Instant Takeaways From Virginia 90-61 Blowout Victory Over Rival NC State

Virginia picks up its 25th win on the season and is now 13-2 on the season after a home victory over NC State, as they sweep the season series over its long-standing rival. Virginia defense was on full display as they caused havoc all night and didn’t let NC State get in a groove. The Cavaliers continue to prove they can win in any way they need to. The Cavaliers also set a season record with 18 games of 10 or more made threes. Virginia shot 70% from the floor in the second half to cruise to the 90-61 victory. Virginia has now won four of its last five games over NC State, including three straight. Let's take a look at some key takeaways from the game.

1. Virginia defense was phenomenal

The Hoos played at a high level on defense especially in the first half of the game. Virginia held NC State to 19 points and looked like a Coach Tony Bennett-led defense. They played great on the perimeter and made it tough for the Hoos to get in a rhythm. The forced NC State to shoot 10-28 from the field in the first half and finished with eight blocks. Ugonna Onyenso contributed three blocks off the bench. Virginia held NC State to 29.4% shooting from the floor and 27.3% rom beyond the arc. It was an emphatic effort on the defensive side of the ball as the Hoos finished with 12 blocks and seven steals.

2. Johann Grünloh continues dominant defensive effort

In the last game against Miami, Grünloh had four blocks for the Cavaliers. On Tuesday night, he followed that up with an even better performance and continued to send back shots. He led the Cavaliers with five blocks in the first half in just eight minutes played. He had nearly as many blocks as minutes played in the first. Grünloh went on to record a career-high in blocks with eight and made his presence felt all night long. If he can continue to play at that level defensively alongside Onyenso, