Virginia opens Coach Mox era with come-from-behind win against GW, 85-59

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

The Virginia women’s basketball team opened the 2022-23 season with an 85-59 victory against George Washington on Monday at John Paul Jones Arena.

The Cavaliers (1-0) trailed 34-30 at the half and by six points early in the third quarter but outscored the Colonials 55-25 in the second half.

Camryn Taylor led the team with 22 points and 13 rebounds, one of five Cavaliers to finish the game in double figures. Kaydan Lawson scored a career-high 18 points with nine rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The game started as a back-and-forth with 10 lead changes and 12 ties. The Colonials (0-1) went on an 8-0 run in the second quarter to take the first significant lead of the game, holding a six-point advantage and led by four at the break. Taylor Webster made a jumper to start the second half, pushing George Washington’s lead back to six with 9:18 left in the third. Junior Taylor Valladay tied the game on a free throw with 6:30 remaining in the quarter, the first of three ties in the period. The Cavaliers broke the final tie by scoring the last four points of the quarter to take a 54-50 lead into the final period.

The Cavaliers dominated the final quarter, outscoring George Washington 31-9. Valladay opened the frame by making a three-pointer to push the lead out to seven. An and-one for Sam Brunelle gave the Cavaliers their first double-digit lead, 62-52, with 8:35 remaining. A three-pointer from Lawson with 4:57 remaining ignited an 18-2 run to end the game.

Box Score

CAVALIER NOTES

• Taylor Valladay finished the game with 12 points and four assists. Sam Brunelle and Carole Miller both had 10 points
• Virginia shot 44.1 percent (30-of-68) while George Washington was 22-of-69 (31.9 percent)
• The Cavaliers were 16-of-21 (76.2 percent) from the free throw line while GW was 9-of-11 (81.8 percent)
• Virginia held a 53-36 advantage in rebounding
• Nine players were in uniform for the game for UVA. All nine scored and all nine had at least one assist
• Kaydan Lawson’s previous career high was a 14-point performance at Boston College last year (2/3/22)
• Camryn Taylor matched her career-high rebounds. She also had 13 while playing for Marquette in a game against UConn on 3/8/21. Her 13 rebounds was the most she has had at UVA
• Yonta Vaughn and Cady Pauley both made their collegiate debuts. Vaughn played 18 minutes, grabbing six rebounds with four assists. Pauley played 10 minutes, hitting a three-pointer
• This was Virginia’s first time scoring 80 or more points in a game since an 86-point game at Virginia Tech on Feb. 23, 2020
• It was the first time UVA had five players in double figures since the NCAA Tournament win against Cal on March 16, 2018

FROM HEAD COACH AMAKA AGUGUA-HAMILTON

“I’m just proud of our group. I think especially in the second half, we came together, played together, really dialed into the game plan and had each other’s back. [We] put a little bit more energy and effort into what we were doing, and we were able to turn the game around and create a big gap. So, I’m happy about how we played in the second half. [In the] first half we had to weather the storm, there was some adversity, but I mean, it’s [the] first game, there’s first game jitters and we just had to get a rhythm and I’m happy we did.”

ON THE HORIZON

• Virginia hosts UMBC on Thursday and Wake Forest on Sunday at 2 p.m.