Virginia goes up big, rolls over American
By Whitelaw Reid / wreid@dailyprogress.com | 978-7247
December 29, 2006

For three days in Puerto Rico last week, the Virginia men’s basketball team didn’t do what it should have - dominate three inferior opponents and return to Charlottesville with suntans and smiles.

UVa’s seventh-place performance in the San Juan Shootout - which included losses to Appalachian State and Utah, and a narrow victory over winless Division II Puerto Rico-Mayaguez - was downright ugly.

“It almost looked comical at times,” said Virginia coach Dave Leitao. “It wasn’t funny, but we had three guys banging into each other and then one guy switches [on a screen], and then the other guy doesn’t … guys are guarding guys without the ball and then leaving the guy with the ball open.”

Thursday night, back in their cushy new digs at John Paul Jones Arena, Virginia did do what it was supposed to.

UVa’s 91-70 victory over American in front of a crowd of 13,126 isn’t about to erase the bitter memories from the Caribbean that had fans all riled up - but it’s certainly a start.

And it all began where Leitao wanted it to - on the defensive end.

Virginia (8-3) held American to just 24-percent shooting in the first half and took a 42-19 lead into the break.

“The bottom line is we still have to work to do, but I think in the amount of time that I’ve been here, that was about as good a 20 minutes of defense that you can play,” Leitao said. “I thought we really took them out of their rhythm.”

On the offensive end, Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds snapped out of their funk. Singletary had 33 points and six assists. Reynolds went off for 26 points. The duo combined to shoot 18 of 31 from the field, including 18 of 18 from the free-throw line.

“For both of them to play with the confidence and the speed and the energy that they did on both ends of the floor was quite pleasing,” Leitao said, “and hopefully it’s a sign of things to come as we get into better competition.”

Singletary came out very aggressive, scoring 13 of the team’s first 17 points.

“We felt comfortable back in here with our fans supporting us and put on a good performance,” Singletary said. “I was able to just work on my jumpshot. With my surgery I wasn’t able to get in the gym like I would have liked to and get game shots. … Hopefully I can keep rolling.”

The win by Virginia spoiled the return of former UVa coach Jeff Jones to Charlottesville. The Eagles coach said he had a feeling his team would be catching the Cavaliers at the wrong time.

“I can’t imagine that basketball team losing two games the way they did down in Puerto Rico,” Jones said. “They came out looking for a knockout punch right from the beginning.”

While Leitao was pleased with his team’s intensity level in the first half, he was upset with it in the second.

Virginia allowed American (7-5) to score 51 points after the break.

“I challenged them at halftime to be as good defensively in the second half as they were in the first,” Leitao said. “I almost didn’t want to go into the locker room and maybe do some defensive drills so that we could keep the intensity up.

“We did let up the intensity and allowed them [51] points, which is part of what got us into the trouble that we were in the last week or so.”

However, the team’s overall performance was much sharper than in any of the games in San Juan.

Reynolds said practices over Christmas - including a tough one on Christmas Day - got everyone refocused.

“It wasn’t a Christmas present that you like,” said Reynolds, with a laugh, “but it was good because guys knew what we had to do and were willing to work hard.”

Leitao, whose team hosts Gonzaga on Wednesday, continued to emphasize the obvious - his team is still a work in progress.

“The thing I haven’t quite figured out,” he said, “is how sometimes we can be so good and then other times we can not be so good.”

Dunks

Ryan Pettinella did not play. He will undergo arthroscopic surgery today to remove loose cartilage from his left knee and is expected to be out three to four weeks. “He provided us with energy and solid play this season,” Leitao said. “We look forward to having him back in action.”

… Will Harris got the first start of his college career and scored just two points in 24 minutes. He did have seven rebounds. … Jason Cain had a streak of 34 straight starts snapped. … Tunji Soroye started in place of Pettinella. Singletary cracked the 1,000-point plateau for his career.

 

Jones given welcome, whipping
Virginia enjoys a homecoming romp over former coach
BY BOB LIPPER
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Dec 29, 2006
U.VA. 91 AU 70

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Homecomings can cut both ways.

For Virginia's Cavaliers, last night's return to friendly confines meant expanded rims, renewed energy and their first win over a Division I opponent in nearly two weeks.

For Jeff Jones, it segued from being welcomed to being flattened.

Just this side of abysmal at the San Juan Shootout a week ago, Virginia trounced American 91-70 to move to 8-3 for the season and 7-0 in John Paul Jones Arena. Sean Singletary (33 points) and J.R. Reynolds (26) paced the Cavaliers -- Singletary, a junior, boosting his career total to 1,009 with his output.

