J.R. too much for BC
Roanoke native J.R. Reynolds scores a season-high 28 points and Virginia grabs a big win over the 11th-ranked Eagles.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- When victory was assured Tuesday night, Virginia men's basketball coach Dave Leitao made a substitution with the obvious intent of allowing the University Hall crowd to give J.R. Reynolds a standing ovation.

As Reynolds approached the sideline, Leitao showed a lighter side that isn't always obvious to outsiders.

"He told me, 'I'm tired as heck,'" Leitao related, "and I just said, 'I'm giving you 38 seconds rest.'"

Reynolds deserved both the rest and the ovation on a night when he scored a season-high 28 points and the Cavaliers knocked off 11th-ranked Boston College, 72-58, at University Hall.

The Eagles (21-6 overall, 8-5 ACC) came south with a five-game winning streak and 10 victories in their last 11 games, but Virginia (14-10, 7-6) has been virtually unbeatable in its last season at University Hall.

UVa has won six straight games at U-Hall, with its only home losses to Florida State in overtime and Fordham when point guard Sean Singletary was sidelined.

Reynolds has been on a personal crusade since that Dec. 7 loss to Fordham, scoring in double figures in 18 consecutive games. He had 16 points in the first half Tuesday night, all in an 8:01 span.

That included a three-point play and three 3-pointers, the last one from at least three steps behind the arc.

That gave the Cavs a 31-13 lead, but his best was yet to come. With just over 1312 minutes remaining in the second half, Reynolds stole the ball from BC freshman Tyrese Rice and sprinted downcourt for a one-handed slam.

"One of the top-five dunks since I've been at UVa," backcourt partner Singletary said. "He was amazing."

Reynolds, a 6-foot-212 junior from Roanoke, has scored 972 points in his college career, but he has not been known for his dunking.

"I told my teammates, once I got a fast break, I was going to dunk it," said Reynolds, who landed on top of some UVa cheerleaders. "They always see me dunk in practice, but they never see me dunk in the game."

Reynolds and Singletary, who finished with 16 points, were UVa's only double-figure scorers.

"That's who [the Cavaliers] are," BC coach Al Skinner said. "That's nothing new."

Reynolds and Singletary had plenty of help from a supporting cast, including freshman Mamadi Diane, who was 3-for-4 on 3-pointers and had his best game in a month, in Leitao's estimation.

Sophomore center Tunji Soroye, who fouled out Saturday at Florida State with no points, no rebounds and no blocked shots, had six points, seven rebounds and two blocks against the Eagles.

"You don't want to take anything away from [Reynolds and Singletary]," Skinner said. "They've been pretty consistent. They've been working their tails off all year long. It's the role guys that are going to make the difference in wins and losses."

The Cavs also got 25 minutes out of another freshman, back-up post player Lauris Mikalauskas, who suffered a broken nose and concussion Saturday in UVa's 76-62 loss at Florida State.

Leitao did not receive medical permission to play Mikalauskas until Tuesday afternoon, when he was fitted for a mask.

"He thanked me after the game," Leitao said. "How about that? He thanked me for playing him."

It was the fourth game between BC and UVa, but the first as ACC brethren. UVa has won all four games, including a 1980 NIT game and a 1983 NCAA Regional.

"Right from the start, it was obvious that Virginia wanted the game," Skinner said. "I just think Virginia wanted the game more than we did."

 

Leitao shows true grit
Aaron McFarling

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- This was what caught Craig Littlepage's fancy when he watched all those videos of DePaul.

Energy. Grit. Team defense. Long stretches where nothing came easy for the opponents.

When the athletic director saw that, suddenly his hunch became a certainty. He knew he wanted Dave Leitao to be the next coach at Virginia.

Months later, Leitao's looking like one heckuva choice.

The coach's first season at UVa keeps getting better. On Tuesday night, the Cavaliers beat No. 11 Boston College 72-58 at University Hall by employing all the weapons Leitao had promised he'd use when he took this job.

The win pushed the Cavaliers, who were picked to finish last in the ACC, to a game above .500 in conference play with three to go.

They did it with J.R. Reynolds posting another big game, firing away from long distance en route to a season-high 28 points. They did it with Sean Singletary scoring in double figures for the 15th straight time.

They did it with guys such as Adrian Joseph and Tunji Soroye and Laurynas Mikalauskas and Mamadi Diane playing big roles.

Most of all, they did it with defense.

That's all Boston College coach Al Skinner could talk about after the game: UVa's defense. How 'bout that defense? Whew, that defense was something. Did I mention their defense?

And for good reason. BC tied its lowest scoring output of the season. The Eagles shot 35 percent from the field.

"Defensively as a team, they just did a great job," Skinner said.

UVa held Jared Dudley -- who scored 26 points against a defensively sound Virginia Tech club earlier this month -- to only six points.

Forward Craig Smith fared better, scoring a team-high 22, but not before he worked his tail off inside against Soroye, Mikalauskas and Jason Cain.

"We were tougher than a tough team," Leitao said.

The Cavaliers are the stingiest team in ACC play when it comes to points allowed. They were yielding only 68.8 points per conference game heading into the night.

That's a statistic any coach would love. But what that statistic does not show is all the times good defense can lead to easy offense.

The first 3-pointer Reynolds hit was made possible by a defensive stand. Mikalauskas blocked a Dudley jumper, leading to a fast break, where Reynolds promptly pulled up in the clear and canned it.

How many points does Reynolds finish with if he doesn't get that first open look? It's impossible to know for sure, of course, but when a rhythm player such as Reynolds starts bombing away with confidence, you can usually trace it to something.

Near the end of the first half, a Diane steal led to a Singletary layup. More easy points. More noise. More confidence.

Leitao's first run through the ACC has not been perfect.

The team has yet to pack the kind of toughness we saw Tuesday and take it on the road.

