Second-half defensive dominance lets Virginia deny No. 14 Texas A&M

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Late in Virginia’s matchup with No. 14 Texas A&M on Wednesday night, Cavaliers guard Ryan Dunn hustled back on defense to block a shot from behind, preventing what would have been a certain layup. Moments later, the sophomore did it again to punctuate Virginia’s defensive uprising in the second half during a 59-47 win in the ACC/SEC Challenge at John Paul Jones Arena.

Facing their first ranked opponent, the Cavaliers (6-1) pieced together their most complete performance of the season, limiting Texas A&M to 21 points on 24.1 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes. The Cavaliers were especially unforgiving while closing out shooters from three-point range, holding the Aggies to 4 for 23 (17.4 percent) on the night.

The Cavaliers forced 16 turnovers, eight of which were steals, and blocked eight shots, with Dunn swatting a game-high five as the Cavaliers got double-figure scoring from every starter but zero points from the reserves.

“We talked about identity, a group identity, and I thought that was the message,” Cavaliers Coach Tony Bennett said. “I thought our identity showed the way it needed to in a game like this, and everybody did their part.”

Andrew Rohde led Virginia with team highs of 13 points and six rebounds while adding three assists, and Dunn, Reece Beekman and Jacob Groves scored a dozen apiece. Isaac McKneely added 10 points. The entire starting lineup played at least 31 minutes in Virginia’s final tuneup before its ACC opener Saturday vs. Syracuse.

The Cavaliers’ largest lead of the second half, 55-41, came after Groves scored seven consecutive Virginia points and Rohde hit a three-pointer with 5:12 to play. Texas A&M (6-2) never seriously threatened thereafter.

Henry Coleman III had game highs of 16 points, shooting 8 for 14, and 14 rebounds for the Aggies, who were unable to make up much ground late despite finishing well ahead in rebounding (42-30), including 18-7 on the offensive glass.

“If there’s statistically anything I would say, it’s we gave them the ball 16 times,” Texas A&M Coach Buzz Williams said. “Because of their tempo, when you don’t get a shot, and arguably what we do best is get a shot and try to get it back, I understand we’re not going to play with zero turnovers, but 16 is just an astronomically high number percentage-wise.”

An energetic start to the second half propelled Virginia to a 41-28 lead with 14:53 to play following a 14-2 run featuring three-pointers by Groves and Rohde. The Cavaliers forced three turnovers in that stretch and held Texas A&M to one field goal over 51⁄2 minutes.

The Aggies rallied with eight straight points to shrink their deficit to 41-36 with 9:39 left, but Virginia reclaimed momentum courtesy of Dunn’s one-handed dunk off a feed from Groves. Not long after, Dunn made two free throws for a 45-36 lead.

The second meeting between the schools — and the first since the 1962-63 season — featured the first visit to John Paul Jones Arena for Williams since Jan. 15, 2019, when he was in his final season at Virginia Tech. The Cavaliers dealt their heated rival an 81-59 loss that season in Charlottesville on their way to sweeping the regular season series.

During pregame introductions, Virginia fans showered Williams with boos, but he and Bennett shared an amiable exchange at mid-court several minutes before tip-off. Then Bennett sat calmly on a folding chair by the bench as Williams stood the entire game, roaming the sideline and frequently drifting onto the court.

In an indication of Bennett’s growing comfort with Virginia’s many newcomers, three freshmen came off the bench in the early stages, including Blake Buchanan and Elijah Gertrude, who played extensively because of an ankle injury to backup point guard Dante Harris, a transfer from Georgetown.

“We were just playing hard,” Dunn said. “Texas A&M is a very hard and tough team, and through this whole week we were practicing for that, just making sure we matched their intensity.”