Robison Leads UVa Bid for ACC Threepeat
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 02/23/2010
By Jeff White

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The pressure is there, and nobody pretends otherwise.

If the UVa men's swimming team is to win the ACC championship for the third straight season and 11th time in 12 years, Mark Bernardino says, junior Scot Robison will have to lead the way.

Florida State and North Carolina are fully capable of dethroning Virginia, and Robison's challenge is to do his part to make sure that doesn't happen.
"We need him to be great," said Bernardino, the Cavaliers' longtime coach. "We need him to be our Michael Jordan, and he knows that. He relishes that responsibility."

Perhaps it's fitting, then, that the ACC championships are being held in Chapel Hill, N.C., where Jordan gained fame wearing the baby blue.

Born and raised in Charlotte, Robison has extensive ties to UNC. His mother and stepfather are Carolina graduates, and Robison has a stepsister who's a freshman there.

"Growing up, my mom always wanted me to at least consider going to Chapel Hill," Robison said. "But she was supportive of whatever I wanted to do, and she loves UVa now."

UNC did not pursue Robison seriously. Neither did many other schools. Because of a shoulder injury he suffered as an 11th-grader, Robison "slipped under a lot of radar screens," Bernardino said, "and I think that was a great break for us."

Robison, 21, holds school records in the 50-yard freestyle (19.47 seconds) and 100 free (42.77). He'll compete in those events, as well as the 200 free and four relays, at the ACC championships, which conclude Saturday night.

He's the defending ACC champion in the 100 free. He placed fifth in the 200 free at the NCAA championships last year, earning All-America recognition.

"We need him to win at least two events [in Chapel Hill]," Bernardino said, "and we need him to be a very strong anchor on our relays."

The pressure doesn't faze Robison. His team needs him to do well, and "I should do well," he said. "I've been swimming faster than I did last year, and training faster."

Bernardino, whose UVa women's team won its third straight ACC title last weekend, was head coach of the U.S. men's team at the World University Games in Belgrade, Serbia, last summer. His swimmers included Robison.

"It had been a goal of mine since I was 12 or 13 to represent my country, and it was an amazing experience to be able to do that," Robison said.

On the starting block before his first race in Belgrade, Robison recalled, he felt a "huge mix of anxiety and nervousness. But there's also a lot of excitement. You want to prove to other people and yourself that you belong."

If there were any doubts, Robison erased them. He anchored the U.S. team that won the 400 free relay and also collected silver medals in the 200 free and 800 free relay.

The international experience "really helped mature him," Bernardino said. "I think when you go to these meets and have the opportunity to talk to other great athletes about how they train, and then you get to compete with them and against them, you find out, 'Wow, I stand up against some of the best in the world, and I can beat them.'

"He came home, and this year he's had a stronger work ethic and greater focus ... He's swimming faster on training sets. He's more intensely focused on the small things that are difficult to focus on, the littlest details where you can save hundredths of a second. He's really locking in on those details."

Robison began swimming year-round when he was 9. A couple of years later, he quit, "just because I wanted to play some other sports," Robison said.

And so he signed up for basketball and lacrosse, and he enjoyed playing both sports, especially hoops. After about a year, though, Robison was ready to get back in the pool.

"Once I'd gotten that out of my system, I decided swimming was what I was best in, and I really wanted to see how far I could go in the sport," said Robison, who hopes to qualify for the 2010 Olympic Trials.

One of the Cavaliers' other freestylers, junior Matt McLean, stands 6-6, and his stature is not unusual in the sport. At 5-10, Robison is short for an elite swimmer, as his teammates like to remind him.

"He's definitely not the prototype," Bernardino said. "A huge man is the prototypical swimmer, a guy like [Michael] Phelps."

To compensate, Robison said, he has "to be a little sharper. I have to really, really work on my power."

When he arrived at UVa in 2007, Robison weighed about 150 pounds. Since then, he's added 20 pounds of muscle.

"Pound for pound, inch for inch, he's as strong as anybody," Bernardino said.

He's also as explosive athlete who would easily dunk a basketball, Bernardino said, and that gives Robison another edge over taller swimmers.

"He's lightning quick, so his turns are faster than most people's," Bernardino said.

Those skills will be on display this week at UNC's Koury Natatorium. Robison admitted last week that he'll be disappointed if UVa fails to win a third straight championship.

"These past couple of years, we've raised our expectations even higher," he said.

There's pressure on the Wahoos, without question, but "the way that everyone on the team has trained this year," Robison said, "if we just swim to our capabilities, it'll take care of itself."


 

Bocklet Scores Four Times to Lead No. 2 Virginia to Win at Mount St. Mary's
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 02/23/2010

EMMITSBURG, Md. - Sophomore Chris Bocklet scored four goals and tallied one assist to lead the No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers to a 15-7 victory over the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers on Tuesday afternoon at Waldron Family Stadium. Bocklet's four goals are a career high, matching his season total during his freshman season in 2009. He did score two goals in UVa's season opener at Drexel.
Virginia improves to 2-0 on the season, while Mount St. Mary's drops to 0-1 after losing its season opener.

Virginia opened up the contest scoring four straight times, beginning when Colin Briggs (Narragansett, R.I.) tallied his first goal of the season when his first shot of the game went into the net unassisted at 11:17 in the first quarter.

Then Bocklet (South Salem, N.Y.) scored four of UVa's next five goals, staking the Cavaliers to a 5-1 advantage after the first quarter. Bocklet scored off a Shamel Bratton (Huntington Station, N.Y.) pass at 4:03, followed by a Steele Stanwick (Baltimore, Md.) helper at 2:44.

Stanwick scored shortly after when Ryan Benincasa (Old Greenwich, Conn.) won the ensuing faceoff, picking up the ground ball running and assisted the score at 2:37.

The Mountaineers put a goal on the scoreboard when Cody Lehrer scored via a Bryant Schmidt pass at 1:47. Bocklet capped the first quarter scoring when he picked up a ground ball behind the cage and swept around to his left, scoring with the clock reading 1.9 seconds.

Bocklet opened up the second quarter with his fourth goal of the game at 12:55 on a pass from Brian Carroll (Towson, Md.). Connor English (Manhasset, N.Y.) scored just over a minute later unassisted at 11:47.

Mount St. Mary's put two more dents in the scoreboard, first at 7:21 when Lehrer scored his second goal of the game on a Christian Kellett assist. Schmidt registered his first collegiate goal unassisted at 2:46, cutting the UVa advantage to four goals, 7-3.

Virginia closed out the half with two goals to take a 9-3 lead into the break. Chris LaPierre (Medford, N.J.) scored his first collegiate goal at 2:06 after Ryan Nizolek (Madison, Conn.) picked up a ground ball via a Mount St. Mary's turnover just prior to his assist.

Matt White (Ridgefield, Conn.) capped the first half scoring when he took a Stanwick pass and scored with 47 seconds left in the first half.

UVa outshot Mount St. Mary's 27-9 in the first half, including 11-2 in the first period.

Shamel Bratton scored the first goal of the third quarter on a Bocklet pass at 10:13. Carroll scored his second goal unassisted at 8:37.

Mount St. Mary's would score again at 2:32 on unassisted goal by Andrew Scalley, capping the third quarter scoring with his first collegiate goal.

English started the scoring for both teams in the fourth quarter with back-to-back goals, starting with one via a Nick O'Reilly (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) pass at 13:49. English tallied an unassisted score at 12:12, his third of the game to give UVa the 13-4 lead.

Briggs extended UVa's lead with his second goal of the contest at 8:40 on a Matt Kugler (Fairfax Station, Va.) assist.

However, Mount St. Mary's did reciprocate quickly at 7:01 on an Eric Ososki goal, and again at 5:05 on Lehrer's third goal of the game, courtesy of a Mark Stapor pass.

In the middle of The Mountaineers' goals, O'Reilly scored his first collegiate goal for UVa at 6:35 unassisted.

Lehrer scored his fourth goal of the game at 2:10 on an assist by Brendan Harrison, capping the game's scoring.

"I thought we played well offensively during the day," said Virginia head coach Dom Starsia "For a team that is a work in progress offensively, I thought it was a step forward today."

UVa's young attack was responsible for 10 of their 15 goals on the afternoon.

Starsia was pleased with his attack when the veteran midfield was heavily defended. "If they are going to slide early to our midfield and that is what teams are doing, like Drexel did on Saturday - when they double pulled us and tripled pulled us in the midfield - our attackmen have to make plays. If midfielders draw the attention, the attackmen need to finish the plays and they did that today."

In addition to Bocklet's career day, English tallied three goals in his second collegiate game, while Briggs added two more scores to pace UVa's scoring. Stanwick, the reigning ACC Player of the Week, added two assists with his one score after giving way in the middle of the third quarter to freshman attackmen Riley and Matt Cockerton, who made their collegiate debut.

Lehrer paced Mount St. Mary's with four goals, the only Mountaineer to score more than once.

