Virginia Earns Scrappy 62-41 Win Over Campbell to Remain Unbeaten
For the first time since 1997, the Virginia women's basketball team has started the season 6-0. UVA overcame a poor shooting night and another sluggish start to pull away for a 62-41 victory over Campbell on Wednesday night at John Paul Jones Arena to remain undefeated on the season.
Neither team operated effectively on the offensive end of the floor and that trend started right from the beginning of the game. There were 11 combined turnovers between the two teams in the first quarter. A three-pointer from Svenia Nurenberg gave Campbell a 12-10 lead at the end of the opening period.
The second quarter saw both the Cavaliers and the Fighting Camels experience lengthy scoring droughts, including a scoreless stretch of over five minutes for Virginia. A turnaround jumper from Cady Pauley finally ended that drought and UVA ended the second period on a 6-2 run to take a 22-18 halftime lead.
Whether it was more due to the stingy defenses of both teams or due to bad shot selection and poor ball security, the outcome was a horrific first half of offense overall. Campbell turned the ball over 13 times in the first half, while Virginia had nine first-half turnovers. UVA shot 34% from the floor and did not hit a single three-pointer, while Campbell shot 35% and hit just two of 11 three-point attempts. Virginia managed to take the lead by gaining an advantage on the inside and on the boards. UVA had eight offensive rebounds and 10 second chance points and outscored Campbell 20-12 in the paint in the first half.
The third quarter saw more offensive struggles, as neither team hit a field goal for a stretch of over four minutes. Virginia shot 4/17 from the floor in the third, but found success driving to the basket and drawing fouls. The Cavaliers went 11/13 from the free throw line to win the quarter 19-15 and stretch their lead to 41-33 entering the fourth.
As has been the case in several of UVA's games to start the season, the Cavaliers finally found a rhythm when it mattered most. Sam Brunelle hit Virginia's first three-pointer more than 32 minutes into the game as part of an 11-0 explosion for the Cavaliers to open up a 14-point lead. It was smooth sailing from there, as the Hoos continued to play stifling defense and abuse their advantage in the paint, finishing with a 36-22 edge in paint points. Campbell finished with 25 turnovers and Virginia scored 25 points off of those takeaways to help seal the win. UVA outscored Campbell 21-8 in the fourth quarter and scored 40 points in the second half to secure the 62-41 victory.
Camryn Taylor led the way with 13 points for the Cavaliers and London Clarkson joined her in double figures with 10 points on an efficient 5/6 shooting from the floor. The unsung hero of the night was McKenna Dale, who did not score a point but recorded eight rebounds, two steals, one block, and one assist in just 17 minutes of action. Taylor Valladay had eight points, four assists, two rebounds and two steals and Mir McLean had seven points, seven rebounds, and a steal before fouling out.
With the victory, Virginia (6-0) has now eclipsed its win total for the entire 2021-2022 season (5-22), a remarkable turnaround for the Cavaliers in their first season under Coach Mox.
UVA will be back in action this weekend with the Cavalier Classic in Charlottesville. Virginia will host Minnesota on Saturday at 2pm and East Carolina on Sunday at 2pm at John Paul Jones Arena.
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