The Cavs are 1-5 in the ACC away from University Hall. But the more you watch Leitao, the more you get the feeling it will come.

Leitao scrapped the zone defense that was ineffective against Florida State last Saturday and went almost exclusively to man-to-man against BC.

On paper, that looks counter intuitive. After all, the Eagles are known for their post play, and zones are typically used to fight exactly that.

But just ask Skinner how that change worked out.

"They came after us," he said.

Somewhere, Littlepage must have been smiling. It's not happening on a tape anymore. It's all right here, on his floor, in front of his fans.

And it's looking better by the day.
 

Home rule a start for Cavs
David Teel
February 22 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- This is the start. Hold serve, protect your house, whatever street slang you prefer for winning at home, this is the first step toward building or rebuilding a college basketball program.

It's non-negotiable. Lose at home, fail to generate a buzz on campus, among fans and in the arena, and your cause is officially hopeless.

Virginia and first-year coach Dave Leitao are anything but hopeless.

Tuesday night they won their sixth consecutive home game, defeating 11th-ranked Boston College 72-58. Actually, the Cavaliers did much more than defeat the Eagles. The Cavs cuffed them around throughout, trailing only once at 7-5, and leading by at least eight points over the final 29 minutes and by double digits during the entire second half.

"We were tougher than a tough team," Leitao said.

"I thought the game was physical and we didn't respond to that," Boston College coach Al Skinner said.

How can that be? The Eagles' starting front line goes 260, 250 and 225 pounds, and all have football bodies. Four of BC's starting five are juniors or seniors.

How did Leitao's inexperienced and undersized bunch "outscrap" (Leitao's word) a physically superior team that had won 10 of its last 11, including roadies at North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest?

Guards J.R. Reynolds and Sean Singletary (44 points combined Tuesday) you've come to expect. It's the fringe players who make the difference for Virginia, most often, and typical of younger players, at home.

Take sophomore Tunji Soroye. In 11 minutes at Florida State on Saturday he contributed nary a point, rebound or blocked shot. He scratched in all three areas within the first three minutes Tuesday and finished with six points, seven boards and two blocks.

And freshman Mamadi Diane. He scored nine points, all on 3-pointers, his most productive game in more than a month.

And sophomore Adrian Joseph. He not only scored nine points, again all from beyond the arc, but also helped limit Jared Dudley to a season-low five points, nearly 12 below his average.

And, finally, freshman Lars Mikalauskas. He sustained a broken nose and concussion at Florida State, courtesy of an Alexander Johnson elbow, and wasn't cleared to play until Tuesday morning. Wearing a mask to protect his nose and discolored right eye, he contributed four points, four rebounds and two blocks.

"He's a guy who operates on emotion and grit," Leitao said.

Boston College (21-6, 8-5 ACC) was only the second ranked team to visit University Hall this season. The first, defending national champion North Carolina, left a 72-68 loser.

Indeed, Virginia is 11-2 at home. The Cavaliers fell to Florida State in overtime, disappointing but acceptable; they lost to Atlantic 10 also-ran Fordham, unacceptable despite the absence of top scorer Singletary (hip injury).

Given that home record, you'd figure Virginia a serious NCAA tournament contender. But the Cavaliers are 2-8 on the road, 1-5 in conference road games, with tests remaining at Clemson and North Carolina.

Win one or both and Virginia (14-10, 7-6 ACC) can start talking NCAA. Lose both and it's settle for the National Invitation Tournament, which still would be a victory for a program that lost five home games last season, four by double figures. This was the Cavaliers' penultimate game at U-Hall, a crumbling relic that no one should miss. Virginia closes the regular season here against Maryland and next season moves across the street to 15,000-seat John Paul Jones Arena.

That's where the Cavaliers could really establish home-court advantage. That's where Virginia could be nearly unbeatable, even against top-25 opposition, if fannies are in the seats.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Much of this season remains for a team with nary a senior among its top eight players.

Leitao understands that such inexperience is most vulnerable away from home, where conditions are unfriendly and unruly.

"We've got to continue to challenge ourselves to bring (this) mindset on the road," he said.

Later, Leitao asked the prevailing question: "Which team are you."
 

Eagles go south
BC taken down a notch by unranked Virginia
By Michael Vega, Globe Staff | February 22, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- There are only three games left on Boston College's regular-season schedule. There are only three more chances to improve its postseason seeding, not only for the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, where the top four seeds get a first-round bye, but also the NCAA Tournament.
Last night, however, BC squandered an opportunity to improve its postseason posture, absorbing a sobering 72-58 setback against unranked Virginia before a University Hall crowd of 7,959 that serenaded the 13th-ranked Eagles (21-6, 8-5) with chants of ''O-ver-ra-ted! O-ver-ra-ted!" with about 1 1/2 minutes left.

''We beat a very good team," said Virginia first-year coach Dave Leitao, a Northeastern basketball alum from New Bedford, Mass., whose Cavaliers rebounded from a 76-62 loss at Florida State Saturday night to defeat their second ranked opponent of the season (they toppled No. 24 North Carolina Jan. 19).

''Not only are they very good, but they were hot. I thought we beat them at the things they do very well. They are mentally and physically scrappy and I thought we outscrapped them to the loose balls, the 50-50 balls, especially setting the tone early."

BC coach Al Skinner, whose team was led by senior forward Craig Smith (22 points, 9 rebounds), wasn't about to argue the point.

''Right from the very beginning, it was clear that Virginia wanted the game," Skinner said. ''I just think Virginia wanted it much more than we did."

That much was evident when the Eagles, who were held to 35.5 percent shooting (8 for 23 in the second half; 19 for 54 overall), missed their first six field goal attempts. Virginia, meanwhile, came out with both barrels blazing, taking a 5-0 lead on Tunji Soroye's strong putback and Adrian Joseph's 3-pointer from the corner.