UVa outshot Mount St. Mary's for the game, 46-22, while also winning 16-of-25 faceoff chances. UVa also was a perfect 18-of-18 in the clearing game.

No. 2 Virginia returns to action on Saturday against No. 18 Stony Brook (1-0). The game will be played at the University Hall Turf Field and will faceoff at 3 p.m.

Virginia 5-4-2-4-15 record: 2-0
Mount St. Mary's 1-2-1-3-7 record: 0-1
att-404

Scoring (G-A)- V:Chris Bocklet 4-1, Connor English 3-0, Colin Briggs 2-0, Steele Stanwick 1-2, Brian Carroll 1-1, Shamel Bratton 1-1, Nick O'Reilly 1-1, Matt White 1-0, Chris LaPierre 1-0, Ryan Benincasa 0-1, Matt Kugler 0-1, Ryan Nizolek 0-1 M: Cody Lehrer 4-1, Bryant Schmidt 1-1, Andrew Scalley 1-0, Eric Ososki 1-0, Brendan Harrison 0-1, Christian 0-1, Mark Stapor 0-1

Goalie Summary- V: Adam Ghitelman 45 mins., 4 saves, 4 goals allowed; Rob Fortunato 12:50 mins., 2 saves, 2 goals allowed; Rob Eimer 2:10 mins., 0 saves, 0 goals allowed M: T.C. DiBartolo 60 mins., 16 saves, 15 goals allowed

Shots: V-46, M-22
Ground Balls: V-38, M-21
Clearing: V-18x18, M-14x22
Faceoffs: V-16, M-9
Penalties: V-3-1:30, M-4-2:30

EMO: V-2x4, M-1x3

 

After strong season, Cavs seek ACC title
Men lag during diving events, hope to overcome deficit in postseason swim competition
Chloe Newschwander, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Featured / Sports / Swim and Dive
February 24, 2010 0

The Virginia men’s swim team heads to Chapel Hill, N.C. today seeking its 13th ACC Championship title since 1978, the year coach Mark Bernardino first took the reins at Virginia.
Heading into today’s events, however, the Cavaliers trail Florida State by 135 points after the Seminoles got off to a quick start in the men’s diving events held last week.

“That’s a massive edge,” Bernardino said. “That’s a massive amount of points to overcome.”

Nevertheless, the Cavaliers enter the swimming events having taken a firm lock on the conference standings this season, compiling a 4-0 record against ACC squads and going 9-1 overall.
The Cavaliers are led by senior John Azar and juniors Matt McLean and Scot Robison. The three are no strangers to stepping up in the clutch, as they have all won individual
ACC Championships and have all been named All-Americans. McLean won the 200 freestyle against Pittsburgh Jan. 30, the team’s most recent meet, and Robison is the ACC and Virginia record-holder in the 100-meter freestyle and has been a steady contributor to the 200 medley relay team throughout the season. Azar, who also has performed well on relay teams, placed first in the 100 freestyle against Pittsburgh and will look to reclaim the ACC title in the 200 individual medley, which he won in 2008.

“There’s always a lot of pressure going into ACCs, but I think we definitely thrive on it, and that’s what makes us faster,” Azar said.

The team has prepared for the championships through a combination of speed work and recovery-swimming, Bernardino said, in addition to honing technique and allowing time for rest — or tapering — before the meet.

“During the dual-meet season, we just plow through,” he said. “We just train and train and we don’t worry about resting down for any meet or tapering for any meet. Now we’re really concerned that [the swimmers’] muscles get adequate amounts of rest.”

The Cavaliers will look to match the result of the women’s team, which blew by the field last week to take home its third consecutive ACC Championship crown. Earning this result, Bernardino said, will require a continuation of what the team has done all year.

“If you did the work those four months, the hay is in the barn and you should be ready to go,” Bernardino said. “I don’t think there’s any magic in the training of the last two weeks. I think the magic is in the training for the entire season.”

Top-Ranked Cavaliers Open Home Slate Wednesday vs. GW
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 02/23/2010

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - After a successful opening weekend which has led to the program's first-ever No. 1 national ranking, the Virginia baseball team returns home at 2 p.m. Wednesday to open a nine-game homestand as is plays host to George Washington at Davenport Field. Please note the time change from the original 3 p.m. start time.
Live statistics will be available at VirginiaSports.com. Virginia sophomore right-hander Will Roberts (Richmond, Va.) is slated to start for the Cavaliers. GW has yet to name its starting pitcher.

Virginia (2-1) is currently ranked No. 1 nationally in the Baseball America and Rivals.com polls. The Cavaliers were strong at home last season, going 29-6 inside the friendly confines of Davenport Field. Including 21-1 against non-conference foes.

Virginia won its season-opening series last weekend at then-No. 11 East Carolina, taking two of three games in front of large, hostile crowds. UVa took the first game, 6-2, dropped the second, 6-1, and exploded offensively to win 14-11 in the finale to capture the series.

At the plate Dan Grovatt (Jr., Tabernacle, N.J.) had a team-high five hits in the ECU series. Jarrett Parker (Jr., Stafford, Va.) and Steven Proscia (So., Suffern, N.Y.) each had four hits, while Proscia had a team-best six RBI. UVa recorded 19 hits as a team in the win Sunday.

The Cavaliers also were excellent on defense, committing just one error all weekend - good for a .992 fielding percentage.

George Washington (0-3) was swept by North Carolina in a three-game series to open the season. All three games were tightly contested, with UNC prevailing by three runs or fewer in each of the contests. Chris Luick, Chris Holland and Tom Zebroski each had four hits to lead to GWU offense over the weekend.

The athletics department is implementing a number of measures to encourage fans to attend home games, particularly early in the season. Hot chocolate and coffee will be free to all fans for games forecast to be played in weather that is 45 degrees or colder. This promotion will begin with the Wednesday game against George Washington.

Every fan will have the opportunity to win a trip for two to the 2010 ACC Baseball Tournament in Greensboro by attending Virginia baseball home games through March 31. Fans holding tickets purchased in advance will automatically receive an entry each time their ticket is scanned. If a fan transfers, returns, or sells their ticket on the Ticket Marketplace, they will receive the entry for the ACC Tournament trip giveaway once the ticket is scanned.

UVa continues it homestand this weekend as it welcomes Rhode Island for a three-game series. The teams are slated to play at 3 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

 

Top-ranked Cavaliers face Colonials at home
Team reaches top spot after edging No. 11 East Carolina last weekend, squares off against winless Colonials this afternoon
Meryem Karad, Cavalier Daily Senior Writer
Baseball / Sports
February 24, 2010 0

After edging then-No. 11 East Carolina two games to one during its opening weekend series, the Virginia baseball team faces George Washington today at 2 p.m. in its home opener at Davenport Field. The Cavaliers jumped to No. 1 in the national rankings after edging the Pirates, earning the top spot for the first time in the program’s history.

“It’s definitely awesome. It’s cool to know that us as a program are the ones who put it together and did that No. 2 ranking,” junior outfielder Jarrett Parker said. “But at the same time, [we] just gotta keep working hard every day.”

They face a George Washington team that lost three contests against No. 11 North Carolina this past weekend. Junior Eric Cantrell, the Colonials’ No. 1 pitcher, started the Colonials’ first game against the Tar Heels and went five innings, while giving up three earned runs and tallying four strikeouts. The team, however, fell 6-5 in a game that went 10 innings. Junior Joe Richardson pitched six lights-out innings in the second game of the series, but the Colonials gave up four runs in the seventh to fall 4-2. George Washington fell behind quickly in the final contest but narrowed the deficit to 4-3 during the top of the fourth. The Tar Heels pitched five scoreless innings after that, however, finishing the final game of a close series with a 6-3 win.

“They’re a good squad … So we’re just going to play like we would any other day — go out, execute, do the right things, and we’ll be fine,” Parker said.

The Cavaliers clinched the series against the Pirates after surviving a late rally during the contest Sunday to win 14-11. The series marked Virginia’s first time on a diamond this season after inclement weather closed its usual practice fields until this week.

“Being able to come out here for our game, we really look forward to it,” senior infielder Keith Werman said. “Hopefully we get a great crowd, kick of the season here at home.”

Cavs get Davenport opener after all
By Jay Jenkins
Published: February 24, 2010
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Baseballs that leave Davenport Field today may not be found for weeks.

That part of the budget is of little concern to Virginia baseball coach Brian O’Connor.

Countless hours spent plowing and shoveling and recent sunshine paid off as top-ranked Virginia will, in fact, have its opening day at home today against George Washington. The contest will start at 2 p.m., one hour earlier than originally scheduled.

“Our grounds crew, led by Jesse Pritchard, did an unbelievable job preparing it for us to play,” said O’Connor, whose team is 2-1 on the season. “It is a great opportunity for our fans to come out and really support us in our home opener, and I am glad that we are playing in Charlottesville.”

