Virginia snaps losing streak, hangs on for 63-58 win at Georgia Tech

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Posted on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, 10:57 pm

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Virginia put an end to its three-game losing streak, as the Cavalier big men led the way to a 63-58 win at Georgia Tech Saturday night. Jay Huff, Mamadi Diakite and Braxton Key combined for 44 points and 20 rebounds as the Wahoos (12-5, 4-3 ACC) held on for the key road victory.

UVA led by as many as 14 points in the second half before the Yellow Jackets (8-10, 3-5) stormed back to trim the once-comfortable advantage to two with eight minutes to play.

After Huff put the ‘Hoos ahead by seven, 59-52, on a sweet no-look assist from Tomas Woldetensae with 52 seconds left, Tech had one final push.

The Cavaliers missed three of their next five free throws to leave the door open, and Tech point guard Jose Alvarado connected on a three-point play to make it a one-possession game, 61-58, with just six ticks showing.

The Jackets immediately fouled Diakite, who calmly sank two from the line with 5.7 seconds to play, and the ‘Hoos escaped with the much-needed win.

UVA took an eight-point edge into the locker room after what was mostly a back-and-forth first half, despite Tech shooting 61 percent (11 of 18), and stepped on the gas out of the break.

After committing 13 turnovers in the first half alone, Tech coughed it up again on back-to-back possessions — one that led to a Kihei Clark layup, the other a Diakite alley-oop finish from Key on the fast break — then shortly thereafter gave it away again which translated into another Diakite jam to make it 43-29 with just under 15 minutes to play.

Woldetensae continued his hot shooting, knocking down a crucial 3-pointer after some sloppy trips down the floor allowed Tech to chip away. Woldetensae finished the game with three 3-pointers for a second straight game.

The Jackets scored nine unanswered, capped by an Alvarado 3-ball, to cut it to 48-46 with 8:14 left. Entering the closing minutes of crunch time, Tony Bennett and the ‘Hoos had found themselves in similar situations over the three-game skid — having an opportunity to win a tight contest with a strong finish.

After failing to get the job done in the previous three, Bennett’s squad finally came through when it mattered.

Huff sank a huge 3-pointer out of the ensuing media timeout to end the near five-minute drought, then Key followed from inside the paint to give UVA a little breathing room.

Huff and Diakite each scored to push it back to a three-possession affair at the two-minute mark, as Key retrieved a pair of important offensive rebounds down the stretch, and the Cavaliers will now have little time to get ready for NC State Monday night (7 p.m., ESPN).

The Jackets, who edged the Cavaliers on the boards, 31-30, shot 50 percent (25 of 50) from the field and 36 percent (5 for 14) from long range, committing 18 turnovers on the night. Alvarado led all scorers with 20 points in the loss, while James Banks III added 10 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.

For the ‘Hoos, who shot 47 percent on the evening (25 for 53) and 31 percent from deep (5 of 16), Huff (8 boards, 6 blocks, both team highs) and Diakite (6 rebounds, 2 swats) paced the effort with 17 points apiece, while Key added 10 and Woldetensae put up 9. Huff connected on 7 of his 10 attempts, while Clark dished out 7 dimes and committed just two turnovers. Clark and Woldetensae each nabbed three steals.

Courtesy UVA Media Relations:

Team Notes

  • UVA (12-5, 4-3 ACC) ended its three-game losing streak (longest since losing four straight from Feb. 12-20, 2017)
  • Virginia led 48-37, but surrendered a 9-0 run and went scoreless for 4:05 in the second half
  • UVA gained its first halftime lead (33-25) in four games (last vs. Virginia Tech on Jan. 4)
  • UVA matched a season high with nine blocked shots

Series Notes

  • Virginia is 43-40 all-time vs. Georgia Tech, including a 14-24 record in Atlanta, in the series that dates back to 1947-48.
  • The Cavaliers have a six-game winning streak in the series
  • Virginia is 14-2 in its last 16 games against Georgia Tech, including a 13-2 mark under head coach Tony Bennett.

Player Notes

  • Double-figure scorers: Jay Huff (17), Mamadi Diakite (17), Braxton Key (10)
  • Huff had career highs in points (17) and blocked shots (6)
  • Tomas Woldetensae matched a season high with three 3-pointers
  • Key had a season-high six assists
  • Kihei Clark had a game-high seven assists with only two turnovers