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It wasn’t pretty; in fact it wasn’t even normal looking. But at the end of what was a relatively ugly game in Raleigh, the No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers survived and defeated the N.C. State Wolfpack, 51-47. The game marked Virginia’s first full contest without Wooden Award candidate Justin Anderson, who broke a finger in the first half of Saturday’s win over Louisville and is scheduled to miss 4-6 weeks.
Anderson’s absence, downplayed by some observers because Virginia plays with such a team ethic, was definitely a factor for the 22-1 Cavaliers, who looked lost at times offensively. Virginia managed just 19 points in the first half, an effort that resembled what the Cavaliers’ mighty defense has done to multiple opponents this season. The Cavaliers committed an uncharacteristic 12 turnovers in the game, after just two in the Louisville win.
But in the end, Virginia made the plays required to win. Anthony Gill and Mike Tobey, who had struggled in the post at both ends for much of the game, came up big late, providing the kind of effort in the clutch this Virginia team is going to need for the duration of Anderson’s absence. Malcolm Brogdon fended off foul trouble to lead the Cavaliers with 15 points. Trevor Lacey led State with 14 points.
If you thought Virginia was going to suffer without Anderson and take a loss, tonight would have been the night. The Wolfpack (14-11, 5-7 ACC) haven’t played much lately like the team that destroyedDuke in Raleigh a month ago. But with Virginia coming off a stretch playing three top-12 AP Poll teams in eight days (going 2-1), then having to hit the road for this one, you’d be forgiven for expecting N.C. State to get a badly needed win tonight.
Instead, the result may, in fact, be a scary one for the rest of the ACC. Only a late barrage of three-pointers by Duke has kept Virginia from a perfect record, and now even without Anderson, the Cavaliers managed to gut out a tough road win before a five-game stretch where the opponents include Wake Forest (twice), Pittsburgh, Florida State and Virginia Tech. That isn’t any kind of gauntlet, though Wake did pull an upset at Miami tonight.
If people thought Virginia was just going to hand over the top spot in the ACC due to Anderson’s injury, tonight’s result shows that such observations could be wrong.
Ed Morgans is an ACC Basketball Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @writered21 and add him to your network on Google.
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