Memphis gives Hoos ‘reality check’ in 77-54 blowout

By Scott Ratcliffe

Virginia ran into a buzz saw at FedEx Forum on Tuesday night, as Memphis provided what UVA coach Tony Bennett referred to as a “reality check” in a 77-54 beatdown.

The 22nd-ranked Cavaliers (9-2) committed a season-high 18 turnovers (the team’s most since Jan. 2020) and surrendered a season-worst 27 points off of them. The previous marks were 11 turnovers against Texas Southern and 14 points allowed against Syracuse.

The No. 23 Tigers (9-2) led from wire to wire, outscoring the Wahoos 39-22 in the second half after Virginia did all it could to keep within six points through the first.

It was Memphis’ third-straight victory over a ranked opponent after upsetting then-No. 21 Texas A&M on the road and then-No. 13 (and previously undefeated) Clemson this past Saturday.

Bennett compared Tuesday’s lopsided loss to a “lump of coal in our stocking” before heading off for the holidays, as Memphis’ athletic, experienced lineup shot the ball well, pushed the tempo offensively and made just about everything difficult for the Hoos on the defensive end.

“We couldn’t even dribble, pass, make a simple play, and then that just sort of snowballed, and they took advantage,” Bennett said of the Tigers’ impressive all-around performance.

Leading scorer David Jones (8 for 15 FG, 2 for 3 from downtown) had a monster first half for the Tigers, pouring in 16 of his game-high 26 points before the halftime break to lead the charge.

Memphis wasted no time, grabbing a 13-1 lead before the Cavaliers could blink. To the Cavaliers’ credit, they responded with an 11-2 run of their own and hung around for the remainder of the half.

UVA cut it to one point, 31-30, on a Leon Bond III tip-in of a Reece Beekman miss with 2:30 until halftime, but the home team closed on a 7-2 spurt to take a 38-32 advantage into the locker room.

A Jacob Groves 3-point basket followed by an Elijah Gertrude baseline take made it a four-point affair just over a minute into the second half, and it was pretty much all Tigers for the rest of the night. UVA gave up three easy buckets underneath on inbounds passes in the opening minutes of the period, pushing the lead back to double digits.

Beekman scored with 13:33 remaining to trim the deficit to eight, 52-44, before the game got out of hand, as it marked the only points scored by the Hoos for nearly five minutes of action.

Memphis took advantage, outscoring Virginia 18-2 across that stretch to extend its lead to 21 with 8:54 to play. 

Isaac McKneely (1 for 8, 0 for 5 from deep), who failed to sink a triple for the first time in 15 games, connected on a 2-point basket — his first of the evening — at the 8:02 mark, and the Cavaliers wouldn’t convert another field-goal attempt until Ryan Dunn scored over four minutes later.

Virginia shot the ball well in the first half — 50 percent from the field (13 for 26) and 33 percent from 3-point range (3 for 9) — but struggled mightily in the second. The Hoos were 9 for 30 after halftime (30 percent) and just 1 of 10 (10 percent) from the bonusphere.

For the game, UVA shot at a 39-percent clip (22 for 56) and 21 percent from long distance (4 of 19). Memphis connected on 27 of its 57 shots (47 percent) and 9 of 23 from 3 (39 percent). Both teams secured 32 total rebounds, but the Tigers outscored Virginia in second-chance opportunities, 14-4. It was the first true-road experience of the season, and the first of Bond, Gertrude and Blake Buchaan’s collegiate career, and Bennett hopes that his squad can learn some vital lessons from the defeat.

“We have to be better than that,” Bennett admitted. “It’ll be valuable to go through this, as painful as it is, but [the Tigers’] pressure really, really got to us, and that’s how they play, and if you don’t have guys that can handle it, then that gets challenging.”

Beekman was one of three Wahoos in double figures, finishing with a team-high 13 points to go along with 5 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal, but the senior leader also committed a team-high 5 turnovers.

He and Groves (12 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) combined to knock down 10 of 15 shots (4 for 6 from beyond the arc) on the night, while Dunn added a double-double with 11 points and a game-best 11 boards to go with his 2 blocks and 2 steals in the losing effort.

Former FSU Seminole Caleb Mills was the only other Tiger in double figures with 11 points, while Malcolm Dandridge and Jahvon Quinerly each added 9.

Team Notes

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

• Virginia’s (9-2, 1-0 ACC) five-game win streak ended
• Virginia allowed a season-high 77 points
• Memphis scored 27 points off of Virginia’s season-high 18 turnovers
• UVA is 1-1 vs. ranked opponents in 2023-24
• UVA is 52-46 against ranked foes in the Tony Bennett era
• Memphis started the game on a 7-0 run and led 13-1 at 16:10
• UVA used a pair of 8-0 runs to cut the margin to 29-28
• Memphis led 38-32 at the half behind David Jones’ 16 points
• UVA forced one shot clock violation (7 on the season)

Series Notes

• UVA 1-1 all-time against Memphis
• Virginia is 30-39 all-time vs. current members of the American Athletic Conference

Player Notes

• Double Figure Scorers: Reece Beekman (13), Jake Groves (12), Ryan Dunn (11)
• Groves reached double figures for the 30th time (4th at UVA)
• Beekman scored in double figures for the 38th time
• Dunn reached double figures for the seventh time
• Dunn matched a career high with 11 rebounds
• Dante Harris missed his fifth-straight game with an ankle injury

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers will have a week off before concluding non-conference competition next Wednesday (Dec. 27) at home against Morgan State (7 p.m., ACCN).