Today’s showing from the UVA Basketball team is today’s reminder of why I need to remember not to jump to early conclusions.
Because my early conclusion on this UVA Basketball team, after two meh wins over Campbell and Coppin State, was that this team was on the verge of being in big trouble, and soon.
Ron Sanchez, who is the head coach – the term interim is dumb, and I’m not going to use it with him anymore; Sanchez is the coach until somebody decides that he isn’t, like every other coach in sports – seemed to be settled on having Andrew Rohde as his point guard, which, come on, we all saw the kid struggle all last season, averaging 4.3 points per game and shooting under 30 percent.
If Rohde was the best option at point, the glut of talent at the other four spots – Jacob Cofie is a surefire NBA guy, Isaac McKneely might be, Elijah Saunders and Blake Buchanan are solid P4 college players, TJ Power is supposed to be more than what we’ve seen – was not going to be able to reach its potential.
This is what I saw.
It was two games.
The Villanova team we saw tonight isn’t recent vintage Villanova, but the Wildcats were slight favorites coming into this one, in something called the Hall of Fame Series, with the game played in the old Baltimore Civic Center, in front of a couple thousand people, more empty seats than ones with butts in them, and a permanent stage set up behind the home team basket, because the people who own the place make more money off concerts than they do sporting events.
What we saw from the UVA Basketball kids tonight is going to make me go from thinking this team is on the verge of trouble to needing to remind myself to slow my roll.
The final was Virginia 70, Villanova 60, and it wasn’t really that close; the Cavaliers led by double-digits for the final 16:24, and ‘Nova only got to 60 because the refs decided to open up the whistles in the final couple of minutes, giving the Wildcats three trips to the line in the final 1:42 when all even the people on their sideline wanted to do was get on the bus.
Thorough performance from the ‘Hoos
Virginia shot 51.0 percent from the floor (25-of-49), and was 14-of-25 (56.0 percent) from three-point range.
McKneely, under orders from Sanchez to shoot more, still only shot the ball nine times, but he made eight of them – he was a perfect 6-of-6 from three.
Rohde, who had all of one point, five assists and four turnovers in 32 minutes in the 65-56 season-opening win over Campbell, before missing the win over Coppin State with a bad back, had 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, 3-of-5 from three, and four assists in 28 minutes off the bench.
Where have you been, this Andrew Rohde that we saw tonight?
Dai Dai Ames, the Kansas State transfer, started and played 36 minutes, and though his counting numbers were pedestrian – eight points on 3-of-8 shooting, 1-of-3 from three, one assist and four turnovers – Virginia looked like a different team with him out there running the point.
Cofie, a 6’9” freshman who plays like the Ryan Dunn that the Phoenix Suns got in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, had 12 points, six rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in 26 minutes off the bench, and he’s not long for having to continue to come off the bench.
On the other end of the floor, a Tony Bennett-coached team, excuse me, I keep forgetting, but this is still a Tony Bennett team, just with Sanchez having moved into the big seat, will hang its hat on what it does on defense.
How about this: ‘Nova was 19-of-54 (35.2 percent) from the floor, 9-of-32 (28.1 percent) from three, 4-of-13 in the midrange.
The Wildcats had 19 made baskets, eight assists and 14 turnovers – and no fast-break points.
It’s still early
What a weird first two weeks, just three games, and then Virginia doesn’t get back out there for another six days after this one, down in the Bahamas, with #11 Tennessee, then depending on how that one goes, a second game with either #12 Baylor or #22 St. John’s on Friday.
Virginia will be the only unranked team in that four-team bracket, and the ‘Hoos are getting no love right now from the computers – EvanMiya has us 84th; KenPom 79th; BartTorvik 68th.
Safe to say, the computers expect the kids to come back to the States with a pair of double-digit losses.
I think there’s more talent on this team than the computers do.
I also recognize that this team is still a work in progress.
Bennett left Sanchez a tough November schedule, and there’s a pre-Christmas game with a talented, though perennially underachieving, Memphis squad in JPJ.
It’s got a lot of growing up to do, and fast.
I was ready to write an obituary when I got in the car to head up to Baltimore today.
Now I’m composing psalms.
