Cavs clip No. 14 Aggies in ACC/SEC Challenge
CHARLOTTESVILLE — Virginia rode its starters to its most impressive win of the young college basketball season.
Coming off a humbling loss to Wisconsin and facing a ranked opponent for the first time this season, UVa downed No. 14 Texas A&M 59-47 on Wednesday night at John Paul Jones Arena.
All five starters played over 30 minutes and combined to score all of Virginia points, as Tony Bennett improved to 8-3 all-time against Aggies coach Buzz Williams, the former Hokies coach.
Guard Andrew Rohde scored 13 points, forwards Ryan Dunn and Jake Grove and guard Reece Beekman each had 12 and guard Isaac McKneely added 10.
Beekman, playing with his injured right leg in a compression sleeve, stymied Wade Taylor IV, the SEC’s preseason player of the year, holding Taylor to nine points on 2-for-10 shooting with three turnovers.
Former Trinity Episcopal star Henry Coleman III had a double-double in his Virginia homecoming, finishing with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Coleman and former Virginia Tech star Tyrece Radford missed the Aggies’ win over Iowa State on Sunday.
On Wednesday, Coleman started but Radford did not dress.
Virginia didn’t take a free throw until 8:44 left in the contest and didn’t get a point from a bench player, despite going 10 deep. The Cavs were outrebounded 42-30, giving up 18 offensive boards and 16 second-chance points.
But they overcame all that by forcing 16 turnovers and shooting 9 for 24 from 3-point range.
Virginia (6-1) hit four of its first six attempts from beyond the 3-point arc, helping it get out to an 18-11 lead midway through the first half.
A&M (6-2) stormed ahead 23-20 after a 10-0 run, capped by an offensive rebound and stick-back basket by Coleman.
Beekman tied the game 24-24 with a dunk, then Coleman answered with a basket in the paint. But UVa took a 27-26 halftime lead on a 3-pointer by Dunn with 17 seconds left and the shot clock winding down.
The Cavaliers opened the second half with a 7-0 surge, getting a 3-pointer from Jake Groves and back-to-back driving, transition baskets from Beekman for a 34-26 lead with 17:34 to play.
A stretch of three turnovers in 3:22 by Virginia helped keep the Aggies in the game, down 41-32 with 11:16 left.
An 8-0 A&M run trimmed the Cavaliers’ lead to 41-36 with 9:39 to go, but that would be as close as the visitors would get.
Virginia pushed its lead back out to 52-41 with 5:51 to play after back-to-back baskets by Groves and controlled things the rest of the way.
The Aggies came in leading the SEC in rebounding and Coleman, third in conference at 8.3 per game, was a huge part of that.
That was a challenge for Virginia right from the start. A&M’s first basket came when Coleman rebounded an air-balled 3-point attempt and stuck it back for a bucket.
UVa played without guard Dante Harris. The Georgetown transfer was on crutches on the Cavaliers’ bench with his right foot in a boot. Freshman guard Elijah Gertrude, who has made a rapid recovery from a torn ACL suffered during his senior year of high school, played for the first time this season, burning his redshirt.
ACC/SEC CHALLENGE
UVa 59, No. 14 Texas A&M 47
NEXT GAME
Syracuse at UVa
Saturday, Noon, ESPN2
Virginia 59, No. 14 Texas A&M 47
TEXAS A&M (6-2)
Coleman 8-14 0-0 16, Leveque 0-1 5-6 5, Carter 3-8 0-0 7, Hefner 1-9 0-0 3, Taylor 2-10 4-6 9, Garcia 1-1 0-0 2, Washington 1-4 0-0 2, Lawrence 1-6 0-0 3, Obaseki 0-3 0-0 0, Lindsay 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-56 9-12 47.
VIRGINIA (6-1)
Groves 5-8 0-0 12, Beekman 4-8 4-4 12, Dunn 4-8 2-2 12, McKneely 4-11 0-0 10, Rohde 5-14 0-0 13, Bond 0-2 0-0 0, Gertrude 0-1 0-0 0, Buchanan 0-0 0-0 0, Murray 0-1 0-0 0, Minor 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-53 6-6 59.
Halftime—Virginia 27-26. 3-Point Goals—Texas A&M 4-23 (Carter 1-4, Hefner 1-4, Lawrence 1-4, Taylor 1-6, Obaseki 0-2, Washington 0-3), Virginia 9-25 (Rohde 3-8, Dunn 2-4, Groves 2-4, McKneely 2-7, Beekman 0-1, Gertrude 0-1). Rebounds—Texas A&M 36 (Coleman 14), Virginia 23 (Rohde 6). Assists—Texas A&M 7 (Taylor 4), Virginia 14 (Beekman 5). Total Fouls—Texas A&M 12, Virginia 11.
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