By Jerry Ratcliffe
Virginia will be going after its 20th win of the season on Saturday when Syracuse comes to town (noon, ESPN).
The 18th-ranked Cavaliers (19-3, 8-2) are a 13-point favorite over the Orange, which has struggled this season (13-10, 4-6) and are without a win over an ACC team with a winning conference record.
Ryan Odom didn’t have much to complain about after a 20-point win over Pitt on Tuesday night after emphasizing a stronger defense and rebounding effort vs. the Panthers. UVA’s offense was a little out of kilter in that game, particularly from the 3-point line (11 of 31).
The point margin must have been a relief after the Cavaliers avoided upsets at Notre Dame in double-overtime and a strong effort at Boston College last week.
Virginia held Pitt to under 50 points, although the Panthers were missing some key offensive personnel.
“A lot of it’s a mindset and willingness to play to exhaustion and give max effort on every possession,” Odom said after the win. “We just encouraged our guys. It’s easy to get excited about offensive plays. But if we can get excited about the defensive side and plays that our guys make, whether it’s Ugo (Onyenso) blocking a shot at the rim or a really good contest … even at the end of the game.”
Virginia, which is second in the ACC in field-goal percentage defense (.394), held Pitt to under that number at 37 percent (17 for 46). The Cavaliers also forced 17 turnovers, had 12 steals and blocked six shots.
UVA is tied for third in the ACC standings, ranked No. 16 in the NET and by kenpom.com. Meanwhile, Syracuse is 11th in the ACC, No. 68 by kenpom.com and No. 69 in the NET rankings.
Things haven’t exactly gone smoothly for Syracuse, and according to reports from Donna Ditota at Syracuse.com, Orange fans have become frustrated.
“It’s getting ugly at these games,” Ditota wrote about the atmosphere at Syracuse home games. “The vitriol could get worse.”
Most of the wrath has been directed at Coach Adrian Autry, who succeeded legendary Jim Boeheim three seasons ago.
While UVA’s defensive performance has been good, the 3-point shooting has been off a bit. Against Pitt, the Cavaliers made 11 of 31, some of that distorted by Jacari White’s 0-for-7 night. White is fighting back from a broken wrist (Dec. 20) and playing with a splint on his non-shooting hand.
Sam Lewis continued to have a hot hand from the arc, though, making 4 of 8 shots, and led Virginia with 15 points against the Panthers.
“We just have to get a little bit better,” Odom said about the 3-point shooting. “You’re going to have lulls during the season where it doesn’t go in as much as you want. And Jacari got some good looks. Certainly there were some at the end that he was having to rush a little bit to get off, but for the most part, I was pleased with the attempts that we took.”
This Week’s ACC Scoreboard
Monday
North Carolina 87, Syracuse 77
Tuesday
Virginia 67, Pitt 47
Duke 67, Boston College 49
NC State 84, SMU 83
Wednesday
Louisville 76, Notre Dame 65
California 90, Georgia Tech 85
Clemson 66, Stanford 64
Saturday
Syracuse at Virginia, Noon (ESPN)
Louisville at Wake Forest, Noon (ACCN)
Virginia Tech at NC State, Noon (The CW)
Miami at Boston College, 2 p.m. (ACCN)
SMU at Pitt, 2 p.m. (The CW)
Florida State at Notre Dame, 4 p.m. (The CW)
Duke at North Carolina, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Clemson at California, 8 p.m. (ACCN)
Georgia Tech at Stanford, 8 p.m. (ESPNU)
