoon. "We didn't play our best game today, but the effort was just tremendous, especially down the stretch, getting the stops. That's just a great sign for the team for the rest of the season."

Said Gillen: "This was crucial for a lot of reasons. N.C. State had beaten us five in a row and they're certainly an upper-echelon team in the ACC and [it was important] to show that we weren't just one-game wonders against Maryland."

Cavaliers Notes: N.C. State's 58 points were the fewest for an ACC team against Virginia since the Cavaliers' 64-54 win over Wake Forest in February 1999 . . .

After visiting his old teammates at Thursday's game at Maryland, former Cavalier Roger Mason Jr. was in attendance again today. "I'm 2-0, man," Mason said with a smile. He is on the Chicago Bulls' injured list . . .

Billet organized a bone marrow registration and blood drive that will be held Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Cage in Onesty Hall, the building next to University Hall.

 

 

Virginia buckles down for victory
Hodge can't convert last-second 3-pointer
By Andrew Joyner  / Daily Progress staff writer
February 10, 2003
 

By winning twice in the last three days in ways both unexpected and uncharacteristic, Virginia just may have turned its season around.
The Cavaliers followed their surprising win at Maryland on Thursday with a 61-58 victory over N.C. State on Sunday at University Hall in which a strong defensive effort spurred them to victory.
Virginia (14-7, 5-4 ACC) held N.C. State without a field goal over the final 2:56 and forced Julius Hodge into an off-balance, leaning 3-pointer that bounded away from the rim as time expired. The victory ended a five-game losing streak to N.C. State (12-7, 5-4 ACC) and improved UVa to 10-0 at U-Hall.
Virginia itself struggled down the stretch offensively as it scored just one field goal in the final 4:23 but benefited from a pair of successfully converted one-and-one opportunities for the stripe by both Travis Watson and Derrick Byars in the final 2:41.
“Today was a hard-fought game for both teams. I thought our defense was very good against a very good offensive team. … Our offensive execution wasn’t very good but our defense was solid,” said Virginia coach Pete Gillen, whose team moved into a tie for fourth place in the ACC along with N.C. State and Georgia Tech.
Watson had 15 points and 14 rebounds for Virginia — his 49th career double-double — and with those 14 caroms now has 1,005 rebounds in his career. He is only the second UVa player to grab 1,000 or more boards. Ralph Sampson is Virginia’s career leader with 1,511.
Elton Brown had 12 points and Todd Billet, despite a 4 for 12 (0-6 on treys) shooting night, finished with eight points, seven assists and zero turnovers.
Virginia shot just 43.6 percent from the field and misfired on all but four of its 17 attempts from behind the arc. Yet, in something that is unaccustomed, especially at U-Hall, the Cavaliers were able to notch the win despite not playing near their best.
“This game was big. They beat us five times in a row. … Today we didn’t have a good offense. We only had two guys in double figures. We didn’t have the offense, but we had the defense,” Brown said. “We certainly haven’t won often when we’ve played like this. That shows we are maturing and about to become a good team.”
Hodge led N.C. State with 15, 12 of which came in the final 20 minutes. Scooter Sherrill and Levi Watkins each added 10 for the Wolfpack, which shot 41.8 percent for the game.
“The ball didn’t go in the basket and some circumstances didn’t go in our favor,” said N.C. State coach Herb Sendek.
N.C. State led 30-29 at intermission as it overcame poor shooting and a hot Virginia start. The Wolfpack shot 34.4 percent in the first half and saw Virginia jump out to a 14-4 advantage after the game’s first six minutes. The Cavaliers cooled down and the Wolfpack pushed back into it and then grabbed the lead on a steal and dunk by Clifford Crawford with a minute remaining before the half.
The Wolfpack then were able to open a nine-point advantage, 48-39, on a 3-pointer by Hodge with 13:17 left. It was just Hodge’s second successful 3-pointer in ACC road games this season. He is now 2 of 24 from behind the arc in ACC road contests.
Virginia, however, responded by scoring the game’s next seven points, five of which came courtesy of a layup and 3-pointer by Majestic Mapp. N.C. State and Hodge specifically were able to keep Virginia from seizing the lead. Hodge scored six of his team’s next 10 points to give the Wolfpack a 56-52 advantage with 5:46 left.
Then, Jermaine Harper who hit two clutch treys down the stretch against Maryland, converted a 3 from the right corner to cut the lead to 56-55 with 5:07 remaining.
“He’s not afraid. He’s a tough guy. That was a big 3. It was a giant shot,” Gillen said.
After a Hodge miss, Virginia grabbed its first lead of the second half when Brown converted a basket in traffic with 4:24 left. Hodge then made a leaner while being fouled but couldn’t convert the 3-point play, and left the game 58-57 in favor of the Wolfpack. On the Hodge miss, Watson grabbed the rebound but was shoved in the process by N.C. State’s Marcus Melvin. The teams briefly came close to a scuffle. While nothing escalated, the play did seem to spur the Virginia players and crowd.
“You can’t come into our house and do that. That really agitated us and we were like, ‘We really have to win this one now,’” Brown said.
Added Watson: “I just felt somebody push me. I wasn’t really sure who did it.”
Watson then went to the line and converted the two free throws to give Virginia the lead for good, 59-58, with 2:41 remaining.
“I wasn’t nervous. I just went to the line and knocked them down,” said Watson, who also drew a key charge on Hodge with 2:25 left.
Byars, a 64-percent shooter entering the game, then went to the line with 1:56 left and also converted his two attempts.
“Free throws win games and today we made some big ones,” Gillen said.
That gave Virginia a 64-61 lead but the game was not over. Far from it. Virginia was not able to put away the game on its final two possessions and N.C. State called a timeout with 12.4 seconds left to setup its final play.
N.C. State got the ball to Hodge but he was covered closely by UVa’s Jason Clark. As Hodge made a push across the top of the arc, Byars switched over on Hodge. Hodge then attempted a leaning, awkward-looking shot to tie. The shot rimmed out and the game’s officials did clarify after the game that the shot was a 3-pointer though Hodge was inside the arc when he actually released the ball. It would have counted had it gone down.
“Virginia did a good job defending us. Their defender was draped all over Julius and he was off balance,” Sendek said.
Added Hodge: “I thought it was in. I thought it was going down.”
It didn’t and Virginia had the second of two wins that have seemingly redirected its season.
“There comes a point in the season when your backs our against the wall and you just have to perform. We’ve done that the last two games,” Billet said.

