Basketball

Jayden Gardner grimaced as he peeled himself off the floor, rubbing his chin. The Virginia forward had just been clubbed on the chin in what was later ruled a flagrant foul. He got up, walked it off, and resumed play looking only slightly worse for the wear.  As the game wore on, the blow would be repeated. Loose elbows from Pittsburgh players caught Gardner on the chin on more than a few occasions. But he continued marching stolidly on, even after bearing enough chin-hits to send a pro boxer reeling back to his corner. Gardner kept on fighting, weathering the storm on his way to 14 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.

The rollercoaster of Virginia’s season has taken some particularly sharp turns as of late. After a jerky launch from the loading dock, the ride flattened for a spell but is now back to tossing the Hoos around like an accelerating car does a bag of groceries. In the last 10 days alone, Virginia was blown out by North Carolina, fought to victory against Virginia Tech and collapsed late against Wake Forest. But the scheduling gods have gifted Virginia an opportunity to climb out of the pit. The Hoos will travel to Pittsburgh for a meeting with the worst team in the ACC. For a Virginia team that is sliding down both the ACC standings and the list of teams with a shot to make the NCAA Tournament, this is a must-win game. It doesn’t get any easier than Pitt, even in a weak ACC.

On a night where Virginia shot 36% from the floor and missed 17 of 23 layup attempts, the Hoos failed to close out visiting Wake Forest. With 10 minutes to play, Virginia led by 7, but crumbled down the stretch and ultimately lost 63-55. Despite some early miscues, Virginia dominated the majority of the game’s opening 30 minutes. The last 10 were a different story. By the time the game concluded, the last vestiges of good play had flitted away into the rafters at JPJ. It was a frustrating loss for a team that came into the game with momentum and hope. Now, Virginia will be left to pick up the pieces and try to reassemble them for the next game. Here are three takeaways.

Virginia edged Virginia Tech in a riveting rivalry game on Wednesday, bagging their fourth win of ACC play in the process. They’ll play for number five against Wake Forest, hoping to conclude a two-game home stand with a victory. As usual, Tony Bennett is working magic in hauling a foundering team out of the depths to a 10-6 record. The road ahead is a long, windy one, but Virginia must take it one step at a time. 

A fanbase held its breath as the ball began its flight toward the hoop. The buzzer sounded as it reached the apex of its parabola, and now there was nothing anybody could do to change the outcome of the game. Virginia led by two, but the Wahoo players stood helpless, the ball floating out of reach above their heads. A game hung in the balance. If the shot found nylon, Virginia Tech would edge past Virginia and sink the Hoos into a two-game losing streak. If it missed, Virginia would claim victory and send its rival reeling into an 0-4 ACC record. It missed.  Virginia fans heaved a sigh of relief. Their team had rallied from a 4-point deficit over the last three minutes, ending the game on a 6-0 run. The Hoos had battled the whole way through, displaying grit and mental toughness to power through the ebbs and flows of a charged rivalry game. At the end, smiles radiated from the players, exuberant high-fives were exchanged and the Hoos bounded back to the locker room one win richer. It was an important one. Virginia improved to 10-6 on the season and 4-2 in the ACC with the win. They cemented themselves as a team firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble, if not quite ready to break into the field of 68. And perhaps most important of all, they rebounded from a demoralizing loss to North Carolina. Here are three takeaways from the win.

Virginia entered the Dean Dome on Saturday with hopes of taking down North Carolina and extending their win streak to three. Instead, the Hoos suffered a deflating loss, falling by 16 points to the dominant Tar Heels. The game marked the conclusion of the three-game away stretch Virginia was dealt to open the new year. Now, the Hoos will return to the familiar confines of JPJ to take on a flailing Virginia Tech team. With Tony Bennett’s squad in need of a rebound, the Hokies seem like the ideal opponent. But rivalry games are never a given. There’s always an element of uncertainty in these games. And with Virginia still yet to prove itself, the Hoos will need to submit a good performance in order to secure the win and get the train back on the rails.

The inflating balloon of Virginia basketball was punctured on Saturday afternoon in the Dean Dome. North Carolina shot a rocket through Virginia’s balloon, winning by a score of 74-68 and snapping Virginia’s two-game ACC road win streak.

When Virginia and North Carolina take the court in the Dean Dome, it will have been 1,785 days since the Heels last beat the Hoos. That’s nearly five years, and represents a streak of seven consecutive Wahoo victories. 

Just two weeks ago, Virginia was walking off its home court having fallen to Clemson by 17 points. On Tuesday night, in front of a sparse crowd at Littlejohn Coliseum, the Hoos exacted their revenge on the Tigers in a 75-65 victory. Here are three takeaways.