Clark was Tech’s Grim Reaper as he knocked down the winning 3
Posted on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020, 11:01 pm
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By Jerry Ratcliffe
Photo: UVA Media Relations
BLACKSBURG — There was absolutely no doubt in Kihei Clark’s mind when he dribbled up the court in the waning seconds in Wednesday night’s Virginia win over rival Virginia Tech.
The Hokies’ Tyrece Radford had scored on a drive to the basket to deadlock the game at 53-all with 11 seconds to play. Virginia’s players looked toward their bench to see if Coach Tony Bennett might call a timeout to set up the last-shot strategy. Bennett waved them onward.
“I decided not to, and thank goodness I didn’t,” Bennett said afterward. “Sometimes it’s just better to let a guy get momentum and attack.”
Exactly what Clark was thinking.
With his teammates setting a double screen, Clark saw Tech defender Jalen Cone approaching him out beyond the 3-point arc. That’s when Clark knew what he was going to do.
Was his plan to take the last shot? Whadaya think?
“Yeah … I was shooting that,” Clark said with a grin outside the Virginia locker room after he had extended the Cavaliers’ winning streak to five in a row and eight of the last nine in a 56-53 win and a sweep of the Hokies.
Might as well have been the Grim Reaper paying Tech another visit (the Hokies have lost eight of their last nine). Clark may not have had a cloak and a scythe, but he was just as lethal.
“I kind of used the ball screen and kind of figured [Cone] would think I would be driving, so I crossed back and created some space,” Clark said. “That’s when I was able to pull the trigger.”
BOOM!
Clark’s shot swished the nets as dead silence swept over Cassell Coliseum, which had been a madhouse during Tech’s second-half comeback. The Hokies were down 26-11 at the break, representing the fewest points scored in a first half by Tech since it joined the ACC in 2004.
Tech used eight 3-pointers to mount its second-half charge, but the only 3-pointer that really mattered was the one at the end.
“What a beautiful, beautiful 3,” Bennett said. “He’s a winner. I’ve said that often.”
It’s a phrase that the Virginia coach never gets tired of repeating. Clark is not only physically tough, but mentally tough. There’s a true burden on the sophomore point guard’s back, having so much responsibility.
Perfect? Nah. He makes mistakes. In fact, Bennett had just jumped him about some inconsistencies and poor decisions recently. Still doesn’t detract from him being a warrior who can deliver the death blow when he needs to.
It had been a long time since Clark made a last-second game-winner, back to his high school days in California, his senior year at Taft Charter. He’s not afraid.
“If I missed it we would have gone to overtime, but I was trying to think about winning the game,” Clark said. “That’s where my mind was.”
It was just another Thriller-Diller for the Cavaliers, who have been in so many close games this season. Earlier, they were losing those type of games, three in a row at one stretch and four of five.
How things have changed.
“We’re giving people heart attacks all over the state,” grinned Braxton Key (double-double). “We don’t panic in these situations.”
Mamadi Diakite, who led all scorers with 19 points, said the Cavaliers have been so accustomed to playing tight finishes that they’ve learned how to be comfortable, how to win in those situations.
“Sometimes losing isn’t bad,” Diakite said. “We learned from those losses.”
And how. The Cavaliers have been nearly unbeatable since mid-January. They’ve won nine of 11 since then, having dropped a close home game to NC State and losing at Louisville.
“We’ve been in this position, a one-point game, tie game, down one, situations like that a lot,” Clark said. “I know my teammates have confidence in me and the coaching staff does, so I shot it with confidence.”
Added Bennett: “We’ve been in so many of these. Our guys didn’t panic. We have different guys stepping up at different times.”
The coach wasn’t surprised that Clark was thinking about winning the game at the end. While he didn’t come cross country with the reputation of a 3-point gunner, he’s developed his shot and has made 32 of 88 attempts this season, none quite as big as the one that downed the Hokies.
“He’s improved,” Bennett said of Clark’s long-range shooting. “He just makes big shots. That’s Kihei. He doesn’t have textbook form. He makes big shots, big 3’s.”
Yet another weapon Virginia is developing as it inches toward the end of the regular season. The win over Tech secured the precious double-bye, meaning the Cavaliers will automatically advance to the ACC Tournament quarterfinals.
None of this, of course, will mean anything when Duke comes to town on Saturday for a huge showdown.
As Diakite said, “It’s their best against our best.”
The Grim Reaper will be there.