 

 

Cavaliers use good defense to get key win
By Jerry Ratcliffe  / Daily Progress sports editor
February 10, 2003

 

Pete Gillen has preached the virtues of playing good defense to his basketball team for two years and often wondered if anyone was really listening.
Last year, the coach admitted that the reason the team didn’t buy into a more dedicated attitude toward defense was his fault, that he didn’t emphasize it as strongly as he could have. This year, the team practices defensive issues more than anything else.
Finally, maybe this team really gets it.
The Cavaliers depended heavily on defense Sunday to overcome a nine-point deficit and defeat visiting N.C. State, 61-58, in a key ACC contest.
State led 56-55 with five minutes to play, but the Cavaliers played lockdown defense from that point on. The Wolfpack scored only once on their following 10 possessions as the Cavs stormed to their fourth win in the last five games.
“I thought our defense was very good against a very good offensive team,” said Gillen. “They spread you out and carve you up. Our offensive execution wasn’t very good but our defense was solid.”
So solid, in fact, that State’s 58 points were the fewest scored against Virginia by an ACC opponent since a contest against a deliberate Wake Forest team in 1999.
When it counts
Even on the Wolfpack’s last stand, a determined effort to get Julius Hodge a 3-point shot that could have tied the game and sent it into overtime, Virginia wasn’t about to give the State shooter an open look. Jason Clark was all over Hodge on the perimeter and forced him from the left side of the arc to the right, where freshman Derrick Byars picked him up and smothered him before Hodge put up an off-balance, last-second desperation shot that didn’t find the mark.
The win improved UVa to 5-4 in the league, which tied the Cavs with State for fourth place with only one less win than first-place Wake Forest.
In a season where the ACC is so balanced, winning at home is a must, which means defense is a must. After Sunday’s play, the top six teams in the conference were a combined 26-1 at home. The only loss was Virginia’s win at 8th-ranked Maryland last Thursday.
A confident bunch
That victory worked wonders for the Cavaliers, who are still riding the confidence of coming from behind to win. While they did it with offense in College Park, they did it with defense at U-Hall.
“When shots aren’t going down, you’ve got to rely on something,” said UVa backup point guard Majestic Mapp, who has clocked 21 minutes of playing time in each of the last two wins. “We’ve been playing some good defense.
“Defense is hard to buy into because we have a lot of guys who can score, but defense wins ball games and we’re realizing that now,” said Mapp.
State, which averages more 3-point field goals made than any team in the conference (almost nine a game), was held to 4 of 20 from bonusphere and to less than 42 percent for the game.
The Wolfpack was the sixth straight opponent to shoot less
than 50 percent from the field against Virginia, a stark contrast to last season’s collapse when 10 of the Cavs’ last 13 foes shot 50 percent or better.
“A month ago we weren’t mature enough to pull out a game like this,” said Mapp, who senses this team really coming together. “The more and more we play, the more comfortable we get with each other. It has taken some time for our team to mature but we’re meshing together.”
If the Cavaliers continue to perform and watch their confidence bloom, they can look back to the Maryland game as perhaps a turning point.
“If you had to circle a day, I would circle that one,” said Mapp. “No one in the ACC is able to go on the road and win a game.”
Gillen has thought all along that his team just needed time to get to know one another. New faces dot the roster. They’ve been brought in from the West Coast, the Northeast, the Midwest, the Mississippi delta and the hospital’s recovery room in Mapp’s case, and expected to play like they were joined at the hip.
For some teams the process takes a little longer.
“We’re still a young team … we’re still learning,” said Gillen. “If we defend, rebound and share the ball, we’ll be a good team down the stretch.”
State presented some difficult matchups for the Cavaliers. Using essentially four perimeter players, all good athletes and a little bigger than UVa’s guards and small forwards, the Wolfpack were able to post-up and get good looks at the basket even against good defense.
On the other end of the floor, State also had reverse size advantage, which particularly bothered UVa’s top gun, Todd Billet (4 for 12, 0 for 6 on treys), who has struggled in both outings against the Wolfpack. But Billet wisely focused on the responsibility of a point guard by dishing out seven assists (that’s 15 in the last two wins).
Together, Billet and Mapp combined for 10 assists and NO turnovers for the entire game.
With such momentum, who knows what Virginia can do as it prepares for the next challenge in Chapel Hill on Wednesday.
“We’re trying to do something new and forget the old,” said senior big man Travis Watson, who stepped up big for 15 points and 14 rebounds (including the 1,000th of his career). “Maryland was a huge win, but it’s what you do afterward that matters. Today was an ugly win but it was important. The Maryland game showed that we can play together as a team. We didn’t want to take a step backward today.”

 

 

Credit Cavs' defense for pulling this out

Published February 10 2003

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Dare I say it? Dare I risk your ridicule and scorn? Dare I tread where few risk treading?

Oh, why not? As the nation begins to celebrate the bicentennial of Lewis & Clark's expedition, let's stretch the boundaries of basketball analysis.

Virginia has revived its season with defense.

Nutty idea, ain't it? The Cavaliers rate last among the ACC's nine teams in scoring defense. They allowed 86 points - at home -to mighty Long Island. Heaven knows how many LeBron James or Diana Taurasi might ring up on them.

But there Virginia was on Sunday, blanketing North Carolina State 61-58 at University Hall. This three days after stifling Maryland during the second half of an 86-78 upset on the Terrapins' home court.

The victories not only represent some of the best defense of coach Pete Gillen's tenure, but also elevate the Cavaliers (14-7, 5-4 in the ACC) into legitimate NCAA tournament contention.

"Coach Gillen told us that our offense was fine," forward Elton Brown said. "Our defense needed to improve."

