Virginia hosts Lehigh Friday night

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Posted on Thursday, Nov. 25, 2021, 7:25 pm

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Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia (4-2) hosts Lehigh (1-4) in men’s basketball nonconference action on Friday, Nov. 26. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 7 p.m. on ACC Network.

For Openers

  • Head coach Tony Bennett seeks his 300th win at Virginia.
  • UVA is 150-43 (.777) in nonconference action under Bennett.
  • The Cavaliers have captured championships in seven of their last eight November tournaments (Emerald Coast Classic, Charleston Classic, Barclays Center Classic, Corpus Christi Challenge, NIT Season Tip-Off, Battle 4 Atlantis and Legends Classic).
  • UVA’s Kadin Shedrick ranks sixth nationally with 20 blocks.
  • Shedrick has blocked three or more shots in each of the last five games.
  • UVA has a season-high three-game winning streak.

Broadcast Information

  • The Virginia-Lehigh game will be televised on ACC Network, streamed online at WatchESPN.com and ESPN App.
  • The game will also be broadcast on Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Sports app.
  • Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.

The Head Coach

  • Dean and Markel Families Head Men’s Basketball Coach Tony Bennett has a 299-105 (.740) mark in 13 seasons at Virginia and 368-138 (.727) career mark in 16 seasons as a head coach.
  • The three-time National (2007, 2015 and 2018) and four-time ACC Coach of the Year (2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019) guided the Cavaliers to their 10th ACC regular-season championship in 2020-21.
  • In 2018-19, Bennett led the Cavaliers to their first NCAA national championship, a share of their ninth ACC regular-season title and a school-record 35 wins.
  • Bennett has led UVA to 10 consecutive postseason appearances (2012-21) and seven consecutive NCAA tournaments (2014-21).

Hoo Are These Cavaliers?

  • We play defense, take good shots, share and take care of the basketball, rebound, and play more defense.
  • UVA is led by its returning backcourt of Kihei Clark (10.2 ppg & 3.3 apg) and Reece Beekman (6.2 ppg, 4.3 apg & 2.7 spg), and the additions of transfers Jayden Gardner (14.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg) and Armaan Franklin (13.8 ppg).
  • Clark has played 99 games at UVA and was an All-ACC honorable mention selection last season, while Beekman had a team-high 30 steals and was second with 75 assists.
  • The Cavaliers added transfers Gardner (East Carolina) and Franklin (Indiana) to fill the void left by standouts Sam Hauser (16 ppg), Jay Huff (13 ppg) and Trey Murphy III (11.3 ppg).
  • Gardner averaged 18.5 points and 8.9 rebounds in 79 career games at East Carolina, while Franklin averaged 11.4 points and shot 42.5 percent from 3-point range for the Hoosiers in 2020-21.
  • Kadin Shedrick (6.3 ppg & 6.5 rpg) and Francisco Caffaro (4.7 rpg) anchor the paint, while Kody Stattmann, Carson McCorkle, Taine Murray, Igor Miliĉić Jr. and Malachi Poindexter provide perimeter depth.

All-Time vs. Lehigh

  • UVA is 3-0 all-time vs. Lehigh in a series that dates back to 1973-74.
  • The Cavaliers defeated the Mountain Hawks 75-54 on Dec. 2, 2017.
  • UVA also posted an 80-54 win against Lehigh in 2015-16 and an 87-60 decision in the first meeting at University Hall on Dec. 11, 1973.

Last Time vs. the Mountain Hawks

  • Kyle Guy scored a game-high 21 points and No. 18 Virginia never trailed in a 75-54 victory against Lehigh during the 2017-18 season.
  • Current graduate assistant Isaiah Wilkins added 14 points and Devon Hall had 11 for the Cavaliers.
  • Lance Tejada made five of Lehigh’s 10 3-pointers and scored 22 points as the Mountain Hawks shot just 40 percent (19-47).
  • The Cavaliers led 22-16 before using a 15-3 run to gain some separation late in the first half.

Last Time Out

  • Virginia (4-2) claimed the Roman Legends Classic title with a 58-40 win over Providence on Nov. 22 in Newark, N.J.
  • Tournament MVP Jayden Gardner recorded his third double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds and Armaan Franklin added 14 points.
  • UVA held Providence to 23.5 percent shooting (12 of 51) and held the Friars scoreless for 6:39 and 4:55, respectively, during the first half.
  • Kadin Shedrick had a career-high five blocks and Francisco Caffaro matched a career best with seven rebounds.

On The Horizon

  • Virginia hosts Iowa in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge on Monday, Nov. 29. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN.