Offensive Struggles Lead to Stanford Loss at Virginia

Stanford slipped up against Virginia on Saturday. Now they'll travel home for even more tough tests

Jan 10, 2026; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Malik Thomas (1) drives to the basket past Stanford Cardinal forward Cameron Grant (20) in the second half at John Paul Jones Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Coming into Saturday’s contest against No. 23 Virginia, Stanford was burning hot. After getting back to back wins over No. 16 Louisville and Virginia Tech, the Cardinal looked like they started to get closer to competing in the ACC, and acquiring a tournament bid to the big dance. Unfortunately, every burning hot candle gets blown out eventually.

It was actually the Cardinal that took the first jab on Saturday, taking a quick 5-0 lead, and even kept it going early, to 7-6.

Benny Gealer’s early game magic gave Stanford tons of confidence in the opening minutes. But their happiness was short lived from there. The Cavaliers went on a big run to make it 17-8, and completely shut out the Cardinal offensively. Stanford committed a ridiculous three turnovers due to shot clock violations that early into the contest.

Stanford held on late in the half, making sure Virginia couldn’t open up their lead even more. At the break, the Cavaliers led by just seven.

The Cardinal went into the locker room somewhat content. They had kept it fairly close with a tough team on the road, and even had a chance to win it if they came out firing. But unfortunately for them, Virginia came out of the locker room with electricity.

The Cavaliers started the second half dominating, going on a 10-3 run early. But the domination wasn’t necessarily on the scoreboard, but more in their play on both sides of the court. Stanford couldn’t buy a bucket, and scored just three points through over six minutes into the second half.

Virginia increased their lead even more over this stretch, bringing it up to as high as 21, when they made it 60-39. But the Cardinal weren't done just yet.

Late success from Cameron Grant saw Stanford bring the game back a tad, and made the scoreboard look a little better than how the game actually turned out, with Virginia dominating for large stretches of time. The final score was 70-55, Virginia.

Stanford had trouble scoring all night. They couldn’t move the ball, played stagnant, and forced tons of bad looks in many situations. No team all season made it tougher for the Cardinal to get downhill as the Cavaliers did. It raises the scary thought of how Stanford’s offense will look when Ebuka Okorie isn’t playing at his A game.

Gealer and Okorie were by far the two biggest contributing pieces. Gealer put up 15 points, including three big threes to give Stanford success early. Okorie finished with 14, but went just 5-for-20, looking like a shell of himself compared to a few showings he had in the past. Regardless, if Okorie is struggling and still gives you 14 points, he is a heck of a player.

Thijs De Ridder led Virginia in scoring, putting up 22 efficient points. Malik Thomas put up a strong 11, while also showing leadership on the court. Chance Mallory was immensely impressive off the bench, serving as the spark plug Virginia needed.

It certainly wasn’t the result Stanford hoped for, but they have to look straight ahead. The Cardinal have one of their biggest weeks of the decade, where they host both North Carolina and Duke. If Stanford beats either one, it will be a turning point in their season, and not just a step, but a long jump in the right direction to a tournament bid in March.