Gee, there's a revelation seasons in the making. But maybe, just maybe, the stubborn Cavaliers are starting to understand two elementary concepts: Stopping the other guys matters; defense is more about effort than talent.

Without defense Sunday, Virginia loses. Todd Billet missed all six of his 3-point attempts, and Travis Watson committed seven turnovers to derail the offense. The Cavaliers trailed 48-39 with 13 minutes remaining, and 56-52 with 5:45 left.

But N.C. State scored just two points on its final 10 possessions. Sure, the Wolfpack helped, as Clifford Crawford missed the front end of a bonus free throw and committed a turnover. But this was more about Virginia's defense than State's offense.

The two pivotal plays both involved Julius Hodge, the Wolfpack's top scorer. With 1:41 left, Watson drew a charge on Hodge, nullifying an acrobatic layup; at the horn, Derrick Byars forced Hodge into an awkward 3-pointer that rimmed out.

"I was praying it was a charge," Watson said, "because I usually don't get that call."

The call was borderline, but official Larry Rose wasted no time making his decision, and the Wolfpack offered no protests.

There was nothing borderline about the final sequence. Jason Clark, Watson and Byars all managed to impair Hodge's vision.

"His teammates didn't want to shoot," Watson said. "We knew they'd go to him."

Not sure why. After Sunday's 1-for-7 effort, Hodge is 2-of-24 from beyond the arc in ACC road games.

"Virginia did a good job defending us," State coach Herb Sendek said. "The defender was draped on Julius, and we were kind of scattered."

Sendek isn't fibbing. The last time the Cavaliers allowed fewer points against an ACC opponent was in a 64-54 victory against Wake Forest in 1999, a stretch of 67 conference games.

Zone and man-to-man: It was all good Sunday. Clark, a 6-foot-8 sophomore, was especially effective against the 6-6 Hodge. Most of Hodge's 15 points came with Clark on the bench, which begs the question: Why did he play only 20 minutes, six in the second half?

The answer is offense. Clark provides little. His three points Sunday matched the fewest of any Cavalier who hit the floor. But Clark brought immeasurable energy to the defensive end, much like he did at Maryland on Thursday, when the Cavaliers limited the Terps to 36.4-percent second-half shooting and held them without a field goal for 18 consecutive possessions.

"That shows how much we've matured," Clark said of Virginia's improvement.

"I thought our defense was very good," Gillen said.

Strange but true.

 

 

Two-dimensional win for Virginia
U.Va. picks up its defense to beat N.C. State
By Dave Johnson
Daily Press
Published February 10, 2003

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- It was an ugly, grind-it-out win, the kind Virginia fans became used to seeing in the days of Terry Holland and Jeff Jones. Not up-tempo, defense-optional Pete Gillen.

Still hungover from their Thursday night victory at Maryland - and the four-hour bus ride home through the snow - the Cavaliers slugged it out for a 61-58 victory over N.C. State Sunday afternoon in University Hall. Virginia limited the Wolfpack to 41.8-percent shooting and gave up its second-fewest points in a conference game since Gillen's arrival in 1998-99.

The Cavaliers (14-7, 5-4) trailed by nine at the game's 13-minute mark but, as they did three nights earlier, pulled it out with defense and free-throw shooting down the stretch. After taking a 58-57 lead with 2:56 left, State (12-7, 5-4) went scoreless on its final four possessions as U.Va. went 4-of-4 from the foul line.

"Defense wins championships - you saw that with the Buccaneers in the Super Bowl," said Virginia forward Jason Clark, who helped force Wolfpack scoring leader Julius Hodge into a tough 3-point attempt at the buzzer that bounced off the rim. "We did a good job of that today."

Particularly late. After Travis Watson made two free throws to give the Cavaliers a 59-58 lead at 2:41, Hodge tried to slip a pass to guard Clifford Crawford under the basket. Derrick Byars deflected it, and the ball bounced off Crawford before landing out of bounds. Byars went 2-for-2 at the other end to bump Virginia's lead to three with 1:56 left.

Then, Hodge drove around Clark and appeared to have a clear path to the goal. But Watson stepped over and drew contact. It was one of those bang-bang calls that probably could have gone either way, but Larry Rose called the charge to wave off Hodge's layup.

"I just knew he was going to the basket with his head down to try to get the bucket," Watson said. "So when I slid over, I just put my hands up and took the contact. I didn't see that the basket went in. I'm just glad he called the charge instead of a foul on me."

Still, the Wolfpack had a chance to send the game into overtime on its final possession. Forward Marcus Melvin missed a 3-pointer from right wing, but Hodge rebounded with 18 seconds left. After a timeout, Hodge took the inbounds pass and tried to separate himself from Clark.

Hodge got a couple of screens, circled past the top of the key and took off from just past the 3-point arc. But his desperation attempt wouldn't fall.

Though State was only 4-of-19 from the arc at that point, and though the strategy bit him in the end a year ago against Georgia Tech, Gillen instructed his players to foul.

"They don't always listen, you know what I mean?" Gillen said. "I just didn't want them to shoot a 3."

In breaking State's five-game hex, the Cavaliers find themselves in the middle of the conference standings. With Georgia Tech's upset of Maryland Sunday, six teams are within two games of each other.

For Virginia, Sunday was another step forward after a nightmarish stretch that included losses to Clemson and Virginia Tech. And maybe as important, the Cavs followed up Thursday night's stunner at Maryland with a gritty - if not pretty - effort.

"We didn't have two great practices this week," point guard Majestic Mapp said. "We were tired when we got home at 4 in the morning. It was tough to practice this week. And we didn't play our best basketball offensively, but we played great defensively. And that got us the win."
 

 

 

Cavs end Wolfpack hex
Virginia notches second straight comeback victory
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Feb 10, 2003
CHARLOTTESVILLE - Julius Hodge's last-second 3-point attempt bounced off the rim, and the near-capacity crowd inside University Hall finally could exhale.

Three days after winning at eighth-ranked Maryland, their first ACC road victory of the season, the Cavaliers exorcised another demon. U.Va.'s 61-58 victory yesterday before 8,120 fans ended a five-game losing streak to N.C. State. No other ACC team has a current winning streak of more than two games over Virginia.

"Sometimes teams have your number," Cavaliers coach Pete Gillen said, "and they had ours for a while. They're a tough team to play."

U.Va. outscored the Wolfpack 9-2 in the final 5:04 to seal its second straight comeback victory. Against defending NCAA champion Maryland, Virginia trailed by 12 in the second half. N.C. State led 48-39 yesterday after Hodge's 3-pointer with 13:14 left. The Cavaliers' comeback started with a 3-pointer from reserve guard Jermaine Harper, one of their heroes against Maryland.

"He's not afraid," Gillen said. "That was a giant shot."

The 58 points were the fewest Virginia (5-4, 14-7) has allowed against an ACC foe since beating Wake Forest 64-54 on Feb. 3, 1999, a string of 67 games. The Wolfpack (5-4, 12-7) shot 41.8 percent from the floor yesterday, as did Maryland on Thursday.

Against the Terrapins, Virginia made 12 of 22 3-point attempts. It made only 4 of 17 from beyond the arc yesterday - junior guard Todd Billet, a noted marksman, was 0 for 6 - but inspired defense helped U.Va. survive.

"We didn't play our best game today," said Billet (seven assists, no turnovers), "but the effort was just tremendous, particularly our defense down the stretch."

The Cavaliers, 9 for 11 from the line, took the lead for good, 59-58, when Watson made both ends of a one-and-one with 2:41 left. After a State turnover, Byars got fouled and went to the line with 1:56 remaining. Like Watson, Byars converted both ends, and the Cavaliers led 61-58.

"If I've said it once, I've said it a million times: Free throws win games," Gillen said, "and we made some big ones down the stretch."

State committed two turnovers in the final 1:41 - the first when official Larry Rose called Hodge for charging into Watson on a layup that would have made it 61-60. Then, at the 1:04 mark, Pack guard Clifford Crawford threw the ball away.

Still, N.C. State had other chances. Junior forward Marcus Melvin missed a 3-point attempt with 18 seconds left, but Hodge grabbed the offensive rebound, and the Wolfpack called a timeout with 12.4 seconds to set up a final shot.

The ball made its way to Hodge (15 points), who's 2 for 24 from 3-point range in ACC road games. Virginia sophomore forward Jason Clark began the play on the 6-6 sophomore, but teammate Derrick Byars switched to Hodge after a pick slowed Clark.

Gillen, not wanting to yield a last-second trey, had instructed his players to foul if an opportunity presented itself. None of them did, but the Cavaliers managed to disrupt State's possession, which ended with Hodge's off-balance attempt against Byars' outstretched arms an instant before the horn sounded.

His team "really didn't" get the shot it wanted, Wolfpack coach Herb Sendek said. "Virginia did a good job defending us. It certainly wasn't an open look."

Watson, a 6-8, 255-pound senior, posted the 49th double-double of his career, totaling 15 points and 14 rebounds. He matched his career high with seven turnovers but tied his career mark with four steals.

Sophomore center Elton Brown committed two turnovers late in the game but finished with 12 points off the bench. For the Pack, guard Scooter Sherrill and reserve forward Levi Watkins scored 10 points each.

"This was a crucial for a lot of reasons," Gillen said. "N.C. State had beaten us five in a row . . . and to show that we weren't just one-game wonders against Maryland."

 

 

U.Va. displays survival skills to save season
BOB LIPPER
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST Feb 10, 2003
Contact Bob Lipper at (804) 649-6555 or e-mail blipper@timesdispatch.com

CHARLOTTESVILLE They've rescued the season. That's basically what it comes down to. They're no worldbeaters, mind you. They've got more flaws than Ozzy Osbourne before he goes to makeup. They'll always be in danger of their next 18-point setback. But Virginia's Cavaliers are alive and ticking now, and they can see an NCAA bracket at the end of the tunnel. More than that at this juncture, they cannot ask.

They squeezed past N.C. State 61-58 yesterday, and it was sweaty work. They got a double-double from Travis Watson but not a single 3-pointer from Todd Billet. They took care of the ball - well, everyone this side of Watson, anyhow - but gave away 12 offensive rebounds to the ACC's weakest entry in that category. They sank clutch free throws but wasted two money-time possessions with shots that had dumb bunny written all over them.

They weren't electric, in other words. They didn't soar. They didn't ignite a 16-point run as they did at Maryland last Thursday. They didn't throw down re sounding dunks. They didn't run the break like the'86 Celtics.

But they found a way. And maybe found out a little more about themselves.

"It tells us we played defense," said U.Va. guard Majestic Mapp. "N.C. State is the type of team - they're going to hold the ball all game long. We just tried to stop them from running their offense. Hopefully, we showed can play some defense today."

Defense hadn't been Virginia's specialty against the Pack. State had claimed five straight in the series. Its lowest shooting percentage during that span was 46.9. It drained 33 of 61 treys in three wins over the Cavs last season. It was 9 for 20 from that distance during a 12-point decision Jan. 5 in Raleigh.

It was 4 for 20 yesterday and leveled off at 41.8 percent all told. Jason Clark cooled off Julius Hodge early. Travis Watson kept Marcus Melvin in check. Hodge got it going after the break. Melvin never did. Truth is, it was appropriate U.Va. didn't win this baby on a jumper at the buzzer. Instead, it withstood a frazzled State possession and Hodge's leaning 3-pointer under pressure - Derrick Byars provided the obstacle a switch - and took a major step forward.

"Our offensive execution wasn't very good today, frankly," U.Va. coach Pete Gillen said. "But our defense was good enough to get a victory."

This is a crew that was being sized for life jackets nine days ago. The Cavs had just been demolished at Georgia Tech. They were 12-7 overall, 3-4 in the ACC and facing a precarious moment. Their next outing was at Maryland. Good team. Hostile building. Rugged assignment.

Lose to the Terps and maintain their punching-bag role against State, and these Cavaliers could start waving their NCAA possibilities goodbye. But they beat the odds and handled Maryland - the lone home loss by one of the ACC's top six this season - and ended their skid against the Pack.