But it was the Virginia backcourt duo of J.R. Reynolds and Sean Singletary that wreaked the most havoc, combining for 44 points on 15-for-30 shooting, including 6 of 12 from the 3-point arc.

Reynolds led the way for the Cavaliers with a season-high 28 points on 9-for-15 shooting, including 4 of 7 treys, and seemed to break the game open when he scored all 16 of his first-half points in a 24-6 run that enabled Virginia to open up a whopping 18-point lead, 31-13.

''It was a game where Sean and especially J.R. were terrific," Leitao said. ''They made tough shots, they made open shots and, more importantly, they made plays."

Said BC senior guard Louis Hinnant, ''They were in their building and they fed off the energy. They hit some shots -- they hit a lot of shots. But tonight was an off-shooting night for us. We didn't shoot the ball particularly well, so those two things in combination added up to a loss."

It didn't help matters the Eagles got meager contributions from two of their go-to guys: junior fowards Sean Marshall (5 points) and Jared Dudley (season-low 6 points).

''I'm not making excuses for Jared, but he was a little under the weather tonight," Skinner said.

Freshman guard Tyrese Rice (10 points) provided BC with a glimmer of hope when he helped halve Virginia's 18-point lead to 31-22 with a 3-pointer. Then, after Singletary's transition basket made it 38-24, Rice followed an Akida McClain foul shot by knocking down a trey just before the halftime horn to pull BC within 10, 38-28.

''I thought Tyrese's three was big and gave us momentum," said Smith, who recorded his 1,000th career rebound with 8:31 left, enabling him to join Danya Abrams as the only players in BC history with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. ''But we came out sluggish in the second half."

Virginia's stout defense held BC to just three field goals in the first 8:14 of the second half.

After Reynolds turned a Rice unforced error into a resounding transition slam for a 50-34 lead, BC twice came back to pull within 12 (50-38 and 55-43). But each time Mamadi Diane, who scored all 9 of his points from the 3-point arc (3 of 4), was there to shut the door with a demoralizing trey.

''Some of their guys stepped up who aren't usually major contributors for them," Hinnant observed. ''They stepped up and hit some big shots."

The road only gets tougher for the Eagles, who travel to North Carolina State for a CBS-televised contest Saturday afternoon that could have huge implications for their seeding in the ACC Tournament.

''They kicked our butt at home," said Smith, referring to a 78-60 loss to the Wolfpack Jan. 10 at Conte Forum. ''So obviously we're in a situation where we've got to put everything into these last couple of games, because, obviously, we're fighting for a bye now and we've got to play like every game is our last."
 

Virginia torches No. 11 Boston College
Cavaliers led by as many as 18 points in the first half, maintained 10 point advantage in second half; Reynolds scores game-high 28 points in victory
Adrian Vigil, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

The postseason hopes of the Virginia Cavaliers were given a tremendous boost last night with a 72-58 win over No.11 Boston College (21-6, 8-5 ACC) in the penultimate game at University Hall. The win is the 10th at home on the year for the Cavaliers (14-10, 7-6 ACC) and is the highest-ranked opponent they have beaten this year.

"We beat a very, very good team," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said. "Not only are they very good, but they were hot. I think that we beat them at the things that they do very well. They are very mentally and physically scrappy and I think we out-scrapped them to the loose balls, the 50-50 balls, setting the tone early."

The first points of the game came from an unlikely source, Virginia center Tunji Soroye. The Nigerian native collected an offensive rebound that resulted from a Sean Singletary miss and then went back to the basket to score the opening points. Soroye, who had six total points, credits early scoring with helping him get into the flow of the game, but said he believes his defensive efforts bring him his focus.

"Yes, part of it" is scoring, he said. "What gets me into the game is my defense. When I had the block [later in the first half] I was more in the game."

With the score tied at 7-7 early in the game, the Cavaliers went on a 24-6 run to take a lead they would not surrender. During the run, Virginia was led by J.R. Reynolds, who had 13 of his game-high 28 points during the span. The junior ignited the streak, scoring the first five points. Reynolds scored on a lay-up to give Virginia a 9-7 lead and then hit a three-point shot on a fast break that ignited the crowd. Reynolds was again able to get the crowd excited when his long three-point attempt hit nothing but net to give the Cavaliers a 31-13 advantage.

"Everything felt good once it left my hands," Reynolds said. "In the second half, I got a little winded, but I was able to get a second wind."

The "second wind" would help as Boston College rallied to cut the halftime deficit to 10 points, 38-28. The Eagles, however, would get no closer. The Cavaliers built their lead to 14 points to open the half, but Boston College was able to chip the lead back down to 10. At that point, Virginia scored six unanswered points, highlighted by a Reynolds fast break dunk, to go up 50-34. The Cavaliers held their largest lead of the night when Singletary hit a wide-open three-point shot with 6:50 remaining to put his team up by 18 points, 61-43.

"That team effort is what makes great teams," Singletary said. "We're not a great team, but we are building toward it."

The team effort was also apparent on defense. The Cavaliers forced Boston College into committing 11 turnovers throughout the game. Virginia also held the Eagles to 35.2 percent shooting. On the season, Boston College is shooting 48.4 percent as a team, good for third in the ACC. Leitao felt playing man-to-man defense helped his team shut down the Eagles.

"We were coming off a game where we played a lot of zone and we didn't play it well," Leitao said. "At times, we played zone today, and we didn't play it all that well. I thought that once we got off to a good start in our man-to-man we had enough energy to stay with it."
 

Virginia keeps cold-shooting Eagles grounded
Barney Breen-Portnoy

Within the span of three days, Virginia has experienced the lowest of lows and the highest of highs. The Cavaliers were clearly the superior team during last night's win over Boston College, a major achievement considering the Eagles were ranked No.11 nationally coming into the contest. After slipping perilously close to falling off the NCAA Tournament bubble following Saturday's ugly loss at Florida State, Virginia has planted itself firmly back in the thick of the competition. Nothing helps a team's RPI more than a convincing win over a legitimate top-20 squad.

