CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) – Virginia coach Tony Bennett won’t say it, and his team still has room to improve, but when the third-ranked Cavaliers are struggling to get their offense clicking, they can almost always rely on their defense to keep them in games.
That was the case Wednesday night in their 19th consecutive home victory, 61-51 against North Carolina State.
“In the second half, we laid it down defensively,” forward Darion Atkins said after Virginia limited the Wolfpack to nine field goals and 20 points by shutting down their hottest shooter, Ralston Turner, and their sizzling 3-point shooting.
The game turned late, after the teams exchanged the lead five times, when Virginia reeled off 10 straight points while holding the Wolfpack scoreless for nearly six minutes. It was the second drought of at least that long for N.C. State in the game.
It left coach Mark Gottfried thinking about how close his team could have been to winning.