By Jerry Ratcliffe
CHARLOTTE — Jai Lucas sensed his Miami team was in trouble in the final two minutes of the first half against Virginia in the ACC Tournament semifinals Friday night. The Hurricanes coach had seen his team weather such storms during the regular season, but not this time around.
Even a timeout in the middle of the 10th-ranked Cavaliers’ scoring flurry didn’t have a calming effect on Miami as Virginia didn’t let up. As a result, a 13-2 run, capped by a Chance Mallory 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer, blew open a 38-23 UVA lead at the break.
Game, set, match.
The closest Miami could get the entire second half was 11 points as Virginia turned up its defensive intensity and lit up the ‘Canes from the 3-point arc (8 of 13 after the break) for an unexpected 84-62 blowout. UVA, now 29-4, advanced to the ACC Tournament championship game Saturday night against the winner of Friday’s semifinal nightcap between top-seeded Duke and Clemson.
“The end of the half was the key to the game,” Ryan Odom said. “Chance makes a huge play in the 3-pointer, but even going back before that, the stops and scores we had set us up in a good position.”
Both teams started slow before UVA opened a 25-21 lead late in the half. From that point on, it was all Virginia.
Thijs De Ridder, who finished with 16 points, kick-started the Cavaliers’ offense with a 3-pointer, followed by a Dallin Hall stickback, then another triple from Malik Thomas (15 points), a running baseline slam by 7-footer Ugonna Onyenso (game-high 17 points) for a 35-23 advantage.
Then, BOOM!
Mallory stole the ball with only 4 seconds to go in the half, took four dribbles, pulled up and swished a buzzer-beating dagger into the Hurricanes’ hopes before chest-bumping his way into the Virginia locker room.
“Obviously [the shot] had a little bit more implications being at the end of the half,” Mallory said. “But we just knew at the start of the second half, we had to punch first and take care of business.”
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!
Lucas hoped the Hurricanes might respond coming out after the break, but felt the end of the first half might have been the coup de grace. The Miami coach knew that if his team was to upset the second-seeded Cavaliers, they would have to capitalize on their slow start, and they didn’t. The final few minutes of the half sent a bad signal.
“We were just looking around,” Lucas bemoaned. “We got punched, and this was the first time we didn’t punch back and didn’t do what we normally respond to. I thought the adversity hit us and we let it get the best of us. Today, we just didn’t have it.”
In the previous regular-season matchup with the ‘Canes, Odom didn’t like the way his team won, even though it pulled out an 86-83 win in Charlottesville. Miami was more physical, beat up Virginia on the boards and kind of scored at will.
Odom wasn’t going to allow that in the rematch.
This time, Virginia’s press was more effective, the defensive intensity was more evident, particularly with Onyenso (4 blocks, altered shots and intimidating presence in the paint). Miami likes to get to the rim, and UVA’s defense stopped that cold. The Cavaliers dominated the boards (38-26) and double-teamed Miami’s top scorer Malik Reneau for much of the game (“If you play him one-on-one he can cause some damage,” Odom said).
No damage to speak of Friday night. Reneau, who scored 18 of his 24 points in the second half to lead the ‘Canes past Louisville in the quarterfinals, was held to a mere 8 points against Virginia on a 1-for-6 shooting performance in 32 minutes.
Still, the end-of-the-half scoring blitz left Miami reeling. The Cavaliers didn’t take their foot off the ‘Canes necks to open the second half, either. Onyenso drilled a 3-pointer to get things started. De Ridder added back-to-back buckets before Sam Lewis, who has been on a 3-point hot streak in the Spectrum Center, popped a triple to put UVA up 48-30 only 5 ½ minutes into the action.
Lewis was 4 for 5 from the arc (16 points). He’s now shooting 80 percent from Bonusphere for the tournament (8 for 10).
Now, Virginia plays for its first ACC Tournament championship since 2023, when the Cavaliers lost to Duke.
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!