The Cavs sank only 40.8 percent of their shots over three days in Puerto Rico and were lit up to the tune of 58.4 percent accuracy in double-digit losses to Appalachian State and Utah. Against American, the corresponding numbers were 49.1 and 40.7. The Eagles sagged to the 24 percent level in the first half.

"In the time I've been here, that's as good a 20 minutes of defense as we've played," said U.Va.'s second-year coach Dave Leitao. "We really took them out of their rhythm."

Singletary was the bellwether for his team's 180. An 8-for-36 scattershot in Puerto Rico -- that performance lowered his season's percentage from the floor to 32.5 -- he nailed his first four attempts last night, three from 3-point range. Given that kick-start, the Cavaliers made 12 of their first 24 shots to build a 37-13 cushion with just under five minutes left in the half and leave their tropical blues behind.

"We know we're better than that," Singletary said. "We know the program is better than that."

The turnaround came at Jones' expense. Making his first visit as an opponent to the campus where he led the Cavaliers four times in assists as a player and steered them to a 146-104 record during an eight-year coaching run that ended with his firing in 1994, he was given a video-screen tribute and warm round of applause from the crowd of 13,126 when introduced before tipoff.

After that, he watched his Eagles fall to 7-5 and was tagged with a second-half technical foul for good measure.

Jones' technical came shortly after the Eagles had trimmed a 23-point halftime deficit to 47-34 with 15:20 to go. Reynolds then scored eight straight points two on free throws following the whistle against Jones -- to restore order and give U.Va. a 55-34 advantage.

"It was pretty clear from the outset we caught those guys at the wrong time," Jones said. "I can't imagine those guys losing two games the way they did in Puerto Rico."

Virginia opened with a new lineup -- it was missing Ryan Pettinella, who'll have arthroscopic knee surgery today and be out three to four weeks -- and turnovers on its opening two possessions before settling down. Keyed by Singletary, the Cavs soon got in gear and ended any doubt about the outcome with a 16-0 surge for their 37-13 bulge.

Reynolds had four points and an assist and Mamadi Diane a pair of 3-pointers in the run, during which AU star Andre Ingram missed three shots en route to a 1-for-9 half.

Ingram, who paced Highland Springs High to a 2003 state championship, wound up 3 for 16 and with 14 points. Two years ago, he had a career-high 38 points at Virginia Commonwealth -- the sort of homecoming he would've preferred last night.

 

Cavaliers spoil Jones' return
Virginia gets 59 points from its backcourt of Sean Singletary and Roanoker J.R. Reynolds.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- There was nothing but applause Thursday night at John Paul Jones Arena when the public-address announcer introduced American University basketball coach Jeff Jones.

The team from Jones' alma mater was a little bit less hospitable.

Virginia raced to a 25-point lead in the first half and, with a 91-70 victory, helped remove some of the sting from its seventh-place showing in last week's San Juan Shootout.

UVa's starting backcourt of Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds combined for 59 points as the Cavaliers (8-3) improved their record to 7-0 in their new home.

"It was pretty clear from the outset that we caught these guys at the wrong time," said Jones, a former Virginia player, assistant coach and head coach. "I can't imagine that team losing two games the way they did in Puerto Rico."

UVa coach Dave Leitao had made defense a point of emphasis in practice and the Cavaliers held American (7-5) to seven field goals in the first half, when the Eagles shot 24.1 percent from the field.

"Jason Williford did the scouting report and one of the things he said was that they would be looking for the knockout punch right from the beginning," said Jones, who has three UVa graduates on his staff, including Williford. "We certainly didn't respond very well."

Singletary, who was 8-for-36 from the field in Virginia's three games in Puerto Rico, drained three 3-pointers in the first 6 12 minutes and scored 13 straight points for UVa after a pair of Tunji Soroye free throws.

"I had [hip] surgery and I had to get a certain amount of rest and I wasn't able to get in the gym like I like to get in the gym," said Singletary, who was 1-for-12 on 3-pointers in the San Juan Shootout. "This week, I felt good and I got a lot of shots up.

"We were embarrassed in Puerto Rico because those were teams [Appalachian State and Utah] that we never should have lost to. They were good teams, but we allowed them to take control of the games. We struggled out there. We were away from home. That's something we've got to work on."

Jones, the starting point guard on UVa's 1981 Final Four team and a one-time holder of UVa's career assist record, said he had never seen Singletary in person.

"Clearly, Sean Singletary is the real deal," Jones said. "We talked about trying to find ways to double-team him. With the way he makes plays, we'd still be out there trying to chase him."

Singletary's 33-point effort was two points off his career high of 35, set on the road last year at Gonzaga.

Reynolds finished with a season-high 26 points. It was the fourth time this season that he has scored 20 points or more, including three times in the last four games.

Singletary was 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, Reynolds was 8-for-8 and the Cavaliers were 27-of-28. UVa set a school record when it went 16-for-16 from the line against South Carolina in 1965, but its 96.4 percentage was its second-highest mark -- its highest while attempting more than 16 free throws.

UVa was 11-for-11 from the line in the first half, when it had a 16-0 run during one stretch and led 42-17 before going into the locker room up 42-19.

"In the short time I've been here, that's about as good a 20 minutes of defense as you can play," Leitao said. "It doesn't take long to watch [the Eagles] on film and know they have some weapons. I thought we really took them out of their rhythm."

American scored 51 points in the second half, which had to provide some consolation for Jones in his first return to UVa as a coach after his 1998 firing.

The homecoming "was not something that was addressed in any way, shape or form," said Jones.

 

Leitao goes on record: Singletary, Reynolds need to play better
Cain part of the equation
By Doug Doughty

The disappearance of my microcassette recorder and its subsequent mail-order replacement did not come at a good time when it came to coverage of the San Juan Shootout.

I would love to have a tape of the daily postgame conversations between Virginia men’s basketball coach Dave Leitao and Cavalier network analyst Jim “Hobbo” Hobgood, as well as Hobgood’s interview with senior guard J.R. Reynolds after a 59-52 UVa victory over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez in the seventh-place game.

The best I could do was break out a stopwatch and time the Leitao-Hobgood interview after Games 2 and 3. The first one lasted 75 seconds; the second lasted 82 seconds, with Hobgood doing most of the talking on both occasions.

More than a few people have noted the brusque manner in which Leitao dealt with Hobgood, who, if he’s not a Cavalier icon, is at least a respected former player.

Leitao’s point of emphasis in all three post-game sessions was that the Cavaliers can’t afford to worry about their offense until they get their defense straightened out. His take: When your defense improves, your shooting follows.

In that context, it was interesting to hear Reynolds refer to “a difference of philosophy” he has with Leitao. Reynolds said it has been his experience that, when shots start falling, defensive intensity automatically picks up.

Maybe there is a common ground: Don’t let up at either end of the floor.

In a Wednesday teleconference with Leitao, I raised the issue of early foul problems that plagued both Reynolds and Sean Singletary in an 80-69 loss to Appalachian State in the opening round and fouls that sidelined Reynolds for most of the first half in a 94-70 loss to Utah.

Leitao pointed out that Reynolds had fallen victim to foul problems even before the San Juan trip. Fouls derive “from not playing man-to-man the right way,” Leitao said.

“J.R. probably would be the first to admit that he’s played better defense in the past than he has recently. When you don’t do it the way he’s used to doing it, then you do tend to pick up fouls.

“His fouls have been at the offensive end, too, which has created a little bit of a dilemma and Sean has gotten in foul trouble as well. I think that speaks to our intensity defensively and not being of the right mindset.”

What’s hurt has been the absence of prospective third guard T.J. Bannister, who announced at the end of the summer that he was transferring to Liberty. UVa can switch Reynolds to point guard whenever Singletary out of the game, but that leaves the Cavaliers with only one dependable ball-handler.

“It’s no coincidence that the best defensive teams don’t foul as much,” Leitao said. “We obviously need those guys on the floor. The less they foul, the more they can be on the floor and the more effective we can be.

“At the other end, for both J.R. and Sean, the reality of it is, this team is set up with those two guys at the forefront. We’ve got to get the whole team, especially those two guys, to play better basketball and figuring out how to do that is all of our mission.

“We don’t have the luxury of a very large margin of error. Part of the reason that we’re not playing well is, Sean and J.R. aren’t playing well.”

Last week’s “Insider” dealt with another veteran player, 6-10 senior Jason Cain, a starter who did not get off the bench in the second half against Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and played a total of four minutes.

“Part of the reason we’re not playing well is, Jason is playing inconsistently,” Leitao said. “The reality of it is, we need people on the floor to play well and to play well more often than they don’t play well. He falls into that category and we’ll continue to challenge him.

“I know he has a lot of good basketball in him. Our job is to bring it out of him.”

Since the San Juan trip, Leitao has used his time to “assess and reassess” and determine if the Cavaliers’ performance was “a blip on the radar screen or an aberration,” he said, “or is that who we’re going to be? I think there’s an axiousness on all of our parts.”