"I believe we're back on track to getting where we want to be," Byars said.

Even though it seemed this bunch needed a guide dog to get there.

"It's a long season," Billet said. "Just look across the country. Every team in the country is going to face some kind of adversity during the year. You look at Kentucky, Florida, Alabama. It's how you react to that. I think we've really reacted well to our two- or three-game window."

They now have a chance to open it wider. They play next at North Carolina. Winnable game. Then they return home to face Duke and Clemson. Winnable games. Go on a run now, and U.Va. cements its NCAA credentials and moves up a rung or two in the muddled ACC. Being terrific isn't the issue in this league. Being resourceful is.

"There comes a time in the season when your backs are against the wall and you have to perform," Billet said.

That's what the Cavs basically did last week. They've regained control of their season. We'll see where they take it from here.
 

 

 

Wolfpack lets one slip away
Virginia takes advantage of N.C. State's late collapse

By Bill Cole
JOURNAL REPORTER
 

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.

N.C. State cracked in the noise, heat and pressure of University Hall yesterday and allowed Virginia to come back and slip away with a 61-58 victory.

Leading 56-52, N.C. State could not survive the final 5:44. It finished the game missing five of its last six shots, committing four turnovers and missing a one-and-one at the foul line. Then, on a confused play, a last-gasp 3-point shot at the buzzer by Julius Hodge - with Derrick Byars defending - bounced off the rim.

No overtime. No extra chance. Just another loss on the ACC road, this one in front of a jubilant crowd of 8,120 that stood for most of the final three minutes and transferred its energy to Virginia.

"I thought it was dropping," Hodge said of his desperation shot. "I felt like I got a clean look. My defender didn't want to get a foul, so he let me get it up. And I thought it was down ... but it didn't go."

The missed 3-pointer was Hodge's sixth in seven attempts. In five ACC road games this season he is two of 24 on 3-point shots.

Virginia improved to 14-7 overall and 5-4 in the ACC and avenged a 12-point shellacking by N.C. State in Raleigh five weeks ago. N.C. State fell to 12-7 and 5-4.

N.C. State's point total was the least Virginia has allowed an ACC opponent to score since Feb. 3, 1999, in a 64-54 win over Wake Forest here. That span covered 63 ACC games, counting Virginia's ACC tournament games.

Hodge led N.C. State with 15 points and six turnovers. Travis Watson led Virginia with 15 points, 14 rebounds and seven turnovers.

N.C. State fought hard in wiping out Virginia's 10-point lead in the first half to take a 30-29 halftime lead and to go up by nine points twice in the second half. Only Hodge scored for N.C. State in the final 9:38, though, after a layup by Clifford Crawford had produced a 50-46 lead.

Hodge scored N.C. State's final eight points. Battling against a determined Virginia defense, N.C. State scored only one basket after taking the 56-52 lead. Almost every play broke down in some form or fashion.

Watson made two free throws for Virginia with 2:41 left that wiped out N.C. State's last lead, a 58-57 margin that came on Hodge's layup. In addition to sending Virginia ahead, the free throws threw N.C. State into a panic, according to Todd Billet, a Virginia guard.

"The crowd got into it, and we turned up the intensity defensively," Billet said. "We just kept getting some stops."

Hodge had two of the final four turnovers. The most costly came with 1:41 left, with Virginia ahead by the 61-58 count. Hodge drove past defender Jason Clark on the left baseline and collided with Watson, shot and made the basket, and was called for charging.

Watson was knocked to the floor in the lane, and he lay there laughing. Hodge was on the floor also, holding his head in his hands in disbelief.

"I thought it was an 'and one' foul," Hodge said, his way of saying that he thought the basket was good and Watson should have been called for blocking to add a free throw. "There was no explanation (from official Larry Rose). I guess he thought it was the right call."

N.C. State's last chance came after Hodge blocked Majestic Mapp's shot in the lane. Marcus Melvin missed a 3-point shot from the right wing with 17 seconds left, but Hodge snared the rebound. Byars reached in and knocked the ball loose, but Hodge quickly regained possession just to the right of the free-throw line and called timeout with 12.4 seconds left.

Coach Herb Sendek of N.C. State set up the final play. Hodge and Levi Watkins both said they assumed the ball would be taken out of bounds on the right side in front of N.C. State's bench because of where Hodge had called time. They could not say for sure that any of the three officials said the ball would be out on the side, however.

Sendek thought the ball would be out on the side also, and his called play began from there. The officials started the play on the right baseline, however. N.C. State had one timeout out left, but Sendek did not use it to call another play that was designed for an inbounds pass from the baseline once he saw the difference in location.

"We kind of anticipated the ball was going to be taken out on the sideline," Watkins said. "When we got out there we was taking it out underneath (the basket), so it kind of wasn't the play we drew up. It got us out of whack."

Crawford's inbounds pass started a frantic run behind the 3-point line for a shot. Hodge had the ball on the right but passed to Watkins on the left side of the top of the key. Watkins was momentarily open but did not shoot.

"I wanted to get a good shot, and I was kind of far back," he said. "I passed it to Julius, and he took it around and tried to get a better shot."

Hodge worked to the right side, made sure his feet were behind the line and fired a fraction of a second before the game-ending buzzer. The miss brought to an end the longest 12 seconds of Billet's life.

"I didn't think it was going to go in because it was such a tough shot," Billet said.

 

 

Unforced errors aside, Cavs serve ace
Travis Watson has a career-high seven turnovers but also gets 15 points and 14 rebounds for UVa.
By DOUG DOUGHTY
THE ROANOKE TIMES

CHARLOTTESVILLE - In the tennis parlance Pete Gillen likes to employ, Virginia held serve Sunday at University Hall, but there was no shortage of break points.
The last one came as time expired, when Julius Hodge's lunging 3-pointer went in and out of the basket and the Cavaliers escaped with a 61-58 win over North Carolina State.

"We wanted to prove we weren't one-game wonders," said Gillen, whose team was coming off an 86-78 victory over eighth-ranked Maryland. "This was one of our best victories of the year. Sometimes, teams have your number."