As of the weekend, it seemed very unlikely that the Cavaliers could play today at Davenport Field. Patches of snow stood in the outfield and the warning track was littered with ice.

Thanks to a number of tarps and the work by Pritchard’s staff, it was removed from the playing surface to a degree that allowed the unexpected to happen.

“I always thought that there was a chance,” O’Connor said. “Everybody worked really hard two weeks ago and a week ago to make this possible.

“Had they not done that, we wouldn’t be playing here for another week.”

A contingency plan had been put in place to move today’s game and even the pending weekend series with Rhode Island to Christopher Newport University in Newport News. CNU, which will host Virginia’s softball tournament this weekend, had even listed the event on its website.

With the potential that rain could fall during the week, CNU remains an option for the weekend, but it appears that Virginia is moving forward as if the weekend set will be played at Davenport Field.

“Our administration is committed to doing whatever we have to do to get the ballgames in,” O’Connor said, “and we continue to assess the weather as a factor in that.”

Given the additional following that the baseball program has gained since winning the ACC tournament and advancing to the College World Series last season, O’Connor wants to play in front of his fans.

That collection includes a record number of season-ticket holders.

“We are going to do everything we can to get the games in,” O’Connor said, “but it is hard for me to say what the weather is going to be like this weekend.”

O’Connor did encourage fans with tickets that could not attend games to find others to use them or to return their tickets to the ticket office to ensure that the main part of the stadium was full of patrons.

George Washington, which went 22-33 last year, was swept in a season-opening series at North Carolina, but was in a position to win at least two of the three games.

“I have a lot of respect for George Washington and its coaching staff,” O’Connor said. “What they did at UNC, against a top-flight opponent, was impressive. We will need to play good baseball.”

Virginia will start sophomore right-hander Will Roberts on the mound today.

The Cavaliers will also have junior Phil Gosselin playing with a batting average. That was not the case in the fourth game of the season last year after Gosselin started out 0 for 16 at the plate.

“I was joking [after the ECU series] that I was leaving with a batting average,” he said. “I was struggling a little bit early in the series but I was able to turn it around a little bit.”

Gosselin hit one of Virginia’s two home runs against East Carolina, fueling a series-clinching 14-11 victory on Sunday.

As a team, Virginia hit .306 against the Pirates and had 11 extra-base hits.

Extra bases

Through a press release, Virginia announced that it would give out free coffee and hot chocolate for games forecast to be played when the temperature is 45 degrees or colder. ... Season tickets remain on sale for the season. They are $100 for adults and $75 for youth, seniors, and UVa faculty and staff. There are also 10-game mini-packages available for $40.
 

Men’s Tennis Wins 6-1 at Virginia Tech
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 02/23/2010

BLACKSBURG, Va. – The top-ranked Virginia men’s tennis team overcame an early deficit with strong singles play to record a 6-1 win at No. 18 Virginia Tech Tuesday Night. The Cavaliers (11-1, 2-0 ACC) won their 50th consecutive match against an ACC opponent (regular season and postseason) and handed the Hokies (5-2, 1-1) their first conference loss.

Virginia fell behind early by dropping the doubles point. The Hokie team of Luka Somen and Corrado Tocci downed Sanam Singh (Chandigarh, India) and Lee Singer (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) 8-4 at No. 3 doubles. Yoann Re and Sebastien Jacques clinched the opening point for Tech with a 9-7 win over Jarmere Jenkins (College Park, Ga.) and Houston Barrick (Brentwood Tenn.) at the No. 2 position. Michael Shabaz (Fairfax, Va.) and Drew Courtney (Clifton, Va.) won at the No. 1 spot for the Cavaliers with an 8-7(5) victory over Patrick Daciek and Will Beck.

The Cavaliers bounced back in singles, winning all six first sets. The dual match was tied at 1-1 when Courtney completed a 6-1, 7-5 win over Tocci at No. 3 singles. Jenkins gave Virginia a 2-1 lead with his 6-3, 6-2 win over Daciek at the No. 4 position. Singer added to the lead with his 6-3, 6-2 win over Jacques at No. 6 and Shabaz clinched the win with a 7-6, 6-3 win over Re at No. 1. Singh added a win at No. 2, rallying from down 5-2 in the first set for a 7-5, 6-2 win over Somen. Barrick concluded the match with a win over Beck at No. 5 singles in a third-set match tiebreaker to complete the singles sweep.

The Cavaliers will return to action on Saturday with a tripleheader. Virginia hosts Wofford at 9 a.m., Liberty at 1 p.m. and Longwood at 5 p.m.

No. 1 Virginia 6, No. 18 Virginia Tech 1

Doubles:
1. Shabaz/Courtney (UVa) def. #53 Daciek/Beck (VT) 8-7(5)
2. Re/Jacques (VT) def. Barrick/Jenkins (UVa) 9-7
3. Somen/Tocci (VT) def. Singh/Singer (UVa) 8-4

Singles:
1. #5 Michael Shabaz (UVa) def. #47 Yoann Re (VT) 7-6(6), 6-3
2. #6 Sanam Singh (UVa) def. #81 Luka Somen (VT) 7-5, 6-2
3. #15 Drew Courtney (UVa) def. Corrado Degl’ Incerti Tocci (VT) 6-1, 7-5
4. #19 Jarmere Jenkins (UVa) def. Patrick Daciek (VT) 6-3, 6-2
5. #72 Houston Barrick (UVa) def. Will Beck (VT) 6-4, 6-7(7), 10-7
6. #55 Lee Singer (UVa) def. Sebastien Jacques (VT) 6-3, 6-2

Order of Finish:
Doubles: 3,2,1
Singles: 3,4,6,1,2,5

Virginia looks to earn first win of season
Squad gears up for 0-3 Spiders, aims to improve play after Loyola defeat
Stacy Kruczkowski, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Sports
February 24, 2010 0

The No. 13 Virginia women’s lacrosse team returns to action tonight, seeking its first win of the season at home against in-state rival Richmond.

Hoping to end Virginia’s recent domination of the rivalry between the two teams, Richmond (0-3) enters the midweek matchup having lost its first three games of the season to Maryland, Duke and North Carolina — all top-five teams.

The Spiders struggled during their first week of regular season play. Offensively, the squad is averaging only 7.67 goals per game and shooting a mere 38.3 percent. Sophomore midfielder Mary Flowers leads the team in goals and points, registering five goals and seven points during the three losses. On the defensive side of the field, Richmond has allowed an average of 17.67 goals per game.

The Cavaliers (0-1) struggled to find the back of the net this past Saturday, dropping their season opener against then-ranked No. 14 Loyola (Md.) by a score of 15-11. The Virginia squad stumbled throughout the game, despite outshooting the Greyhounds 36-29 and winning the draw control battle 17-11. The Cavaliers’ offensive woes allowed Loyola to jump ahead at the 3:57 mark during the first period and never look back.

“When it came down to it, it was mostly the little things that we just weren’t focusing on like ground balls and passing and throwing,” senior midfielder and team captain Brittany Kalkstein said. “I wasn’t thrilled, obviously, because we didn’t get the win, but it was a good first test. I think we [could] see the things we need to work on before our game on Wednesday.”

Virginia coach Julie Myers stressed that the team must improve its ability to pick up ground balls, especially those which deflect off the goalkeeper, as well as its shot placement and ball movement to defeat the Spiders for the fourth season in a row.

As the season progresses, Myers expects the team to improve with more game time experience. Only six girls on the 25 member team are seniors, and eight are freshman.

“I think only five kids that played for us [on Saturday] actually had played significant game time before,” Myers said. “I think it’s a little bit jittery and a little bit nerve-wracking for some of them. They just need a little bit more time and experience under their belt, and they’ll iron it out.”

Following Wednesday night’s matchup, the Cavaliers welcome No. 6 Syracuse to Charlottesville Saturday, hoping to repeat last season’s upset of the then-No.3 Orange. The opening draw in that contest is scheduled for noon.

'Hoos Limp Off the Road
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 02/23/2010
By Jeff White

CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- In 11 days, most spent on the road, everything changed for the UVa men's basketball team.

In that span, the Cavaliers lost five times, only once by fewer than 12 points. That was on Feb. 13 at Virginia Tech, where Virginia fell 61-55, a defeat that gave no hint of the problems to come.

Two days later, however, the Cavaliers lost by 19 points at Maryland, two days after that by 19 to visiting Florida State, three days after that by 23 at Clemson.

The Wahoos were more competitive on the final night of this grueling stretch, but the result was another defeat, their sixth straight overall.

"It's tough to play five games in 11 days, but it's what was presented to us," center Jerome Meyinsse said after UVa's 74-62 loss at ACC foe Miami. "We had no control over it."


The rematch was nothing like the Jan. 16 game in which Virginia hammered the Hurricanes 75-57 at John Paul Jones Arena.

Miami took over in the second half Tuesday night and eased to a 74-62 victory before an indifferent crowd of 3,909 at the BankUnited Center.

"Obviously we had more energy [against Miami at JPJ]," said Tony Bennett, Virginia's first-year coach.

"It's a role reversal with us and Miami. We're certainly struggling, and we need everybody to play well. When one or two of our key guys are off, it's hard for us to overcome that."

Virginia's starting guards, Calvin Baker and Sammy Zeglinski, were a combined 3 for 16 from the floor. Even more damaging to UVa's chances, however, was the play of its second-best offensive threat, Mike Scott.

Against an eminently beatable opponent, the 6-8 junior forward was a non-factor in his 22 minutes. Scott, who had scored at least 10 points in each of his previous eight games, was 0 for 7 from the floor against the 'Canes (4-9, 18-9). He didn't attempt a free throw.

"Mike Scott just had one of those games," Miami coach Frank Haith said.

The timing could not have been worse for the Cavaliers (5-8, 14-12), who in the best of times lack an abundance of offensive weapons. Sophomore swingman Sylven Landesberg shot brilliantly, hitting a career-high six 3-pointers, but overall the Wahoos made only 35.1 percent of their field-goal attempts.

Not since a Feb. 3 victory has UVa shot even 40 percent from the floor. The 'Hoos haven't won since then, either, but offense isn't their only issue. Miami went 14 for 28 in the second half to break open a game that was 40-all with 12:35 left.

In each of the Cavaliers' past four losses, their opponent has shot at least 47.5 percent from the floor.

"There's some limitations, and we're trying to make the most of it," Bennett said. "We had two days to prepare hard [for Miami]. We tried to really work defensively, and work on some spacing offensively. I thought we got some good looks. I really did. If you get good looks, and you can't knock 'em down, well, you gotta keep taking them."

Meyinsse battled valiantly inside, totaling 13 points and 7 rebounds, both ACC highs for the senior from Baton Rouge, La., and he also had a career-best 3 assists. But with Scott out of sync, the 'Canes outscored the 'Hoos 36-16 in the paint.

"They're athletic, and they're strong in the interior," Bennett said.

Between them, power forward Dwayne Collins and center Julian Gamble shot 13 for 19 from the floor, scored 31 points, grabbed 18 rebounds, dished out 8 assists and blocked 3 shots.

"I thought our bigs were outstanding," Haith said.

So was Landesberg, who'd averaged only 9.7 points in his previous three games. Against Miami, he took a blow to his right thigh with 11:49 left in the first half, but persevered through the pain and had the best shooting night, by far, of his college career from long range.

Before Tuesday night, he'd never made more than three treys as a Cavalier. Landesberg went 6 for 8 from beyond the arc against the Hurricanes and finished with a game-high 27 points.

"I just felt real confident," Landesberg said. "At shootaround today and practice yesterday, I got a few extra shots up, and that built my confidence."

Bennett said: "Sylven shot the ball great, hit some tough shots, got some good looks. But it was hard for us. We didn't get much inside."

Landesberg's floater with 13:52 left capped an 8-2 run that pulled UVa to 40-40. But Miami scored 18 of the next 23 points and then hit its free throws late to keep the Cavaliers at bay.

In a game in which Bennett tightened his rotation -- Mustapha Farrakhan didn't play, and Jontel Evans logged only three minutes -- junior guard Jeff Jones came off the bench to contribute 11 points. Five of those points, however, came in the final 92 seconds, with the outcome decided.

His players' effort was better against Miami than in the losses to Maryland, Florida State and Clemson, Bennett said, "but our execution wanes as the game gets real physical or gets later on, and that's hurt us. We haven't been able to keep up.

"Seems like we can only go so long and so far, and then it unravels a little bit on both ends."

UVa has lost 12 consecutive games in the Sunshine State since winning at FSU on Feb. 17, 2001. It didn't help Tuesday night that the Cavaliers were playing on the road for the fourth time in five games, or that they were playing for the fifth time in 11 days overall.

How big a factor was fatigue?

"I don't know," Bennett said. "I really don't. I wish I could open up kids' minds and hearts and see what's going on."

Strength-and-conditioning coach Mike Curtis has kept the players physically fit, Bennett said, "but mental sharpness is huge for us, and we aren't a team that can afford mental breakdowns, nor physical breakdowns. We're on a fine line, and that's who we are, and we gotta embrace it. And that's why when we get to a certain point and it unravels, that's frustrating."

The Cavaliers' captains include swingman Solomon Tat, a seldom-used senior who suffered a concussion in pratice before the Feb. 13 game at Virginia Tech. Tat played six minutes at Miami, his first appearance since Jan. 31.

The losing is "tough, not just for us as the players, but also for the coaches, because they're trying their best to pull something out of it," Tat said.

"But I think as a captain, as a player, my own job is to keep encouraging the guys. We just gotta play to the end, make sure that every day we come out and play hard and give the coaches something to work with."

The 'Hoos don't play again until Sunday night, when they host fifth-ranked Duke (11-2, 23-4) at JPJ.

"We just gotta stay confident," Landesberg said. "The season's coming close to an end, but we still got some games left, the ACC tournament's still there. We just gotta keep our heads up and keep believing."

 

Postgame Quotes
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com Release: 02/24/2010

Miami Head Coach Frank Haith

“Obviously I thought our guys played really well today. I thought our bigs were outstanding. These two guys
right here [Collins and Gamble] – just look at their numbers and what their production was, and to me, when
we play like that, it gives us a chance. We didn’t shoot the ball well, but we got great inside presence from
both these guys. I want to say that [James] Dews did a great job on [Sylven] Landesberg in the second half.
Landesberg was ready to play and he was a tough match-up for us. He was on, he was making threes,
which made it very tough for us in the first half, and I thought Dews did a really good job on him in the
second half.”

On interior defense…
“I thought our D was outstanding. They are a difficult team to guard because they run random motion, but I
thought our guys played extremely hard. When you look at the numbers, they shot 35 percent from the floor.
They made some threes on us, but I thought our guys played excellent.”

On 18-5 run in second half…
“I thought we still got out and ran in transition, but we got some easy buckets and we executed well. I
thought the biggest thing was that we got consecutive stops. We needed to get some consecutive stops,
and at that point, we got some consecutive stops and that really stretched it out for us.”

On holding Virginia’s Mike Scott to zero field goals…
“Well I think that’s Julian [Gamble]. Julian guarded him most of the night and did a great job on him. Julian
had a career game for us on both ends of the court. Mike missed some shots, but I thought we did a great
job on him.”
________________________________________

Miami Sophomore Julian Gamble

On effect interior play has on success…
“I think it makes us more of a threatening offense if me and Dwayne can both produce inside, but at the
same time, we have a lot of shooters around and they’re just knocking down open shots. Dwayne or myself,
we’re not selfish players. Dwayne passes out of the double team well, and if I’m driving and I don’t have it,
I’ll kick it out to one of the shooters and normally they’re going to knock it down.”

On progression since being inserted in starting lineup…
“Progression wise, I feel like I just have to go out and do what coach says. He talked to me yesterday about
being a really aggressive rebounder, so I made that a focus today, as well as playing good defense on Mike
Scott. I just feel like I go out there and go my hardest – good things will happen.”

Miami Senior Dwayne Collins

On imposing his will inside…
“They doubled at times. They doubled real strongly at the beginning of the game, and I passed it out pretty
well. Then they stopped doubling and we were able to make one-on-one moves and move around in the
post a lot better.”

On eight points during 18-5 run..
“My teammates found me. I was open a lot during my runs, I had a lot of dump offs and stuff like that. They
just lost me at times.”
________________________________________

Virginia Head Coach Tony Bennett

Comparing home and road games versus Miami…
“Obviously we had more energy. It’s a role reversal with us in Miami. We’re certainly struggling and we need
everybody to play well. When one or two of our key guys struggle, it’s hard for us to overcome it. We had
two days to prepare hard. We tried to really work defensively and on some spacing offensively. I thought we
got some good looks.”

On team’s struggles…
“There were just some breakdowns. We were in there for the first half and just couldn’t make them earn
enough. A key breakdown here or there makes a big difference. We can’t let them shoot a high percentage.”

On Collins’ and Gamble’s inside play…
“They used their athleticism or their strength to get some offensive rebounds or just make some plays at the
end of the shot clock. They’re athletic and they’re strong on the interior. They can shoot it on the perimeter
too. When we played them the first time they were struggling with their shot.”

On Miami’s second-half run…
“I thought we were better in this game. I thought we had to come up with some key stops and make some
buckets. I thought we got some good looks even when they got up six or eight…we just didn’t finish. I
thought we were hanging in there for a while. I told them you just keep fighting and keep trying to execute.
Their effort is pretty good, but our execution wanes as the game gets real physical later on and that has hurt
us.”
 

Slumping Cavaliers fall to Miami for sixth consecutive loss
By Zach Berman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, February 24, 2010

MIAMI -- As midnight neared on Jan. 16, Virginia's players left John Paul Jones Arena after beating Miami by 18 points to remain undefeated in the ACC and atop the conference standings.

The team reveled in newfound praise. Players spoke of an infusion of confidence. Pundits discussed the team's NCAA tournament possibilities.

On Tuesday night, those players left Miami's BankUnited Center after a 74-62 loss to the Hurricanes. The program with NCAA tournament aspirations in January can now only hope to finish with a winning record, while it suffers from a complete lack of confidence and failure to grasp the reality of its deficiencies.

"We're certainly struggling, and we need everyone to play well," Coach Tony Bennett said. "When one or two of our key guys are off, it's hard for us to overcome that. As I've said before, there are some limitations and we're trying to make the most of it."

That Virginia (14-12, 5-8 ACC) lost is not a surprise, considering the Cavaliers have dropped six consecutive games. That Virginia lost by such a large margin is not a surprise, either, considering the Cavaliers have suffered four consecutive double-digit digit losses.

But the surprise was that Virginia shrunk down the stretch, when the game seemed within reach. Miami (18-9, 4-9) is not of the same caliber of the other ACC foes that beat Virginia during the losing streak, all of whom had winning records in the conference.

The Cavaliers trailed only by a point at halftime and were tied at 40 with 13 minutes 53 seconds remaining. The Hurricanes embarked on an 18-5 run and later extended its lead to 18 points.
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"We've won games before, so you can't act like we've never won games," said guard Sylven Landesberg, who led Virginia with 27 points. "We've been in position, and we know how to handle that. This was just another one of those games where we had a position to win, and we just didn't handle it the right way."

At one point during the losing streak, Virginia wondered whether it could find a consistent second scorer. At another point, Bennett called for a third scorer. There has never been any question about the top scorer, but Landesberg remains the only reliable option.

He hit a career-high six three-pointers and made 8 of 14 shots overall, mostly from the outside because of multiple ailments. Landesberg was icing his right thigh after the game and said the entire thigh was swollen.

When Bennett alluded to the struggles of "one or two of our key guys," he was indirectly referring to forward Mike Scott. The supposed second scorer for Virginia, Scott was held scoreless for the first time this season and missed all seven of his field goals.

"He was not in sync tonight at all," Bennett said.

Bennett played Scott only 22 minutes, and the program's first-year coach continued his ongoing effort of juggling the lineup to come up with something -- anything -- that will work. Virginia started its fourth different lineup in as many games Tuesday, and shortened the rotation so that only seven players played more than 10 minutes.

Bennett kept Assane Sene in the rotation, played seldom-used senior forward Solomon Tat for six minutes, relegated key reserve Mustapha Farrakhan to the bench the entire game and barely played usual starter Jontel Evans.

"When you're in our spot, you try different things," Bennett said. "Obviously we try not to change too much of what we've done, but we're trying personnel, a little bit juggling the lineup, shortening the rotation."

Three different players mentioned fatigue, and Tuesday was the final game of a five-games in 11-days stretch that effectively brought the Cavaliers from tournament contention to ACC detention. Virginia lacked the talent to withstand such a stretch, and Bennett often admits that the team's current state is simply where the program resides in its rebuilding process.

Duke awaits next for Virginia on a schedule that also includes Maryland. One more victory ensures a winning regular season in Bennett's first year at Virginia, but even that appears difficult given the way Virginia has played since it last faced Miami.

"This team doesn't have a lot of talent," Sene said. "If our [scoring] leaders aren't showing up, it's going to be a little bit hard for us to win."


 

'Canes paint loss on Virginia
Miami, led by Dwayne Collins, outscores the Cavaliers 36-16 in the lane area.
By Craig Barnes
Special to The Roanoke Times

CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- Sylven Landesberg's 27 points gave Virginia a chance on Tuesday night, but the Cavaliers' overall poor shooting and inability to defend Miami inside made the difference in a 74-62 loss to the Hurricanes.

The loss was the sixth in a row for Virginia (14-12, 5-8 ACC) and four of the losses have come on the road.

Landesberg, who played most of the game with a bruised right thigh, didn't miss from 3-point range until 5:19 remained in the game. His five 3-pointers led to his third highest point total of the season.

His shooting wasn't matched by his teammates. Landesberg was 8-for-14, and the rest of the Cavaliers were 12-for-43 (28 percent) as the team shot 35 percent, its same percentage over the six losses.

"We have to have all our guys play well," Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. "If not, we can only go so far for so long before things begin to unravel."

Landesberg scored 16 points in the first half, including 4-for-4 on 3-pointers to keep Virginia in a challenging position, albeit trailing 33-32 at halftime.

His first half was a point short of his season's best 17 at Auburn on Dec. 7 and matched his total at North Carolina on Jan. 31.

"My attacking, the strength of my game, was restricted by my inability to move [because of the thigh]," Landesberg said. "I had to rely on the jump shot. I got some good looks and converted them, but it wasn't enough."

Not when Mike Scott, who averages 13.4 points for the season, is shutout for the first time this season, and Jerome Meyinsse with 13 points and Jeff Jones with 11 points are the only other double-figure scorers.

"I really thought we got some good looks," Bennett said, "but we just didn't finish, especially in the second half. Sylven made some shots in the first half and kept us in it."

Other than leading 25-21 at Virginia Tech, the halftime deficit was the smallest faced by the Cavaliers during the losing streak. For each Miami run in the first half, Virginia had an answer that it couldn't find in the second half.

"We were in there in the first half," Bennett said, "and just couldn't make them earn enough. A key breakdown here or there makes a big difference. We can't let them shoot a high percentage [47 percent for the game]."

The Cavaliers stayed closed until 13:53 remained when Landesberg's jumper tied the game at 40-40, the fifth time it was tied.

From that point, the Hurricanes (18-9, 4-9), who are 12-2 at the BankUnited Center, went on an 18-5 run during the next 7:38 to take a commanding 58-45 lead. A Dwayne Collins layup with 6:15 left capped the burst.

Collins finished with 18 points, 12 in the second half, and Julian Gamble, who also had 12 rebounds for his second career double-double, had 13 points, seven in the second half, when the Hurricanes took control in the paint.

In the decisive Miami run, Collins had eight points and Gamble five points.

For the game, Miami outscored Virginia 36-16 in the paint, held a 39-31 rebounding edge and an 11-9 advantage in second-chance points.

"Our presence in the paint was the key to the game," Miami coach Frank Haith said. "Landesberg is a tough match-up for us. He was on in the first half making some tough shots for 3-pointers.

"In the second half, [James] Dews got into him good and made him curl it back inside. We wanted him to do anything but shoot the 3-pointer. We also got some consecutive stops that we didn't get in the first half."

Meyinsse, whose point total was his second highest of the season, was outmanned inside.

"They made shots deep in the shot block, which you can't let happen, and their strength and athleticism helped them on the offensive board," Meyinsse said. "Collins is a good player, and Gamble had a big game."

Virginia beat Miami 75-57 in Charlottesville earlier in the season, but the Cavaliers were clearly playing much better at the time.

"It is a bit of role reversal," Bennett said when asked about the difference in the two games. "They are solid at home, and we have been struggling."

Fatigue could also be a factor. The Cavaliers have played in five states and six arenas over the six-game losing streak. The last time a Virginia team played in five arenas in 11 days was in 1978.

"The effort was still there," Bennett said. "Our players stayed after it, but during the losing streak, our execution seems to wane a little later in the game. With our small margin for error, we can't afford it."

The Cavaliers return home Sunday to face No. 5 Duke.

"We just have to keep our heads up," Landesberg said. "We have some games left. We have to keep trying to regain the edge that we had early in the season. It will be good to play at home again."

Miami sends UVa to 6th straight loss
By Whitey Reid
Published: February 24, 2010
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CORAL GABLES, Fla. — During his tenure, former Virginia coach Dave Leitao was often criticized for his unpredictable substitution patterns. Leitao always defended them by saying that there wasn’t a lot of “separation” among players on his roster.

First-year UVa coach Tony Bennett is finding out the same thing this season — the hard way.

On Tuesday night against Miami, Bennett seemed to be trying everything short of bringing in former Wahoo (and current assistant coach) Jason Williford to break a five-game losing streak.

Bennett reinserted seniors Calvin Baker and Jerome Meyinsse into his starting lineup, benched forward Mike Scott for a good portion of the second half and even dusted off seldom-used senior Solomon Tat, who hadn’t played in six games.

None of Bennett’s moves did much good.

Virginia was non-competitive yet again, running its losing streak to six against Miami, 74-62, in front of an extremely sparse crowd of 3,909.

“It’s a role reversal with us and Miami,” said Bennett, alluding to his team’s 75-57 trouncing of the Hurricanes at home on Jan. 16. “We’re certainly struggling.

“It’s hard for us to play well when one or two of our key guys are off — it’s hard for us to overcome that.”

Virginia sophomore Sylven Landesberg certainly brought his ‘A’ game, scoring a game-high 27 points. Landesberg nailed a career-high six 3-pointers.

However, he had to play the second half with a thigh injury that he said affected his performance. To make matters worse, none of Landesberg’s teammates could do much of anything. Nearly seven minutes into the second half, Landesberg had accounted for 21 points, more than half of the team’s total of 40.

After the game, a dejected Landesberg sat on a chair with a giant ice pack on his leg.

“It’s really swelling,” he said. “I can’t bend it or move it too well. I was trying the best I [could], but I couldn’t really move too well ... that’s why I had to rely a little more on the jumpshot than going to the basket.

“I think if [the injury] didn’t happen, I could have done a lot more.”

In the first half, the lead changed 12 times. Landesberg single-handedly kept Virginia (14-12, 5-8 ACC) in the game. The sophomore scored 16 of his points, which included four 3-pointers, in the opening stanza. Miami (18-9, 4-9) led 33-32 at the break.

The game was tied at 40 with 13:40 remaining following a Landesberg floater. But Miami exploded on an 8-0 run. A 3-pointer from Miami’s Adrian Thomas a couple of possessions later, which was followed by a hustling offensive put-back basket by Dwayne Collins (team-high 18 points) pushed the lead to 13.

All game long, Virginia was dominated inside by Collins and Julian Gamble (13 points, 12 rebounds).

Scott, who was 0-7 from the field with just two rebounds in 22 minutes, finished scoreless for just the second time in his career.

“Mike was not in sync at all tonight,” Bennett said.

With games against Duke, Boston College and Maryland looming, the question now becomes — can Virginia win another game this season?

UVa has lost its last four by an average of 18 points.

“I’m just looking at the next game,” Meyinsse said. “I’m not trying to look at the end yet. Now we just need to rest and try our best to get ready for Duke on Sunday.

“I think we need to take a couple of days to recover ... both physically and mentally.”

Added Landesberg: “We just have to stay confident. The season’s coming close to an end, but we still have some games left, and the ACC tournament is still there.

“We just have to keep our heads up and keep believing.”

That task seems to be getting harder by the game.

Dunks

Virginia lost its 12th consecutive game in the state of Florida. ... Senior center Jerome Meyinsse set ACC career highs with 13 points and seven rebounds. ... Junior guard Mustapha Farrakhan was a DNP-coach’s decision for the first time this season. ... Former Miami football stars Warren Sapp and Rohan Marley were in attendance.
 

Cold-shooting Virginia Cavs, Dwayne Collins carry Canes
Virginia shot well from three-point range but struggled elsewhere as Miami's Dwayne Collins and Julian Gamble dominated inside.
By ADAM H. BEASLEY
abeasley@MiamiHerald.com

Designers of the modern game of basketball surmised -- logically -- that the closer one is to the hoop, the easier the shot. That's why efforts from inside 20 feet, 9 inches count as two points; those beyond that length are good for three.

Logic didn't apply to the University of Virginia on Tuesday night. Despite connecting on a respectable 41.7 percent of their three-point attempts, the Cavaliers were atrocious from closer -- much to the benefit of the Miami Hurricanes. UM limited Virginia to just 10 of 33 shooting from inside the arc to roll past the free-falling Cavs 74-62 at BankUnited Center.

``I thought our defense was outstanding,'' said UM coach Frank Haith, whose team improved to 18-9 (4-9 Atlantic Coast Conference). ``We played extremely hard.''

The victory, just the Canes' third in their past 11 games, significantly improved their postseason hopes. The loss likely doomed any NCAA aspirations for the Cavs (14-12, 5-8), losers of six in a row.

Short of winning the ACC tournament, both teams are likely jockeying for NIT berths, and UM certainly helped its cause. The win was a complete reversal of the last time the two teams played, Jan. 16, when the host Cavs routed the Canes 75-57.

``Obviously, I think we're playing better and they're not playing as well as they were at that time,'' Haith said. ``I think we caught Virginia at the right time.''

Virginia missed in every way imaginable. The Cavs clanged jump shots. They blew open lay-ups. Starting forward Mike Scott, who entered averaging 13.4 points per game, was blanked, missing all seven of his field-goal attempts.

And twice when it looked like Virginia had sure buckets, Miami forward Dwayne Collins blasted the shot off the glass.

Collins and sophomore center Julian Gamble dominated the paint, offensively and defensively. Collins led the Canes with 18 points and added six rebounds and five assists. Gamble, who has started the past five games, tallied 13 points and 12 rebounds and was a constant thorn in Scott's side.

``Julian probably had a career game on both ends of the court,'' Haith said.

Added Gamble: ``It makes us more of a threatening offense. If we can produce on the inside, then we have open shots from the outside.''

While the Canes pulled away late, they led by just one at the break, due largely to the efforts of Sylven Landesberg. Virginia's sophomore guard went for 16 points before the intermission, connecting on all four of his first-half three-point attempts.

Landesberg finished with a game-high 27 points on 8-for-14 shooting.

But the other nine Cavs who played Tuesday were a combined 12 of 43 from the field.
 

Cavaliers look for positive end to season
OUR LEAGUE: Cavaliers look for positive end to season
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: February 24, 2010
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Scattershooting around the ACC, while wondering what it’s going to take for Virginia to finish the season on a positive note ...

The Cavaliers fell on the road against Miami on Tuesday night for their sixth straight defeat, marking the program’s fifth-longest losing streak in 13 years.

I used to believe that a team that couldn’t score couldn’t win, and I still believe that to a degree, although Virginia Tech is making me reevaluate that notion. The Hokies are the worst shooting team in the league, but still average 72 points per game, and are currently in third place in the ACC.

Virginia, the next-to-last team in the league in shooting percentage (.432) is currently eighth in the conference, which is about what most of us that cover the team expected, even though preseason voting by ACC-wide media had the Cavaliers 11th.

While UVa averages a league-low 67.2 points per game, things have gotten worse during the five-game streak heading into last night. In those five straight losses, the Cavs have averaged 56.1 points per game.

One of the facts pointed out by critics when Virginia hired Tony Bennett last spring was whether a more deliberate offense could win in the ACC. Frankly, I believe that was a bad rap, because Bennett has nothing against getting out and running the break or an up tempo if it’s to the Cavaliers’ favor.

Still, the 56.1 points is an alarming number, deriving more from poor shooting than pace. You’re not going to win many games in the ACC scoring 56 points.

In fact, of the 315 games played by ACC teams so far this season (prior to Tuesday night), only one team has won a game by scoring 56 or fewer points (Florida State’s 54-49 victory over Iona on Nov. 26 of last year).

Virginia has more problems than just offense. The Cavs are last in the ACC in field goal percentage defense (.437) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.354), last in rebounding offense (34.8 per game), and last in blocked shots (meaning a deficiency in post defense).

Stat of the week

What team has the best freshman class in the ACC? Looks like Georgia Tech, which is playing four freshmen a lot of minutes and getting 31.1 points per game out of them: Derrick Favors, Glen Rice, Jr., Mfon Udofia and Brian Oliver.

That group is also responsible for 16.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.

Problem is, Favors, who had 21 points and 18 rebounds in that last-second loss to Maryland last weekend, is expected to be a One-N-Done guy.

Quote of the week

During his weekly radio coaches show chat with Virginia Tech play-by-play man Bill Roth, Hokies’ coach Seth Greenberg, perhaps the most quotable coach in the ACC, was asked by Roth about the upcoming (Saturday) home game against Maryland, a huge game that could settle second place in the league.

Roth asked if it’s true that both the Hokies and the Terps have taken on the personality of their coaches, the colorful and demonstrative Greenberg and the sometimes-volatile Williams, who often chews on his assistant coaches, sometimes players, on the Maryland bench.

Greenberg paused, then said: “Poor guys,” bringing chuckles from everyone within an earshot.

Honors update

Our midseason vote for coach and player of the year went to Virginia’s Tony Bennett and Slyven Landesberg, but as we hit the home stretch of the ACC season, things have changed a bit.

Coach of the year looks like a three-horse race between Maryland’s Gary Williams, Virginia Tech’s Seth Greenberg and Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, unless something changes dramatically.

You have to hand it to Greenberg. His team keeps grinding and finding ways to win although the Hokies are last in the ACC in field goal percentage. Tech wins with defense and toughness for the most part — the Hokies are second in the league in scoring defense at 62.2, behind only Duke.

Player of the year? Landesberg is still a contender, but just like last year, his numbers are tailing off in the second half of the conference schedule. Teams finally figured it out — stop Landesberg and you’ve stopped the Cavs.

Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez seems to have taken the lead on player of the year, while Duke’s Jon Scheyer and Tech’s Malcolm Delaney remain in the conversation.

The home stretch

ACC teams are jockeying hard for the top four spots in the league and first-round byes in the ACC tournament, which will be held in Greensboro, N.C.

Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Florida State and Clemson are battling hard for the last two spots, while Duke is a shoo-in and Maryland is sitting pretty if the Terps can hold off Clemson at the Comcast Center tonight. A win by the Tigers would make things really interesting, with five teams fighting for three spots.

Clemson might have the toughest assignment of the bunch considering that three of the Tigers’ last four games are on the road. The Tigers have only one league road win.

Free throws

Carolina coach Roy Williams said rumors linking injured sophomore Ed Davis to an agreement with a sports agent are totally false. Otherwise, Davis would be automatically ineligible. ... Watch out for Duke if unlikely hero Brian Zoubek, whom Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg described as a “mountain disguised as a man,” continues to improve over the next few weeks. The 7-foot-1, 260-pound Zoubek is averaging 12.7 rebounds and 9.7 points over the Devils’ last three games. ... Speaking of Duke, the Devils have won two games this season, including Sunday’s win over visiting Virginia Tech by shooting less than 30 percent from the field (29 percent vs. the Hokies). The last time Duke shot less than 30 percent and won was in 1950. ... Is Wake Forest about to pull another late-season swoon like last year? The Deacs will try to snap a two-game losing streak when they host hapless North Carolina on Saturday in perhaps the ACC’s most underrated rivalry. Wake, by the way, is coming off another loss at N.C. State, where the Deacs have lost their last five visits, including four in a row to a Sidney Lowe-coached team. ... And, no, it wasn’t Gary Williams that called timeout before Greivis Vasquez’ near-halfcourt buzzer-beater for Maryland against Georgia Tech on Saturday. Assistant coach Keith Booth, a former Terrapins star, is the one that called the timeout on the potential winning shot, which Cliff Tucker finished on a second buzzer-beater with 1.5 seconds to go after the timeout. ... You ever wonder why Dick Vitale does the Hooters commercials every year? Good reason. Hooters is a heavy contributor to the Jimmy V Fund for curing cancer. Now, if we could just figure out why Jimmy Johnson is doing those spots for Extenze?
 

The future at point guard for Virginia basketball

Virginia signed five players for the Class of 2010, and not a single player is a point guard. When the class was put together, the Cavaliers were young at point guard with sophomore Sammy Zeglinski and freshman Jontel Evans.

However, Zeglinski has been used as a shooting guard more this season. Evans still has much work to do on his offense. Coach Tony Bennett's offense does not call for a pure point guard, as the point guard's primary role in his system is simply to bring the ball past half court. But recruit Joe Harris said Bennett wants more combo guards, and that he can play that role.

That said, anyone who watches college basketball realizes the value of a point guard. There is still time to add a player to next season's class if a current player transfers or leaves early. But if Virginia continues with what is currently on the roster, Zeglinski and Evans are the point guards for the 2010-11 season. (The Cavaliers appear to have the position a priority for the 2011 recruiting class.)

"That's something every coach looks at," Bennett said. "What's the saying? You can never have enough point guards. Hopefully those guys will improve, and hopefully we'll get some help from some of the other players coming in."

Bennett said at times, he's confident in the current group of point guards. At lother times, he feels there's much improvement from those players. Some of Virginia's current struggles stem from the lack of production from the point guard spot.

"That's an important spot as far as creating, maybe if you're struggling," Bennett said. "It doesn't necessarily have to be the point guard, but you need a guy who can create easier buckets for his teammates. That's important whether it's driving and drawing for people, getting some easy baskets, getting a nice bucket in transition. Just doing the little things. We've been playing Sammy at times as a combo, too, and I think Jontel knows he needs to go to work in a big way in the offseason in trying to tighten up his shot and become more of a threat. When that happens, that'll help."

By Zach Berman

Bennett must weigh present vs. future with lineup decisions

As excited as Virginia fans became when the Cavaliers jumped to a quick start in the ACC season, it never changed the fact that Tony Bennett was not hired to win this season. He was hired to build a program that, as he says, will last.

This is among the reasons why it became so surprising that Tristan Spurlock remained on the bench throughout the season. If he has a future in the program, one would think Bennett and the coaching staff would want to see what the promising freshman forward could do.

Bennett has tilted the other way, playing experienced seniors such as Jerome Meyinsse and Calvin Baker significant minutes. It’s a respectable decision, although it’s one made more for this season than next season.

However, Bennett started sophomore center Assane Sene on Saturday against Clemson. One of the reasons was that Bennett wanted to see what Sene could offer.

Virginia is 5-7 in the ACC. Its only hope at the NCAA tournament at this point appears to be an improbable run to the ACC tournament championship. Given where the current team resides in the standings, it makes sense to wonder whether Bennett will give his younger players more of a chance during these final two weeks to see what they have to offer.

“We’re still trying to win the games,” Bennett said. “You look at that, but we’re searching. Whether it’s year five or year one, we’re searching. We’re taking a look at different things. By no means am I like, ‘Wow, I’m not going to play this guy…', but I’m doing ‘you try, you try’, and that’s where we’re at.”

By Zach Berman

FSU's Team Philosophy: Reason For Tony Bennett to Break The Honor Code
Allen J. Kha
Featured Columnist
Written on February 24, 2010

As Virginia basketball continues its free fall into ACC irrelevance, it's probably time to shift away from the contender mindset and prepare for the future. This article is filed a bit late considering the game primarily referenced (Virginia's February 17 loss to FSU, 69-50) in this article took place last week, but some points stood out about the game which merit further thought and consideration.

I want to note that I will be stating the obvious in the text I write below. The Cavaliers are obviously one of the less talented teams in the ACC, and will struggle to contend for the next few seasons. This article will seek to discuss avenues to maximize the current and incoming talent so the Cavaliers can perform well in the short-term. Simply speaking as a fan, I have a general impression of how I want the player-personnel to sort out— it's a lot like designing player roles for a baseball team, where we might want an ideal eight-hitter to hit at a .270 clip with a good OBP and run production—and will outline my ideas below.

I'm going to put my GM hat on for this article and explore our personnel options for the impending years, the upcoming scouting class considered.

Virginia and Florida State, coming into last Wednesday's game, were two teams with different styles and tendencies going in opposite directions. Virginia, becoming heavily reliant on Landesburg and Scott and missing a third scorer, was in the midst of a deep skid from ACC grace, continued with tonight's loss to Miami. Florida State, on the other hand, pulled through a tough ACC stretch to keep a hold on its dancing chances.

I don't admit to knowing much about Florida State's personnel and style of play, but I figure that Tony Douglas' departure has made them a more balanced team, out of necessity. I'm not much of a sabermetrician, but it turns out that statistics don't lie about the balanced nature of Florida State's team: coming into last Wednesday's game, only two starters averaged more than 10.0 PPG, but all starters averaged at least 8.0-ish PPG; the assists tally was fairly distributed too.

Loucks, Dulkys, and Kitchen were all solid with passing the ball, drove as needed, and shot well. Florida State boiled the game down to the fundamentals, at times beating Virginia on simple kick-outs from the driving guards to open shooters. In addition, Alabi provided a good post option when all else failed (despite his foul trouble, if I recall the game correctly).

Virginia, on the other hand, is far too reliant on the Landesburg/Scott tandem on offense. When Virginia's offense is much like Florida State's in its stressing of ball-movement, the Cavalier offense looked too static. This tendency to rely on key players is fine and normal for all teams, but detrimental in the Cavaliers's case because of their death of alternative scoring options and lack of confidence on offense.

As frequently mentioned in common analysis, the Cavaliers need consistent options to compliment Scott and Landesburg to buffer bad nights from either of the players and defeat defensive schemes focused on the scoring tandem. Zeglinski, Jones, and Farrakhan are all good players in their own rights, but all are also woefully erratic.

I'm going to assume that Virginia's defensive excellence holds constant in this analysis. With Tony Bennett at the helm, I expect a solid defense that will hold most opponents to less than 60.0-ish PPG. Offense, consequently, will be the factor that will help Virginia win games and championships, as contrarian as it seems.

Virginia finds itself extremely fortunate that only two players of note will graduate at year's end: Meyinsse and Baker. Coming in are two ESPN100 players: PF James Johnson and SG J.T. Harrell; and three other complimentary players: Regan, Mitchell, and Harris.

For a school of Virginia's reputation (basketball-wise), Tony Bennett has hauled an above-our-league recruiting class. Bennett's first recruiting class alone will both cover losses from graduating players and increase team depth and skill.

In the post, Regan and Johnson have extremely similar playing styles to Mike Scott— they both exhibit solid post play and extended range on the offensive end. Johnson is great on the defensive end as well, and could very well develop into Virginia's low-post cog on defense. Considering Meyinsse is the only substantial post player graduating, Bennett's recruiting haul will improve post play, provide starting competition for Mike Scott, and provide bench competition for Will Sherrill. The addition of Poole (undecided but leaning towards UVA) would further increase depth and add a quality D-I glue player.

On the perimeter, Harrell will provide an immediate impact to the Cavaliers's offense and defense. I'll refrain myself from signaling his superstar potential, but he is an amazing player. Harrell should compliment Landesburg as a complete perimeter scoring option, driving and shooting. Assuming Landesburg can maintain a consistent jump shot, the Harrell/Landesburg combination could be extremely dangerous. Bench-wise, Harris is a wiry wing that plays a lot like Zeglinski, and Mitchell is a seemingly solid role player.

If Tristan Spurlock improves enough on defense to merit more substantial playing time (which could be a huge brick wall since he looked lost in the scrap minutes against FSU), another multi-dimensional offensive threat is added to the field. Furthermore, if one-dimensional players like Jontel Evans can develop their weak spots (for Jontel, some sort of shot), Virginia will be an even more complete and formidable team.

In my aforementioned analysis, I'm assuming that all of the recruits will play to their scouting reports and have impacts. I understand that this assumption isn't reasonable, but I concurrently am not expecting our recruits to have one-and-done impacts. Bennett's recruits are all solid, and should provide immediate contributions.

Anyways, my vision of the Virginia offense presents a 3G/2F starting lineup. Assuming Spurlock earns a starting spot, I see Harrell and Landesburg taking the other two guard spots. Offensively, this presents an ideal situation since all of the three guards are creative and can score.

Considering Virginia does not possess a true point guard, I see little issue with leaving players such as Evans and Zeglinski on the bench. Certain game matchups leaving room for starting lineup tinkering, but I believe that the Harrell/Landesburg/Spurlock combination provides the most dynamic and formidable basketball lineup. Bennett's offense is an offense that preaches ball movement and good shooting from all players anyways, so the absence of a true point guard isn't terrible.

Spurlock and Landesburg also have shown the ability to handle the ball as well as the current de facto point guard Zeglinski. Having a Harrell/Landesburg/Spurlock lineup provides offensive spontaneity and diversity; while Zeglinski is a really good shooter and has offensive value, he is no Lee Humphrey, and would have more impact as a bench player than as a starter.

Dribble-drive excellence is constant in even the poorest shooting nights, so Virginia's ability to make offense on bad shooting nights will help the team win games, rather than stay in them as they have so often shown this year. The addition of better and more balanced offensive players will obviously improve the team.

In addition, the increased depth will allow us to play more man-to-man defense, which should improve our already solid defensive scheme.

Overall, we can all feel pretty confident that Virginia's dancing changes have gone by the wayside. The Cavalier's NIT chances have probably fallen hard as well. Nonetheless, with the first batch of recruits Bennett has coming in, Virginia basketball has immediate hope for success. I truly believe that the discovery of the right lineup and demonstration of tactical open-mindedness in Bennett's offensive philosophy will breed success next year.

The Cavalier's current offensive woes can be primarily attributed to a lack of confidence, despite the cries proclaiming lack of talent as the primary reason for the team's fall. The offensive is stagnant, and the players besides Landesburg are afraid of making mistakes (and consequently, plays). The players must recognize that even though they should hold firm to Bennett's offensive philosophy (like they are doing now), they must not be afraid to be creative and make plays (primarily through drives).

Bennett's upcoming recruiting class oozes quality, and this offensive creativity and confidence. Hopefully the filling of the current metaphorical hole by our recruits will make this year's semi-promising seasons a precursor to greatness.

Best of the decade: Athletes
Dan Stalcup
Sports
February 24, 2010 0

This is the final installment of my pseudo-weekly series about the best of the past decade from Virginia athletics. Today, I rank my choices for the greatest athletes of the decade. What I looked for was dominance, records, hardware — especially championships, MVPs, and All-American awards — and overall importance to their teams. As usual, I give a shout-out at the end to someone who couldn’t make the cut for the list.
There were some extremely difficult cuts to make it down to this list of 25. The toughest were 2009 first-team All-American Danny Hultzen, Ryan Zimmerman — who was great and a second-team All-American, but whose collegiate success is often overhyped largely because of his current popularity in the big leagues — and football guard Elton Brown, who was a first-team All-American.

1. Somdev Devvarman, men’s tennis
He won two national titles in singles, led one of the most dominating tennis teams of all time and elevated a program from solid to contender. He’s arguably the greatest college tennis player ever, or at least the most successful.

2. Tillman Johnson, men’s lacrosse, goalie
Goalies usually don’t get much love, but Tillman Johnson was picked by some members of the press as the 2003 National Player of the Year as he led the team to a title. Many consider him the greatest college goalie ever.

3. Chris Long, football, defensive end
It’s difficult to believe the 2007 season would’ve been even remotely competitive without the unanimous first-team All-American who finished 10th in Heisman voting and third nationally in sacks.

4. Ed Moses, swimming
As great as our men’s swimming program always is, our last national title came 10 years ago when Ed Moses snagged two of them.

5. Chris Rotelli, men’s lacrosse, midfielder
The player of the year awards that didn’t go to Tillman Johnson in 2003 went to midfielder Rotelli.

6. Amy Appelt, women’s lacrosse, attack
She not only shattered the school goals record and won the Tewaarton trophy but she also led Virginia to a national title in 2004. The team has come close since but hasn’t pulled it off since Appelt graduated.

7. Alecko Eskandarian, men’s soccer, forward
The only Virginia Hermann Award winner of the decade, Eskandarian won the Heisman of soccer in 2002.

8. Cara Lane, swimming
The year 2000 was a special one for the swimming team, as it won three national titles. Two went to Moses, and the third went to the dominant Cara Lane.

9. Sean Singletary, basketball, guard
Chances are you witnessed him firsthand or are at least familiar with his greatness and ability to take control of a game. Singletary is Virginia’s only All-American of the decade and has his name all over the record books. His number is rightfully retired.

10. Heath Miller, football, tight end
Pretty much the best tight end playing in college football from 2003-04, Miller became a unanimous first-team All-American and a cornerstone of a successful 2004 team.

11. Matt Ward, men’s lacrosse, attack
The headliner for the greatest lacrosse season in the sport’s history took home the Tewaarton Trophy in 2006 as well as an NCAA title.

12. Nikki Krzysik, women’s soccer, defense
Twice a first-team All-American, Krzysik became one of the most feared defenders of the decade for the Cavaliers.

13. D’Brickashaw Ferguson, football, offensive tackle
Perhaps the greatest Virginia offensive lineman since Jim Dombrowski, Ferguson did a lot more than make us marvel at his name. He was first-team All-American in 2004.

14. Steve Garland, wrestling
That’s right, our very successful wrestling coach is also one of the most successful wrestlers in Virginia history. He became an unlikely national runner-up in 2000, the first time a Virginia wrestler has reached the final two in the NCAA Tournament in more than 40 years.

15. Matt Schaub, football, quarterback
The most recent Virginia overall ACC Player of the Year was a highly skilled slinger in 2002.

16. Yemi Ayeni, track and field, discus/shot put
A national runner up in discus in 2008, Ayeni was a three-time All-American who just got better and better.

17. Jacob Thompson, baseball, pitcher
Virginia’s first-ever unanimous first-team All-American, Thompson was one of the best ace pitchers ever to play for the Cavaliers.

18. Catherine White, track and field/cross country
White just this school year became an All-American after Virginia achieved its best finish at NCAAs since winning the title in 1982.

19. Sharneé Zoll, women’s basketball, guard
She holds the ACC career record for assists, but — more importantly — rejuvenated a team that had suffered a few down years since the turn of the millennium.

20. Tim Foley, wrestling
Foley finished the NCAAs with the team’s only top-five finish this decade apart from Garland’s miracle finish in 2000. Foley also won an ACC title.

21. Ben Rubeor, men’s lacrosse, attack
Three times he made an All-American team, and his name is splattered all over Virginia record books.

22. James Driscoll, men’s golf
In 2000, Driscoll became the first Virginia golfer in 60 years to place in the top 10 in the NCAA title match with a ninth place finish. No one has come close since.

23. Sarah Huffman, women’s soccer, midfielder
Huffman led the mid-decade Cavaliers with two All-American selections, including a first-team selection in 2005.

24. Monica Wright, women’s basketball
It’s a shame I can’t include what’s happened in 2010 in this list because Wright would jump up quite a bit. Maybe to the top 10. But even during her first three years, she scored nonstop and made two honorable mention All-American teams.

25. Emil Heineking, track and field/cross-country
Simply noting that he twice won All-American honors doesn’t do justice to the way he absolutely crushed the field during the 2009 cross country championship en route to an ACC title.

Dan’s Salute: Tara McKnight, women’s basketball, guard

If you search “Tara McKnight” in The Cavalier Daily archives, you find four (now five) columns and a news article I wrote myself. It’s pretty strange I’d so often mention a backup and a walk-on who graduated in 2008. But then again, I watch “Rudy” at least twice a year and am pretty short myself, so I have a special place in my heart for people who overcome small bodies with big heart.