The Cavaliers (7-3) return to action at 7:30 tonight against an American University team coached by Virginia alumnus and ex-coach Jeff Jones that has the potential to give UVa some problems. The Eagles (7-3) played Maryland to an 12-point game Saturday in College Park, Md.

The temptation is to assume that Virginia will win because the Cavaliers almost always win at home, especially against low- to mid-major opposition. On the flip side, they almost always lose at the road (and they’re not too good at neutral sites, either).

If you have to depend on winning all of your home games to post a winning record, eventually the pressure can become unbearable.
 

N.C. bar files charges against Duke D.A.
By AARON BEARD
Associated Press Writer

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- The North Carolina bar filed ethics charges Thursday against the prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse sexual assault case, accusing him of saying misleading and inflammatory things to the media about the athletes under suspicion.

The punishment for ethics violations can range from admonishment to disbarment. The complaint could also force District Attorney Mike Nifong off the case by creating a conflict of interest.

"He's got this hanging over his head," said Thomas Metzloff, a Duke law professor and member of the bar's ethics committee for the past 10 years. "It relates so much to his underlying conduct in the case."

Among the four rules of professional conduct that Nifong was accused of violating was a prohibition against making comments "that have a substantial likelihood of heightening public condemnation of the accused."

In a statement, the bar said it opened a case against Nifong on March 30, a little more than two weeks after a 28-year-old woman hired to perform as a stripper at a lacrosse team party said she was gang-raped.

The ethics charges will be heard by an independent body called the Disciplinary Hearing Commission, made up of both lawyers and non-lawyers. A date for the hearing has not been set.

Nifong did not immediately return a call for comment. But in an October interview with The Associated Press, he said his only regret in handling the case was speaking so often to the media in the investigation's early days.

"Certainly what I was trying to do was to reassure the community, to encourage people with information to come forward," Nifong said. "And that was clearly not the effect."

The bar cited 41 quotations and eight paraphrased statements made to newspaper and TV reporters, saying many of them amounted to "improper commentary about the character, credibility and reputation of the accused" or their alleged unwillingness to cooperate. Most of the comments were in March and April, in the early days of the case.

Among them:

- Nifong referred to the lacrosse players as "a bunch of hooligans."

- He declared: "I am convinced there was a rape, yes, sir."

- He told ESPN: "One would wonder why one needs an attorney if one was not charged and had not done anything wrong."

- He told The New York Times: "I'm disappointed that no one has been enough of a man to come forward. And if they would have spoken up at the time, this may never have happened."

Nifong was also charged with breaking a rule against "dishonesty, fraud, deceit and misrepresentation." The bar said that when DNA testing failed to find any evidence a lacrosse player raped the accuser, Nifong told a reporter the players might have used a condom.

According to the bar, Nifong knew that assertion was misleading, because he had received a report from an emergency room nurse in which the accuser said her attackers did not use a condom.

Defense attorney Joseph Cheshire, who represents one of the three athletes, declined to comment Thursday.

Last week, Nifong dropped the rape charges against the athletes after the stripper wavered in her story, saying she was no longer certain she was penetrated vaginally with a penis, as she had claimed several times before. The men still face charges of kidnapping and sexual offense.

In recent months - and especially after last week - legal experts and even Nifong's own colleagues have warned openly that the case appears pitifully weak.

"One wonders what the effect of this will be," Stan Goldman, who teaches criminal law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, said after the ethics charges were filed. "Is this going to result in him treating the case more gingerly and deciding it's not worth pursuing, or is he going to get his back up and decide he's got to pursue this case to the end regardless?"

The athletes, Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and David Evans, have maintained their innocence and called the charges "fantastic lies." The case is not expected to go to trial until at least the spring.

The weaknesses in the case include the lack of DNA evidence; the accuser's ever-shifting story; one player's claim to have an alibi supported by receipts and time-stamped photos; and the defense's insistence that the photo lineup that was used to identify the defendants violated police procedures and was skewed against the men.

Before the ethics charges were filed, Bob Brown, an attorney in private practice who once worked with Nifong in the prosecutor's office, predicted the case would be a "bloodbath" for the prosecution if it went to trial.

Among other questions raised in recent weeks: Why did it take months for anyone from Nifong's office to interview the accuser? And why did Nifong initially withhold from the defense DNA test results that found genetic material from several men - none of them Duke lacrosse players - on the accuser's underwear and body?

"I don't see how any member of the public can have confidence in this case. I think it's making a mockery of our criminal justice system to permit this guy to keep fumbling along," Duke University law professor James Coleman, one of Nifong's leading critics, said before the ethics charges were filed. "It's either total incompetence or it's misconduct on a scale that is extraordinary."