That was a clear reference to a State team that had won five straight games against UVa, including three last year, when the Wolfpack was as responsible as anybody for keeping the Cavaliers out of the NCAA Tournament.

An early-arriving, noisy crowd helped the Cavaliers (14-7, 5-4 ACC) break out to a 14-4 lead, but the Wolfpack (12-7, 5-4) kept its composure and took a 30-29 halftime lead.

UVa has won eight games this season in which it has trailed in the second half, but State had all the momentum when it opened a 48-39 lead with less than 13 minutes left.

After going 12-of-22 on 3-pointers against Maryland, Virginia was shooting blanks from long range. Moreover, inside threat Travis Watson couldn't hang on to the ball, finishing with a career-high seven turnovers.

Watson was on the bench as the Wolfpack pulled away. However, when he returned with 12:15 remaining, it was all business.

Watson had nine rebounds in the final 11:46 and totaled 15 points and 14 rebounds. A career 63.3-percent free-throw shooter, he made both ends of a one-and-one to give the Cavaliers their first lead of the second half at 59-58 with 2:41 left.

A second one-and-one by freshman Derrick Byars with 1:56 left gave UVa some breathing room as State went scoreless on its last three possessions.

"If I've said it once," said Gillen, "I've said it a million times: Free throws win ballgames."

So does defense. In a late-game stand reminiscent of the Maryland game, UVa held the Wolfpack without a field goal in the final 2:56. State scored eight points in the final 9 1/2 minutes, all by Hodge, who had a team-high 15 points for the 'Pack.

"We definitely didn't play our best today," Byars said, "but, in our man-to-man defense, we strapped it on."

The clock nearly ran out before State's last shot, although that wasn't Gillen's plan. After a Wolfpack timeout with 12.4 seconds left, he urged his players to commit a foul.

"A couple of guys reached," he said, "but I think they got a little nervous. We actually practice fouling, but they froze a little bit. I've seen a million games where teams tied it. The 3-pointer isn't that hard a shot."

That was easy for him to say. The Cavaliers got a big 3-pointer from Jermaine Harper, receiving increased minutes with the indefinite suspension of Keith Jenifer, but Todd Billet was 0-for-6 from behind the arc as he continued to run the offense for long stretches.

"I think there's a 100 percent correlation there," Gillen said of the drop-off in Billet's 3-point accuracy.

On the other hand, Billet had seven assists and no turnovers, giving him 12 assists and one turnover in his last three halves. Majestic Mapp spelled him and had three assists and no turnovers in 21 minutes.

"He's got toughness, confidence and moxie," Gillen said of Mapp.

The Cavaliers improved to 11-0 at University Hall, where they are 4-0 in ACC play. In Gillen's eyes, that's "holding serve," but a loss Sunday would have offset the victory at Maryland.

"This game was crucial for a lot of reasons," he said.

 

 

Cavs rally to defeat Wolfpack
By ED MILLER, The Virginian-Pilot
© February 10, 2003

CHARLOTTESVILLE — It’s been a breakthrough week of sorts for the Virginia Cavaliers. On Thursday night, they picked up their first ACC road win of the season and first at Maryland in nine years.
On Sunday, at University Hall, Virginia broke though another mental barrier, beating North Carolina State for the first time in six tries, 61-58, in front of 8,120 fans.

''Sometimes teams have your number,’’ coach Pete Gillen said. ''And they had ours for quite a while.’’ Virginia (14-7, 5-4 ACC) had to rally from nine points down and sweat out a final 3-point attempt by the Wolfpack’s Julius Hodge to secure the win. Hodge’s leaning attempt at the buzzer rolled around and out. It was a frenzied attempt by the 6-6 Hodge, who had to shoot over the outstretched arms of 6-7 Derrick Byars. ''It certainly wasn’t an open look,’’ N.C. State coach Herb Sendek said. Actually, the shot shouldn’t have been taken. During a timeout preceding the final play, Gillen told his players to foul, rather than risk Hodge tying the game on a 3-pointer.

They didn’t. Afterward, no one could say why.

''We were supposed to foul,’’ forward Jason Clark said. ''I have no idea what happened.’’

Everyone in the building had to know Hodge would get the ball. Clark, who did a stellar job on Hodge in the first half, holding him to three points, knew better than anyone. After Hodge caught the ball, Clark kept pace with him as he began dribbling to the right. But Hodge ran Clark through two screens and broke free long enough to hoist the shot. Byars shifted over enough to contest it. The shot was N.C. State’s 20th 3-point attempt of the night. The Wolfpack made just four. Gillen called it one of his team’s better defensive efforts of the season.

The Cavaliers had to have it, because shooting certainly wasn’t going to carry them. They missed 8 of 9 3-point attempts in the first half, and 13 of 17 for the game.

With perimeter shots not dropping, Virginia searched for the right combinations offensively. Gillen went with a big lineup. He tried a smaller lineup.

Late in the first half and early in the second, nothing worked. Virginia squandered an eight-point lead late in the half, and trailed by one at intermission. N.C. State pushed the lead to nine, 48-39, with 13:15 left. A 3-pointer by Majestic Mapp cut it to two, 48-46. But Virginia didn’t pull ahead until a power move and layup from Elton Brown made it 57-56 with 4:19 left. From there, the Cavaliers hit their free throws and made Hodge, the Wolfpack’s best player, work for everything he got. Clark, a 6-8 sophomore from Virginia Beach, did most of the work.

Hodge finished with 15, four below his average, on 6-of-15 shooting. Virginia’s Travis Watson also had 15, and 14 rebounds. Watson also had seven turnovers, coming dangerously close to a dubious triple double.

But while Watson had trouble handling the ball, Virginia’s guards didn’t. Mapp and Todd Billet combined for 10 assists, without a turnover.

The win pulled Virginia even with N.C. State (12-7, 5-4) and Georgia Tech in the ACC standings. It also proved that Thursday’s upset at Maryland wasn’t a ''one-hit wonder,’’ Gillen said. ''This was a crucial win,’’ he said. ''For a lot of reasons.’’
 