Before I go on about Virginia's win, I must first give some love to the members of Team Halloween, Virginia's eclectic posse of basketball fanatics who have graced U-Hall with their flavorful costumes and imaginative antics in recent years. "Team Halloween" had a particularly strong showing Tuesday, with diverse medley of characters that included Chief Wahoo, Hot Dog Man, Milk-alauskas, Astronaut, Jew-V-A, Tigger, Pumpkin Girl and U-V-Eighties Girl, among others. I spent the first half of Tuesday's game sitting in the stands with "Team Halloween" dressed as U-V-Aviator before returning to my customary perch on press row for the second half.

The future of the group is up in the air due to the upcoming graduation of many of the core members and the growth of a new school-sanctioned student fan group, the Hoo-Crew. Hopefully, fresh leaders will emerge and pick up the mantle of leadership left behind by the graduating "Team Halloween" members. If this is the end of the road, however, thanks for the memories. You guys have left a solid blue print for fan creativity, non-conformity and ingenuity that future Wahoo fans can follow.

There are several players who deserve major credit for their contributions to the victory over the Eagles. J.R. Reynolds stands out first and foremost. Over the past eight games, J.R. Reynolds has not scored fewer than 16 points. Against Boston College, he notched a season-high 28 points and his ability to knock down threes and get to the foul line elicited thoughts of another ACC player from Roanoke.

Sophomore center Tunji Soroye definitely played his best game of the season, if not his career, against the Eagles. Soroye, who has only recently gotten over a nagging groin injury, recorded six points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. He looked much less tentative on offense than he has in earlier games this season. The Nigerian native has obvious raw potential and hopefully he can convert that potential into concrete production over the course of his collegiate career.

Both of Virginia's freshman contributors, Laurynas Mikalauskas and Mamadi Diane, had solid nights for different reasons. Diane displayed a high level of energy and a smooth shooting stroke by draining three of four three-point attempts and Mikalauskas showed his physical toughness by scoring two nice baskets in the post while playing with a mask that was protecting his broken nose. He may not have been the most handsome player on the court, but he sure showed how dedicated he is to this team by playing through the injury. Perhaps Team Halloween can create a new character, the Mask of Mikalauskas.

Virginia's upcoming game at Clemson Saturday will be another difficult road challenge. Although Virginia defeated Clemson earlier this year at U-Hall, Littlejohn Coliseum is a very intimidating place to play. The Cavaliers only have two more opportunities to add a conference road win to their lone victory over Virginia Tech. With the March 1 matchup at North Carolina's famed Dean Smith Center the only other remaining road game, this Saturday's game at Clemson would seem to be Virginia's best shot at improving their road resume.

Following last night's win, Diane told me that postseason possibilities have been running through the back of his mind.

"You dream of March Madness and all the hoopla when you're growing up," Diane said. "It's on everyone's mind during this time of the season. We have a chance to make the postseason which is something we haven't done in a while."

This season has already been far more successful than most Virginia fans could have hoped. Yet there is still much to be accomplished if this underdog squad hopes to turn a surprising year into a truly historical one.

Reynolds dials in
Junior tallies 28 points in upset of BC
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
February 22, 2006

Virginia guard J.R. Reynolds will probably never win any dunk contests. He's more of a 3-point shooting contest type of guy.
However, his slam against Boston College scored a perfect 10 with 7,959 very-biased fans at University Hall on Tuesday night.

The dunk, which came off a steal, put Virginia up by 14 points with about 14 minutes left in the game. More importantly, it made U-Hall roar - and propelled the Cavaliers to a shocking 72-58 win over Boston College, the No. 11-ranked team in the country.

"That's his best dunk since I've been at UVa," said Virginia sophomore Sean Singletary. "It gave us a lot of momentum and really put them back on their heels."

Reynolds hit from all angles en route to a season-high 28 points. Singletary added 16 points and five assists.

Craig Smith, who scored 22, led Boston College.

Virginia (14-10, 7-6), which has three regular season games remaining, has positioned itself for a legitimate shot at making the NCAA Tournament.

The Cavaliers, who were picked to finish last in the ACC, now sit by themselves in fifth place.

"This shows the progression of the program," Singletary said. "We really want to play in the [NCAA] Tournament. I know we're young, but the guys want to see what we could do when we play teams out of the conference and things like that. We have to take care of things day to day, but that's in the back of our minds."

If Virginia can play the kind of defense it did against Boston College, anything is possible. The Cavaliers held Jared Dudley, who came in averaging 16.7 points, to six points on 2-of-8 shooting.

For the game, Boston College (21-6, 8-5) shot just 35 percent from the floor. After allowing Florida State to shoot 51 percent in an abysmal loss in Tallahassee, Virginia was simply quicker to the ball than the Eagles.

"We had to get back to understanding what is important," said Virginia coach Dave Leitao. "We beat a very good team [tonight] that is not only good, but very hot. I thought we beat them at the things they do very well. They're mentally and physically scrappy and I thought we out-scrapped them."

Boston College had won 10 of its last 11 games. Its lone loss during that stretch was by two points to Duke.

"Right from the very beginning, it was clear Virginia wanted it," said Boston College coach Al Skinner. "I just think Virginia wanted it more than we did."

Virginia did not play aggressive basketball at FSU. In a nutshell, they were manhandled. The opposite occurred against Boston College.

"The game was very physical and we didn't respond to that," Skinner said. "They showed that the game was important to them."

In the first half, it would have been hard for Virginia to play much better. From the opening jump, the Cavaliers had an extra bounce to their step.

Tunji Soroye, who had struggled mightily in previous outings, helped set the tone early. He scored Virginia's first basket of the game on an aggressive move inside following an offensive rebound. About a minute later, the 6-foot-11 sophomore who has been battling groin and tailbone injuries, swatted a Smith shot into the seats.

