Dante’s Inferno: competitive fire helps bring UVA back to life against Hokies

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Dante Harris made his way into the press room at John Paul Jones Arena late Wednesday night after helping Virginia extend the nation’s longest active home winning streak to 20 games.

Harris confessed that he was a little sore after logging 17 minutes of intense court time in UVA’s 65-57 win over Virginia Tech. Consider that after missing the previous 10 games, going all the way back to Thanksgiving, the point guard had only made it through a quarter to a third of Monday’s practice and half of Tuesday’s practice leading up to the big rivalry game.

All things considered, Harris’ ankle held up rather nicely. He had suffered a brutal high-ankle sprain in practice back in November, his ankle nearly touching the floor, and sometimes those injuries linger.

Fueled from the adrenaline of being back into action, Harris barely noticed his ankle. He was just excited to play again, especially in a game of importance and against some of the most effective guards in the league in Tech’s Hunter Cattoor and Sean Pedulla.

Tony Bennett was delighted to have Harris back for myriad of reasons. Handling the Hokies’ guards was a true challenge that Virginia likely couldn’t have done without Harris’ contributions.

With Harris combined with Reece Beekman, it gave the Cavaliers two experienced, quick and physical guards to not only match, but perhaps top anything Tech could throw at them.

“The athleticism of Dante to defend the ball at times, or beat some screens and then touch the paint … that was a long time coming,” Bennett said about some of Harris’ strengths. “We were patient and he worked hard in his rehab. It was a pretty nasty ankle sprain.

“So to have that against quality guards, those two [Tech] guards are really hard the way they run their stuff and come flying off ball screens, so you need quickness to try to stay with them.”

With Harris and Beekman in the backcourt, it gives UVA two outstanding on-ball defenders that prevent opponents’ guards from setting up their offense the way they would prefer.

It also makes the Cavaliers more dangerous on offense, having two ballhandlers to run the show, something that Bennett has featured on his teams for years now, going back to London Perrantes and Malcolm Brogdon, then Kihei Clark and Ty Jerome.

Offensively, Harris and Beekman combined for 21 points (Beekman had 16) on a combined 8-of-18 shooting from the field. Beekman had 4 assists, a rare 4 turnovers and 4 steals. Harris had 5 assists, no turnovers and a steal.

Five assists and no turnovers, coming off the rust of missing 10 games and not a full practice under his belt in a month and a half, was almost unfathomable.

“I didn’t know how he would respond, but I just knew we needed him,” Bennett said. “We’ve been missing that competitiveness, that quickness and that experience.”

Without Harris, Bennett has had to rely on transfer Andrew Rohde or true freshman Elijah Gertrude to fill in that gap. Gertrude lacks the experience and Rohde lacks the experience and the quickness that Harris brings to the table.

Not to mention the physicality, something Harris takes pride in as well.

“I feel like we (he and forward Jordan Minor, who got major minutes) just bring a different level of physicality,” Harris said. “Both of us being strong, physical, just helping the team in any way we can. I feel like we both played with a lot of physicality.”

None of that was lost on Virginia Tech coach Mike Young, who watched as Harris and Beekman smothered Pedulla and Cattoor. Pedulla, who had averaged 30 points per game over his three previous outings, and Cattoor, Tech’s all-time leading 3-point shooter, combined for 30 points, however, only 11 of those points came in the first half while Virginia was establishing control of the game.

“Good to see [Harris] back on the floor,” said Young, who displays good sportsmanship at every turn. “He’s a tenacious young person defensively and gives them another level of grit and toughness in the backcourt. I thought he helped their team and he blew Pedulla’s doors off on the baseline in the second half in a big moment.

“We were prepared for him. We knew that he’d been in uniform. We knew that he’d been practicing, so good night for him.”

Bennett was all about that grit that Young mentioned, noting that sometimes a team needs an injection of “some real legitimate spit and vinegar or whatever you want to call it, fire, and [Harris] is emotional, competitive and tough-minded. He’s a legit athlete.”

Consider that Harris came to Virginia after a couple of seasons for Patrick Ewing’s Georgetown program where he earned the freakin’ Big East tournament’s MVP award as a freshman.

That’s a trophy they don’t hand out lightly. One has to truly earn that hardware.

Harris, sore ankle and all, said he was 100-percent confident he could handle whatever came his way in his return to the lineup Wednesday night.

“Just me being a dog,” Harris said, noting how he and Beekman push each other in practice. “I never lack confidence, never. I’ve got a great coaching staff, great teammates that believe in me. My father believes in me, and most importantly, the Lord. If I got all that, I’m going to be good every time I step on the floor.”