 

 

New urgency adds vigor to U.Va.’s game
By BOB MOLINARO, The Virginian-Pilot
© February 10, 2003

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Maybe this is the season Pete Gillen’s team turns its reputation on its head. By playing with urgency through February and into March.
By showing more than a passing interest in defense.

By remaining a focused, cohesive unit. Maybe this is the season, in other words, that Virginia’s basketball team gets stronger as the season goes along. That would be surprising, not to mention quite unlike what we’ve seen of Gillen teams in the past.

The teams that have yet to win an ACC tournament game. Or an NCAA game. Or an NIT game.

Last season, U.Va. looked like a team that lost interest while dropping 10 of its final 13 games. That team spent December near the top of the rankings and then grew progressively worse and disinterested as the season went along. That team probably would not have beaten North Carolina State on Sunday afternoon. This season’s Cavaliers found a way, prevailing 61-58 to nudge its ACC record above the .500 mark. The latest victory follows U.Va.’s unexpected triumph at Maryland. Suddenly, the spin from University Hall is that the Cavaliers are a changed group with an improved attitude and a greater appreciation for defense than the Tampa Bay Bucs.

The recent success, ''shows how much we’ve matured this season,’’ said sophomore forward Jason Clark of Virginia Beach.

It was just three games ago that a listless U.Va. team lost by 20 at Georgia Tech. Three games before that, the Cavaliers fell by 18 at Virginia Tech. Maturity is important. Defense, too. But as guard Todd Billet said Sunday, ''You have to have a short memory in college basketball to be a successful team.’’

Forgotten, then, are the road debacles. They don’t mean a thing anymore to U.Va., a team with a new self image. A team, Clark said, that is ''coming together.’’

Clark did his part Sunday, using his mobility, large frame and long arms to lock up the Wolfpack’s Julius Hodge in the first half. State’s leading scorer managed only three points in the first 20 minutes. Then, with Clark on the bench for most of the second half, Hodge added another 12.

''If coach puts me on the best player,’’ said Clark, ''I do what I have to do.’’

What’s the secret to playing good defense? somebody asked him. ''Determination,’’ said Clark. In the past, Gillen would have had an easier time selling ice to Eskimos than getting his teams to play bare-knuckles defense. Late-season determination may be a new concept to U.Va., but one worth trying.

''This year in the ACC is crazy,’’ said Clark. ''We really don’t know what’s going to happen in March.’’

In the meantime, there’s Wednesday’s date at North Carolina, a winnable game, even if it is away from home. Something else U.Va. has going for it besides its born-again belief in defense is only three more ACC road trips.

''You have to live game by game,’’ said a level-headed Billet. ''The team that’s most humble and goes about its work will win the conference.’’ Hearing the players talk about their new-found confidence, you had to remind yourself that U.Va. didn’t exactly dominate another ACC team that struggles on the road. That with under six minutes to go, the Cavaliers trailed by four points.

Last year’s team, in a February funk, might have caved. Sunday, U.Va. outscored State 9-2.

It does a team little good to peak in December and January. U.Va. has learned this the hard way. Maybe Gillen’s current team is saving its best for last.

After all, it’s a crazy year.

 

 

Pack falls after late skid

2-10-03
By ROB DANIELS, Staff Writer
News & Record

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- N.C. State had a great chance to exorcise whatever poltergeists seem to haunt visitors in ACC games these days. But instead of being a ghost-buster, it saw its hopes go bust Sunday afternoon.

After overcoming an early 10-point deficit and taking a nine-point second-half lead, the Wolfpack went scoreless over the final 2:56 and absorbed a 61-58 loss at Virginia when Julius Hodge's last-second 3-point attempt fell off.

The top six teams in the league standings are now 25-1 at home.

"They played their guts out today," coach Herb Sendek said of his players. "It's unfortunate that they weren't rewarded with a win because we have won some games in which we didn't play with the fortitude we played with today."

It was not pretty. Neither team scored in the final 1:56. Hodge, who had 12 of his 15 points in the second half, was the only Wolfpack player to score in the final 9:39.

The contestants combined to go 8-for-37 from the 3-point line.

The result is equally chaotic.

The Pack (5-4, 12-7), Cavaliers (5-4, 13-7 in Division I play) and Georgia Tech (5-4, 12-8) are even and one game behind second-place Maryland (6-3, 14-6). Let the mayhem continue.

Having seen a 48-39 dissipate, State briefly thought it had a chance to tie the game at 58 when Hodge drove the baseline, drew contact from Travis Watson and threw one in. Hodge thought it would be called a block, and Watson wouldn't have been shocked, either.

"I was praying it was a charge," Watson said, "because usually I never get one."

He got this one. No basket.

A flurry of turnovers and bad shots on both sides set up the last play. Hodge rebounded the miss of Marcus Melvin's 3-pointer and called time out inside the 3-point line with 12.4 seconds to play.

"We anticipated the ball was going to be taken out on the sideline," forward Levi Watkins said. "The play we had drawn up was all out of whack. We ran a secondary play. We got confused."

But official Duke Edsall said he never hinted a sideline in-bounds was forthcoming. Awarding the ball under the basket is protocol when time out is called inside the 3-point line, said Edsall, who added he held the ball on the baseline during the break to accentuate the point.

Hodge came off a screen that sought to free him from Jason Clark, the 6-foot-8 forward whose long arms were his biggest assets. The Cavaliers, Clark said, were supposed to foul to pre-empt a 3-point attempt. They didn't.

The ball eventually wound up in the hands of Watkins, who stood 30 feet away and wanted no part of such a heave. He and Hodge exchanged passes until Hodge had no choice but to lean into one against Derrick Byars.

"My defender didn't want to get a foul, so he let me get the shot up," Hodge said. "I thought it was down."

It fell off and the Cavaliers had held an ACC opponent to the lowest point total in 67 games over four years.

The Pack scored on seven straight possessions and eight of nine early in the second half to go up 48-39 on Hodge's 3-pointer from the right wing with 13:16. But a stretch of three turnovers in the next four trips proved costly, as Majestic Mapp, playing 21 minutes -- his longest stint in nearly three years -- hit a couple of shots to make it 48-46. Four times the Pack would repel the Cavs temporarily with clutch hoops, but it never got more than four points ahead.