"It wasn't really their offense that was the difference," Skinner said. "I thought defensively as a team they did a great job. ? They came after us."

Virginia did an excellent job of switching up its defenses. Most of Boston College's shots were from the perimeter. When the Eagles missed, Soroye, Jason Cain and Lauris Mikalauskas kept second-chance points to a minimum.

Mikalauskas, who suffered a broken nose and concussion against FSU, played with a protective facemask.

Boston College launched a plethora of airballs. Meanwhile, Virginia - behind 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from Reynolds - shot 50 percent.

Reynolds played with a swagger. He blew by the Eagles' Louis Hinnant for a driving hoop to put Virginia up 28-13, then hit an NBA-range 3-pointer to give the Cavaliers their largest lead of the game at 31-13 with 4:54 remaining.

Boston College was able to go on a 9-0 spurt to cut the lead to 31-22. A Mamadi Diane steal and Singletary layup at the other end boosted Virginia's lead back up to 14, but Boston College scored the last four points of the half - its last bucket coming on a long 3-pointer by Rice as time expired to make it 38-28 at the half.

After the break, the teams traded baskets - until Reynolds hit a 3-pointer off a nice dish from Singletary. Then came The Dunk.

Reynolds stripped the ball from Boston College's Tyrese Rice around midcourt. He then outraced Rice to the hoop. After the dunk - just the second of his career - Reynolds lost his balance and fell into a group of spectators on the end line.

"In the game, you have the adrenaline rushing so much," said Reynolds, who was 9 of 15 from the floor. "You can get up kind of high."

The play seemed to take all of the wind out of Boston College. The Eagles could never get within single digits the rest of the way.

"We're not a great team," Singletary said. "We're far from it, but we're building and putting in extra work, and tonight we showed what we could do."

Added Reynolds: "This is a big win. We needed this, especially with the hard work we've put in the last two days in practice. Coach pushed us until he couldn't push anymore."

Virginia travels to Clemson on Saturday. The Cavaliers have won just one ACC road game this year.

"We have to challenge ourselves," Leitao said, "to bring [this] kind of mindset on the road."

DUNKS: Virginia improved to 4-0 all-time against Boston College. This was the first meeting between the schools since the NCAA Tournament in 1983. ?

Mikalauskas said he didn't know if he would play. "I wasn't really sure until [Tuesday] morning," he said. "I got my new mask about an hour before the game. It was kind of hard to adjust to it, but I knew it was a big game and I had to play."?

Smith was one rebound short of a double-double. He has 37, which is the second most in the ACC (Shelden Williams, 51). His nine boards put him over the 1,000 mark for his career. Only two other players in school history have done that.
 

Character lifts Cavaliers past Boston College
Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress Sports Editor
February 22, 2006

A little less than eight minutes showed on the scoreboard clock as the 11th-ranked team in the nation poised itself for a run and most of those who had shown up for the next-to-last game ever in University Hall held their collective breath.
Their beloved Cavaliers had been here before, teetering on a key conference win only to watch a healthy lead evaporate and slip from their grasp. Florida State here in overtime. N.C. State and Maryland on the road.

All were late second-half implosions that left a young Virginia team shaken.

If the Cavs were to bounce back from a lackluster loss in Tallahassee last Saturday, then something had to change. No way could they lose focus against Boston College. No way could they not put up their best effort against the 11th-ranked Eagles.

They had to find a way to win on home turf to have any kind of chance of playing their way onto the NCAA bubble.

Finding a way

With little turnaround time, Coach Dave Leitao's Wahoos found a way. They relied chiefly on what Leitao has stamped onto this program since the first day he set foot in Charlottesville - defense.

Virginia upset Boston College, 72-58, on Tuesday night because of defense and toughness and kept itself on life support for another week as the ACC regular season heads down the home stretch.

Having shocked the Eagles with a 31-13 getaway 15 minutes into the game, the Cavaliers anticipated a BC comeback and that's what happened as UVa led 38-28 at the break. Still, they figured there would be a strong BC run at some point of the second half.

Doing it with defense

That kind of run never materialized thanks mostly to one of Virginia's best defensive efforts of the season as the Cavs held BC to a 35.2 percent (19 of 54) shooting night, its lowest since an early season home loss to N.C. State. Plus the Eagles hit only three 3-pointers in 16 tries.

Meanwhile, J.R. Reynolds heated up with the highest regular season point total of his career (28) to go with backcourt mate Sean Singletary's 16. The two guards, who normally averaged 33.8 points per game were good for 44.

While they supplied the fireworks, it was the role players on this unheralded Virginia team that did the dirty work. Tunji Soroye supplied an uncommon presence in the middle, while Adrian Joseph and freshman Mamadi Diane hit key shots. Rookie Lauris Mikalauskas, wearing a mask to hide the broken nose resulting from an Alexander Johnson elbow at Florida State, didn't back off a bit from the required physical play in pulling off this upset.

"We were tougher than a tough team," Leitao said after watching his Cavs jump to 14-10 overall and 7-6 in the ACC, which placed them alone in fifth place heading into tonight's conference action.

By that he meant the Cavaliers did just about everything he expected of them.

"I thought we beat them at the things they do very well," Leitao said. "[BC] is mentally and physically scrappy and I thought we out-scrapped them to the loose balls, the 50-50 balls, setting the tone early."

Perhaps even more importantly though was the fact they didn't falter when it came to Crunch Time.

As BC star senior Craig Smith attempted to take ownership of the paint in the second half and tried to foul out the entire Virginia frontline, the Eagles cut it to a dozen at 55-43 with 7:53 showing.

This time there was no collapse. Instead, Diane nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing, followed by a Singletary trey after Reynolds had penetrated and wisely kicked the ball back outside.

Bang, bang, it was 61-42. Game, set, match.

