The pressure was on for Virginia’s second game of the season after an opening loss to Navy. But the Hoos responded nicely, defeating Radford 73-52 after jumping out to a 20-point halftime lead.
It was a comfortable ride throughout, Virginia grabbing the lead after six minutes and never relinquishing it. With a visit to No. 15 Houston looming next week, the win was an important one and will give Tony Bennett’s group confidence. Here are three takeaways from a solid victory.
Armaan Franklin is as good as promised
Armaan Franklin cashed in on 42.4% of his threes last season at Indiana. So it was surprising when the third year went a meager 1-7 from deep against Navy.
Thankfully, any worries over Franklin’s shooting abilities were silenced by his performance in the Radford win. He made 5 of his 8 attempts from deep, scoring 21 points and dishing out 3 assists.
The early signs are clear: When Franklin plays well, as he did against the Highlanders, Virginia tends to win; when he doesn’t, as in the Navy game, the Hoos lose. That’s obviously not a formula that will hold for every game, but it is indicative of how crucial he is. The three-point shooting he brings is invaluable to this team, and something the offense will rely on throughout the season.
Virginia goes deeper than we thought
Virginia’s roster appeared paper-thin after the Navy game, with four guys playing over 33 minutes. Against Radford, Bennett instituted a more balanced rotation. Nine players saw 11 or more minutes, and none played over 32. And this wasn’t just the result of a big lead. Bennett went with a deeper rotation even before his team started to pull away.
Radford is a weaker opponent than Navy, so a looser rotation should have been expected. Still, the additions of Carson McCorkle and Taine Murray (17 and 15 minutes, respectively) are huge for this team. If both can contribute meaningful minutes, it will relieve some of the load from the starting five and give Virginia more options.
McCorkle and Murrray each hit a triple and combined for 8 points, but it was McCorkle’s stout defense that drew the most attention. He appears to have made marked improvements from last year, and his efforts drew a visible appreciative reaction from Bennett. If the rotation can remain as deep as it was against Radford, Virginia will be better for it.
Solid performance, but Tuesday is the real test
We’ve seen a different side of Virginia in each of its two games thus far. The negative was exhibited versus Navy, the positive against Radford. Tuesday’s matchup with Houston, however, will reveal which performance was more accurate in its portrayal of Virginia’s potential.
The Hoos will grow as the season progresses, so Tuesday night’s events will not reveal everything about them. Yet the battle with No. 15 Houston will do a reasonable job showing us where Virginia is at this juncture of the season.
After an encouraging display that got Virginia into the win column, fans will hope to see the performance replicated Tuesday against a more capable foe.
Image – Virginia Athletics