By Scott Ratcliffe

No. 11 Virginia’s nine-game winning streak came to an end at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, as No. 1 Duke cruised to a 77-51 win to clinch at least a share of the ACC regular-season title.

The Cavaliers (25-4, 13-3 ACC) fell behind in the opening minutes and never recovered, as the Blue Devils (27-2, 15-1) led by as many as 28 points and proved why they’re a national championship contender. It was Duke’s fifth double-digit win over a ranked opponent this season.

The Duke defense, which came into the contest ranked No. 1 in the Kenpom defensive efficiency ratings, held the Wahoos to season lows in scoring (51; previous low was 61) and field-goal percentage (29.1; previous low was 36.0), and second-worst 3-point percentage of the season (20.0; low was 17.4 against Boston College).

Isaiah Evans led all scorers with 19 points (5 triples), while projected NBA lottery pick Cameron Boozer added 18 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.

Thijs De Ridder was the only Wahoo in double figures, finishing with 16 points on 5-of-11 shooting (2 for 4 from beyond the arc).

The UVA sharpshooting trio of Malik Thomas, Sam Lewis and Jacari White, which averaged a combined 32.1 points and 5.4 3-point makes per contest prior to Saturday, went absolutely ice cold.

Thomas (12.3 ppg coming in), Lewis (10.9 ppg) and White (8.9 ppg) combined to score just 7 points and made just one field goal out of 21 attempts (1 for 16 from downtown).

The one that went down was a White triple late in the first half. Thomas went 0 for 8 (0 for 5 3PT), Lewis was 0 for 6 (0 for 5 3PT), and White was 1 for 7 (1 for 6 3PT).

Chance Mallory added 9 points in 22 minutes off the bench, while no other teammates scored more than 6.

Jon Scheyer’s team came out firing, as Evans nailed three 3-pointers in the first 4:05, then added a jumper before sinking his fourth of the day midway through the half to make it a double-digit lead at 18-7.

Johann Grünloh’s alley-oop finish on the ensuing possession marked UVA’s first made field goal in over seven minutes.

A Mallory triple with 7:51 left in the half cut it to 7 points, but Duke answered with back-to-back 3-pointers by Darren Harris and another by Dame Sarr to make it 28-12.

Boozer went 8 for 8 from the free-throw line in the final five minutes of the opening period, scoring all 11 of his first-half points from the stripe (0 for 4 FG), as Duke took a 41-26 lead into the halftime break.

Boozer connected on his first field goal of the game to start the second-half scoring before Evans’ fifth 3-ball pushed the lead to 49-32.

Thomas sank a pair from the foul line to cut it to 16 with 9:33 remaining, and that’s as close as it would get the rest of the way, as Duke answered with an 11-0 spurt, and coasted to the lopsided victory.

Virginia shot 29 percent from the field on the afternoon (16 for 55), 20 percent from deep (7 of 35) and 92 percent at the line (12 for 13).

Duke connected on 26 of 53 field-goal attempts (49 percent), including 12 for 24 from 3-point land (50 percent) and 93 percent from the stripe (13 for 14), outrebounding Virginia, 37-29. Big man Patrick Ngongba II added 11 points and 5 rebounds for the Devils, who secured the No. 1 seed in the ACC Tournament in a few weeks.

Team Notes

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

• No. 11 Virginia fell to 25-4, 13-3 ACC
• UVA scored a season-low 51 points in the loss
• UVA’s nine-game win streak ended
• UVA is 11-3 away from home, including an 8-2 mark in true road games 
• UVA is 1-32 all-time vs. top-ranked opponents
• UVA is 1-2 vs. ranked foes in 2025-26
• UVA yielded 50% 3-point shooting for the second time this season (vs. Miami)
• Duke’s 12 3-pointers ties the most by a UVA opponent this year (vs. Maryland)
• Cameron Boozer’s 11 free throws tie the most by an opponent in two halves of basketball (Northwestern’s Jayden Reid on Nov. 14, 2025)
• Duke drilled eight 3-pointers and 11 free throws en route to a 41-26 lead at halftime
• UVA was held to fewer than 30 points in the first half for the fourth time (vs. Maryland, Virginia Tech and Boston College)
• UVA shot 32% (9 for 32) in the first half including 23.5% (4 of 17) from 3-point range
• The 15-point halftime deficit was the largest for UVA this season and most since a 17-point deficit at Syracuse on March 8, 2025
• UVA went 7 of 35 from 3-point range 
• UVA attempted 30 or more 3-pointers for the 11th time in 2025-26
• Duke won the rebound battle 37-29

Series Notes

• The Cavaliers are 54-127 all-time vs. the Blue Devils, including a 12-61 mark in Durham
• UVA is 1-4 in its last five games vs. Duke and 3-7 in its last 10
• UVA is 0-17 vs. Duke when the Blue Devils have been ranked No. 1

Player Notes

• Double Figure Scorers: Thijs De Ridder (16)
• De Ridder has reached double figures in 22 games
• Johann Grünloh (2 blocks) has multiple blocks in 18 games
• Sam Lewis was held scoreless for the second time this season (vs. Virginia Tech)
• Malik Thomas was held without a field goal for the first time at UVA and first since vs. ASU with San Francisco on Dec. 3, 2023
• UVA started Dallin Hall, Thomas, Lewis, De Ridder and Grünloh for the 28th game

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers return to Charlottesville for next week’s final two games of the regular season. Wake Forest comes to town on Tuesday at 7 p.m. (ACC Network) and Virginia Tech visits JPJ on Saturday (Noon, The CW).

Saturday’s ACC Scoreboard

Duke 77, Virginia 51
Notre Dame 96, NC State 90 (OT)
Florida State 80, Georgia Tech 71
Clemson 80, Louisville 75
Miami 76, Boston College 54
Pitt 72, California 56
Wake Forest 88, Syracuse 83
Stanford 95, SMU 75
North Carolina 89, Virginia Tech 82

If you want even more award-winning coverage on the UVA athletics department, including its nationally-ranked football and basketball programs, be sure to subscribe to “Cavalier Exclusive” to follow all of Virginia Sports Hall Of Famer Jerry “Hootie” Ratcliffe’s analysis and content. It’s the best in the business for Wahoo Fans!