BC coach Al Skinner wasn't stunned at the result. He realized Virginia had to make a home stand and that it had to be a physical one.

"Right from the beginning, it was clear that Virginia wanted the game," Skinner said. "We did not at all meet their energy. I thought the game was physical and we didn't respond to that."

That's defense, man. The kind that kept the Eagles, who averaged 74.7 ppg coming in to a mere 58, and held leading scorer Jared Dudley to a season low six points - more than 10 below his norm.

It was the highest ranked foe UVa had beaten since knocking off No. 10 Arizona in U-Hall last season and was the Cavs' second win over a Top 50 RPI opponent this season, which could be helpful should Virginia play its way onto the NCAA bubble.

But that bubble babble is for later in the week, particularly if the Cavaliers can shake their road curse and steal a win at Clemson. Then there could be reason to celebrate.

 

Reynolds wraps Virginia's win
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
February 22, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Everything else was falling, so why not a 25-footer? Virginia guard J.R. Reynolds didn't give it a second thought during the first half against Boston College on Tuesday night, letting it fly from J.J. Redick range. The shot was so pure, the ball barely splashed the net.
"My range isn't unlimited," Reynolds said, "but when you get in one of those types of games, you just don't ever think about it. At that particular time, I was feeling good, so I just let it go."

It wasn't a fleeting moment.

Reynolds scored a season-high 28 points in Virginia's 72-58 win over No. 11 Boston College at University Hall. The Cavaliers (14-10, 7-6 ACC) had not beaten a team ranked as high since last season's non-conference rout of No. 10 Arizona. Dave Leitao had never beaten a team ranked that high in his head coaching career.

Thanks go to Reynolds, whose 28 points bested his 26-point performance in a loss against Western Kentucky on Jan. 2. The junior guard went 9-for-15 from the field on Tuesday and hit four 3-pointers.

Two of those came during a first-half stretch when the Cavaliers scored three points on five straight possessions. That sparked a 26-6 run, capped by Reynolds' beyond-NBA-range 3 that made it 31-13 with 4:54 left before halftime.

At that point, Reynolds had outscored BC 16-13.

"He seemed like he was hitting it from everywhere," UVa freshman forward Mamadi Diane said. "After he hit that 3 way off the line with the guy in his face, I knew he was feeling it."

Reynolds' scoring outburst wasn't limited to outside shots. Several times he slashed through the lane and got to the hoop for layups. In the second half, he stole the ball from BC's Tyrese Rice, broke away and threw down a thunderous one-handed dunk before landing in the cheerleading section.

Point guard Sean Singletary said later it was one of the top five dunks he'd seen at Virginia.

"I told my teammates once I got a fast break I was going to dunk it," Reynolds said. "They always see me in practice, but they never see me dunk in a game."

"Games like tonight, I think, define him of more than just a shooter," Leitao said. "He takes that personally.

"He doesn't want to be known as a guy who can just sit behind the arc and make 3s. It's something he does real well, but he can take you off the dribble now and finish in traffic and make decisions, which is what an all-around guard has to do."

Singletary scored 16 points for Virginia and Adrian Joseph and Diane both added nine, hitting three 3-pointers each. Virginia, which shot 52.1 percent (25 of 48) for the game, was 12 of 21 from 3-point range.

For as good as the Cavaliers were on offense, it was their defense that cooled off a Boston College team that entering Tuesday had won 10 of its previous 11.

Virginia held the Eagles (21-6, 8-5) to their lowest scoring output this season. Boston College shot 35.2 percent (19 of 54) for the game and was a meager 3 of 16 from 3-point range. The Eagles never got closer than 10 after halftime.

While Craig Smith gave UVa fits down low, scoring 22 points to go with nine rebounds, his fellow Wooden Award watch list teammate Jared Dudley did not. Limited by a cold and a hounding Virginia defense, Dudley was a non-factor, scoring six points on 2 of 8 shooting.

The Cavaliers got physical with the Eagles down low. Center Tunji Soroye had six points, seven rebounds and two blocks in what was his most effective game since the start of ACC play.

Laurynas Mikalauskas, who was wearing a mask after taking an elbow to the face at Florida State on Saturday and breaking his nose, helped defend the post, grabbing four rebounds and blocking two shots.

Said Leitao: 'We were tougher than a tough team."
 

Cavaliers slam Eagles
Virginia dismantles Boston College thanks to Reynolds, 3-point shooting
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Feb 22, 2006
U.VA. 72 BC 58

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The 11th-ranked team in college basketball looked as if it wanted to be anywhere but University Hall last night.

ACC newcomer Boston College offered surprisingly little resistance against Virginia in their first meeting since March 1983. The Cavaliers never led by fewer than 10 points in the second half and drilled the Eagles 72-58.

"I just think Virginia wanted it much more than we did," Boston College coach Al Skinner said.

BC (8-5, 21-6) lost for only the second time in its past 12 games. U.Va. (7-6, 14-10) held the Eagles to 35.2-percent accuracy from the floor and improved to 6-1 in ACC home games.

"I thought we beat them at the things they do very well," first-year coach Dave Leitao said. "They're mentally and physically scrappy, and I thought we outscrapped them to loose balls or 50-50 balls, especially, setting the tone early."

With 38.3 seconds left, Leitao sent senior guard Billy Campbell into the game for J.R. Reynolds, who left to a standing ovation. Leitao and Reynolds embraced on the sideline.

"He just told me, 'I'm tired as heck,' and I said, 'I'm giving you 38 seconds of rest,'" Leitao recalled with a smile.

Reynolds' break was well-earned. The junior guard from Roanoke had scored a season-high 28 points, running his streak of games in double figures to 18.

"Everything felt good once it left my hand," Reynolds said.

On a night when U.Va. officials gave media members a tour of 15,000-seat John Paul Jones Arena, which will open this summer, 8,392-seat University Hall wasn't sold out. But the crowd of 7,959 witnessed a memorable game as U.Va. bounced back from a poor showing Saturday at Florida State.