Hodge gave his team a 58-57 lead on a drive with 2:56 left, but the Pack turned the ball over on its next three possessions. Watson, who finished with 15 points, 14 rebounds and seven turnovers, hit two free throws with 2:16 left and Byars followed with two of his own.

"This was another road game we should have won and we didn't," Hodge said. "We wanted to win the game. That was the progress we wanted."

 

 

Pack runs into roadblock
By AL FEATHERSTON : The Herald-Sun
afeatherston@heraldsun.com
Feb 9, 2003 : 8:16 pm ET

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- The magic that N.C. State has had in recent confrontations with Virginia deserted the Wolfpack on Sunday at University Hall.

The Pack had plenty of chances to steal a precious ACC road victory, but couldn’t make the one play or the one shot that might have finished the Cavaliers. It ended as N.C. State’s final offensive play broke down and a desperation 3-pointer by Julius Hodge spun out at the buzzer, giving Virginia a 61-58 victory — it’s first win over the Pack in their last six meetings.

"That was one intense game," Wolfpack coach Herb Sendek said. "It was just a fiercely competitive game. The guys today, they battled — both teams. Mistakes were made, shots were missed, but the effort level and the competitiveness were terrific."

Virginia (14-7, 5-4 ACC)and N.C. State (12-7, 5-4 ACC) share fourth place with Georgia Tech in the ACC. All three teams remain within one win of first-place Wake Forest.

"You have to live game-by-game this year," Virginia guard Todd Billet said. "It’s a long season. Everybody is going to face some adversity during the year, even teams like Kentucky, Florida and Alabama.

"It’s how you react to that that matters."

Virginia had reacted well to a stretch of five losses in eight games in late January. The Cavaliers bounced back to take a monumental road victory at Maryland on Thursday night and came out Sunday like they were going to blow visiting N.C. State back to Raleigh.

But with Virginia up 10 midway through the first half, the Pack began to claw its way back in the game. Junior Scooter Sherrill scored 10 points at the end of the first half and early in the second to help the Pack build an eight-point lead.

But that didn’t last either, as Majestic Mapp, returning to action after missing two years with a knee injury, came off the Virginia bench to ignite a comeback and awaken the crowd at University Hall.

Mapp’s fastbreak 3-pointer and a gorgeous drive and dish to Travis Watson brought Virginia back to within two points and set the stage for the closing drama.

"Mapp is a terrific player," Sendek said, noting that the Virginia point guard passed out three assists and had no turnovers in his 21 minutes of action.

So is Hodge, who was shut down for much of the game by Virginia defender Jason Clark. But with Virginia coming back and the crowd going nuts, the 6-6 sophomore put the Pack on his back and tried to drag his team over the finish line.

Hodge scored eight of his team-high 15 points in the final 8:14 — the only Wolfpack player to score after Crawford converted a backdoor layup with 9:38 to play.

"Virginia played tough defense," Hodge said. "They stepped up toward the end and made big plays. Our shots wouldn’t drop and we had some costly turnovers."

Indeed, after Hodge put N.C. State up 58-57 on a remarkable spinning layup, the Pack turned it over on three straight possessions.

One of those was a controversial charging call on Hodge. He drove past Clark and banked in a shot as he collided with Watson.

"I thought it was an ‘and-one,’ " he said, referring to a basket and free throw that could have been a three-point play. Instead, ref Larry Rose called the charge that gave Virginia the ball back with just over a minute left and a three-point lead.

But N.C. State got one final chance after Hodge blocked a driving shot by Mapp with about 20 seconds left. The Pack pushed the ball upcourt quickly and got Marcus Melvin a good 3-point look from right in front of the Wolfpack bench.

Melvin’s shot clanked off, but Hodge pulled down the rebound and called timeout with 12.4 seconds left.

That’s where the confusion began. Sendek drew up a play in the huddle that assumed that N.C. State would get a sidecourt throw-in. Instead, Crawford was forced to make the inbounds pass from the baseline.

"We got out of whack," Watkins said.

N.C. State had another timeout remaining, but didn’t use it. The ball moved around the perimeter, but nobody got a good look at the basket, except Watkins.

"I was kind of far back," he said, explaining his decision to pass up the open 30-footer.

"We did a great job on the perimeter," Billet said. "They almost didn’t get a shot off."

Virginia coach Pete Gillen had instructed his team to use a foul to prevent a 3-point try, but freshman Derrick Byars, who picked up Hodge on a switch, was determined not to foul.

"I was trying to keep a hand up and not foul him," he said.

With the final seconds ticking off, Hodge took the ball well out and drove toward the 3-point arc.

"Virginia was playing some tough defense," Hodge said. "Our play got busted and I just tried to make the shot. I got a clean look because my defender didn’t want to get a foul, so he left me get it up. I thought it was down."

Billet didn’t.

"I didn’t think it would go in, it was such a tough shot," he said. "At the same time, he makes a lot of shots like that."

Hodge didn’t make this one — it hit the rim as buzzer sounded and spun away, resulting in another near miss for the Pack on the road in the ACC.

"We can’t get down on ourselves. ... It was just another road game we should have won."

Of course, nobody’s winning many on the road in the ACC. Home teams are 32-8 at home — and the top six teams are an amazing 26-1 on their home floors.

NOTES — N.C. State returns home to meet Georgia Tech in the RBC Center on Wednesday night. Virginia also will be in the Triangle on Wednesday night for a game at North Carolina. ... The officiating crew confirmed after the game that Hodge’s last shot was a 3-pointer and was before the buzzer. ... N.C. State’s 58 points were the lowest Virginia has allowed against in 67 ACC games dating back to a Feb. 3, 1999, victory over Wake Forest. ... Hodge is 2 for 24 on 3-point shots in ACC road games ... Watson finished with 15 points and 14 rebounds — his 11th double-double this season. He also topped the 1,000-rebound mark for his career in this game. ... N.C. State still leads the series with Virginia 74-50.