By Jerry Ratcliffe
7-footer Ugonna Onyenso loves it when opposing guards penetrate the paint, driving toward the basket. The big Virginia center always has a message for his guard teammates: “If [opposing] guards want to bully their way into the ring, do not foul them … just let them come.”
Why?
“It’s a great way to add to my stats,” Ugo laughed.
Onyenso, who built a strong reputation as a shot blocker at Kentucky and Kansas State before transferring to UVA this season, ranks 16th in the nation in blocked shots with 36 in 15 games (2.40 per game).
He added 4 blocks and 9 rebounds to go with a dozen points in Virginia’s 84-60 rout of California on Wednesday night. The Cavaliers host another west coast ACC opponent this afternoon when Stanford comes to JPJ (2:15 p.m., televised by The CW).
The Cardinal (13-3, 2-1 ACC) are fresh off a 69-68 win at Virginia Tech on Wednesday when they trailed the Hokies by 12 before going on a 14-1 to close out the win. Freshman guard Ebuka Okorie, who led Stanford with 31 points, including a game-winning, 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds to play, sparked that late run with 11 of his points coming in the final 2:18 of the game.
That’s fine with Onyenso, who welcomes Okorie to the paint where he and 7-foot teammate Johann Grünloh protect the rim.
Virginia coach Ryan Odom described the shot-blocking duo as “a two-headed monster” after the Cal win. They combined for 5 of the Cavaliers’ 9 blocked shots (UVA ranks No. 3 in the nation in blocks per game with 97 in 15 outings, 6.5 per contest). They also combined for 17 rebounds and 24 points.
Odom believes senior Onyenso has next-level talent.
“I mean, the NBA is his ceiling,” Odom said. “I think he can play in the NBA. He’s just an elite shot blocker and if he can continue to get better in and around the basket, finish plays, get a little bit bigger and stronger — Coach (Mike) Curtis is working with him — certainly we believe he can continue to play basketball professionally.
“But for this particular season, I think he and Johann, I told them after the game they were a two-headed monster. They both protected the rim really well. They both were energetic with their play.”
Onyenso said he loves it when opposing guards attempt to challenge him and Grünloh by driving the lane.
“That’s very fun to see,” Ugo said. “So when they keep driving and coming into the lane, it’s OK. It’s very fun for us to block shots and get our stats up. Blocking is one of my things and so nights like this, when everybody wants to go to the rim, it’s always a good day for me.”
Onyenso was mad at himself for coming up one rebound short of a double-double, but was happy with his game and perfecting his shot-blocking skills, focusing on his timing so that he not only blocks the shot, but is able to grab the rebound (more stats, right?) instead of slapping the ball into the 15th row of JPJ.
“I know how to do that,” Ugo grinned. “I’ve just got to keep working on it and keep working on my timing as well.”
No. 23 Virginia is 13-2, 2-1 in ACC play, but should be tested by Stanford, whose three losses came against Seattle (77-69), UNLV (75-7) and Notre Dame (47-40).
The Cavaliers are ranked No. 17 in the country by KenPom and No. 26 in the NET. UVA is averaging 86.1 points per game, the most since the days of Buzzy Wilkinson in the early 1950s.
UVA has only beaten Stanford once in nine games in the series history, and the Cardinal cruised to an 88-65 win over the Wahoos in Palo Alto last season.
Virginia leads the ACC and is No. 15 in the nation in offensive rebounding (14.3 per game) and also leads the conference in overall rebounding per game, 42.3.