The Cavaliers played well on offense -- they shot 12 for 21 from beyond the arc -- but "I was impressed more with their defense," Skinner said.

Virginia, primarily a zone team in recent weeks, played man-to-man extensively last night. Only All-America candidate Craig Smith (22 points, nine rebounds), a bruising 6-7, 250-poundd senior, hurt the Wahoos. Freshman guard Tyrese Rice, a graduate of L.C. Bird High, added 10 points for the Eagles but failed to score after intermission.

The victory was U.Va.'s second of the season over a ranked foe. Virginia edged then-No. 24 North Carolina 72-68 at University Hall on Jan. 19.

That game wasn't decided until the final minutes. Last night, the Cavaliers took the lead for good on a Reynolds basket with 12:54 left in the first half.

Reynolds scored in every conceivable manner. He hit four 3-pointers, including one from about 25 feet, converted drives and, on a breakaway, even threw down the second dunk of his college career.

"He was amazing," teammate Sean Singletary said.

Singletary, a sophomore guard from Philadelphia, wasn't bad himself. In 37 minutes, he totaled 16 points, five assists, two rebounds, two steals and one blocked shot.

"That's not new," Skinner said when asked about Reynolds and Singletary's performances.

More surprising was the play of freshman swingman Mamadi Diane and sophomore center Tunji Soroye. Diane, who hadn't made a 3-pointer since Jan. 24, came off the bench to sink three treys and also contributed five rebounds and two steals. Soroye, who fouled out with zero points and zero rebounds at FSU, had six points, seven boards and two blocks last night.

"He was a presence," Leitao said.

Other heroes for U.Va. included sophomore swingman Adrian Joseph, who helped hold BC star Jared Dudley to six points, and 6-8, 241-pound freshman Laurynas Mikalauskas, who wore a clear-plastic mask to protect the nose he broke at FSU.

 

Franklin placed on probation
Drug charge dropped if U.Va. football player completes treatment program
Richmond Times-Dispatch Feb 22, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- University of Virginia football player Tony Franklin, who in early December was charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana, received pre-conviction probation yesterday in Albemarle County General District Court.

Franklin must take a drug-treatment course, a clerk at the court said yesterday. If he successfully completes the course, the charge will be dropped next year. Franklin, who's from Cleveland, is due back in court Feb. 21, 2007.

A three-year starter in the secondary, Franklin was one of the Cavaliers' captains in 2005. In November, however, he was among four U.Va. players suspended for an unspecified violation of team policy and missed one game.

After Franklin's arrest in December, U.Va. coach Al Groh didn't allow him to play in the Music City Bowl. Groh has not said if Franklin will be allowed to play for the Cavaliers in 2006. -- Jeff White
 

U.Va. Basketball
Dutiful Diane finally got ball to fall
PAUL WOODY
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST Feb 22, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE The cost of going oh-for-almost-a-month on your 3-point shots is this: 700 to 1,000 jump shots per day, before practice, during practice, after practice, in the morning on your own and late at night by yourself.

The reward for those thousands of shots is this: sinking 3 of 4 3-point shots in the biggest victory for the Virginia Cavaliers this season.

"I'd forgotten what it felt like," Mamadi Diane said after his first 3-point attempt dropped through the net in the first half. "I think my teammates were almost as excited as I was."

When the Cavaliers walk onto the court for each game, the opposition is certain of one thing. Almost all of the Cavaliers' offense is going to come from the backcourt of Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds.

Last night against Boston College was no different. Reynolds had a game-high 28 points and Singletary added 16.

The difference between winning and losing for the Cavaliers is what the rest of the team does.

Last night, the rest of the Cavaliers did plenty, which accounted for Virginia's 72-58 upset of the No. 11-ranked Eagles.

Diane finished with nine points. Laurynas Mikalauskas, a 6-8 freshman power forward, added four points, four rebounds and blocked two shots.

And Tunji Soroye, a 6-11 sophomore center, had seven rebounds to go with six points.

Mikalauskas was playing with a broken nose, suffered Saturday at Florida State. His status for last night's game was questionable up until an hour before the game.

Then, his clear, plastic facemask arrived, and he had the protection he needed. Still, things were far from perfect. The mask hindered his peripheral vision.

It did not affect the toughness and grit he showed against the Eagles' physical inside players.

"When you play hard, toughness comes with it," Mikalauskas said.

The past month had been a bit tough on Diane. The last time he had made a 3-pointer was Jan. 24 in a home game against Miami. Between then and when his first 3-pointer dropped last night, he was 0 for 11 from behind the arc.

Diane might be a freshman, but in some ways, he is wise beyond his 19 years. Through his shooting slump, he concentrated on playing strong defense during games and worked tirelessly on his shot between games.

"This week, I was worked on it a lot more," he said. "I changed my shot. I had a little glitch with my feet and balance. I talked to one of my coaches about it, and I started shooting a different way."

His teammates noticed the difference immediately.

"When he knocked it down, I knew he was in the flow of the game and he would give us energy," Singletary said.

The Eagles, perhaps as physical a team as there is in the ACC, could have used a little energy last night. They opened the game in a two tight-end offense and looked as if they meant to win the game on the ground. Some teams pack things in on defense, but the Eagles, at times, packed things in so tightly when they had the ball that they could have run their offense in a closet.

And on the rare occasions in the second half when the Eagles looked as if they had awakened to the evening's challenge, Diane either dropped in a bomb from the wing or Mikalauskas muscled in a short jump hook on the interior.

"Those are daggers," Diane said. "They were playing hard defense for so long, and then to have a drive and kick near the end of the shot clock or Lars inside making a power move and just making it look easy for us, that may have killed their morale."

The Cavaliers' morale, meanwhile, got a much needed boost from a young 3-point shooter who was overdue.

"Mo had as good a game as he's had in a month," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said.

And all it took to accomplish that was thousands of shots, day and night almost

 

Doolittle, Henry guide Cavaliers past Rams
Cavs put away Virginia Commonwealth with six runs in the third, fourth innings; Doolittle pitches five superb innings
Ernie Washington, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

Sean Doolittle showed Tuesday that he was not affected by his struggles at the plate this past weekend.

Despite going only one-for-10 at the plate against Towson, he played a huge role in the Cavaliers 7-1 victory over Virginia Commonwealth University yesterday. At the plate, Doolittle went two-for-four with a run scored and an RBI triple. On the mound, he pitched five innings, allowing just one run and two hits while striking out seven and walking only two. Virginia coach Brian O'Connor believes that a solid start by the pitcher is necessary for a strong outing.

"VCU has a very good baseball program," O'Connor said. "I think their coach does an outstanding job. It was a great win. This shows what can happen when you go out and get a strong starting pitching performance."

The lefty also proved that he was ready for his first start of the year. As he showed against the Rams, Doolittle learned from his struggles at the plate as well.

"I was excited to go out there and have the chance to start and have an impact on the starting rotation," Doolittle said. "I knew [the hitting] would come around. I realized that I don't need to press as much and I can just go out there and get some hacks and put the barrel on the ball."

O'Connor was also confident in Doolittle's ability to overcome the small slump at the beginning of the season.

"Sean is a talented player at the plate and on the mound," O'Connor said. "You can't hold that talent down. You can go out there on the mound and change the game in a hurry and [also] going out there and hacking like he did."

Even though he only pitched five innings, Doolittle was pleased with his performance in the limited time.

"At this point in the year, throwing 81 pitches, I was getting up there in the pitch count," Doolittle said. "It was probably smart by the coaches to get me out of there and let [Michael] Schwimer and Casey [Lambert] get a couple of innings in there so they are ready for Charleston this weekend," Doolittle said.

After three runs in the third inning, the Cavaliers blew the game open on a key VCU error with runners on second and third and two outs in the fourth inning. First baseman Jared Bolden took his foot off the bag when receiving the throw on a Tim Henry ground ball, allowing both Beau Seabury and the speedy Greg Miclat to score. Doolittle's triple allowed Henry to come around later in the inning. All three runs were unearned.

"That's what happens when you put pressure on the other team," O'Connor said. "You see our coaches yelling at our players all of the time about giving us a hard 90 feet all of the way to the bag. When you do that, panic can set in when you have speed. When you have guys in the lineup that can run and you put the ball in play it can create things."

The Cavaliers also practiced with more intensityMonday than they did before the Old Dominion game, O'Connor said, adding that he has no doubt that it showed on the field.

"We had a good practice [Monday] and our intensity was good," O'Connor said. "I talked to the players before the game about coming out today in an attacking mode and [to] come right after them and we did."

The Cavaliers will need to stay in this attacking mode this weekend when they play in the 2006 Charleston Challenge in South Carolina. Virginia plays George Mason Friday, Gardner-Webb Saturday and College of Charleston Sunday.

 

Ward's list of noteworthy feats increases
Senior attack has been model of consistency during his time at Virginia, is on the cusp of numerous school records
Ben Gibson, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

The Virginia men's lacrosse team is off to a 2-0 start this season, partly because of the continued offensive proficiency of senior attacker Matt Ward. For the past two years, he has led the team in scoring, goals and assists. This year, Ward has continued to be a catalyst for the offense with four goals and six assists.

Consistency seems to be Ward's middle name. He has scored at least one goal in 41 of 47 career games including three last Monday against Denver in a 13-7 Cavalier victory. Ward has proven to be an intimidating attacker, a feat in a position known for its competitiveness.

"Matt has proven to be one of the best attack men in the country, which is pretty impressive since I consider attacker to be one of the most talented positions across the country," Virginia coach Dom Starsia said.

Ward, however, means much more to his team than just his scoring ability. His leadership skills and all-around attitude are something his teammates and coaches are always pointing out.

"I knew Matt was an important player since the day he arrived here," Starsia said. "He's been a leader since his freshman year. The real key to leadership is performance and being able to step up in crunch time. Matt has been able to do that."

One of Ward's most impressive attributes is that he seems to get better when the stakes are higher. Last year, in the NCAA Semifinal, Ward scored four goals against John Hopkins. The final one came with 12.9 seconds left in regulation and appeared to be the game-winning shot before the Cavaliers lost in overtime 9-8. Despite the loss, Ward still made the NCAA Championship All-Tournament team for the second time in his career.

Despite all the great games and accomplishments Ward has been a part of during his career at Virginia, he is not one to gloat. Though many other stars have learned to seek the spotlight, Ward stays focused on the task at hand -– winning games. He says he does not put an emphasis on personal glory, his only concern is getting Virginia back to the NCAA tournament.

"If you go out there feeling like you have to score, you're going to force things and not play well," Ward said. "I don't care if I score zero goals as long as we win."

Despite the selfless attitude, the fact remains that this season could place Ward among some of Virginia's greatest lacrosse players of all time. He has already had a noteworthy senior season, passing both Roddy Marino and Drew McKnight to take ninth place for most goals in a career at Virginia. Currently at 101 goals, Ward will need three more goals to tie Jeff Nicklas at eighth. Last year, Ward racked up 38 goals, a feat good enough for eighth in goals scored in a single season. Similar production by Ward this season will make him only the second player in Cavaliers history to be in the top 10 for single-season goal scoring twice in his career.

Ward is a player that every team wants: a selfless leader who makes everyone around him better. He has turned into a player everyone on his team can rely on and has handled that responsibility well. When Virginia takes on Stony Brook this Saturday, look for Ward to make a vital contribution, be it a well-timed pass or an acrobatic goal. Just don't look for him to brag.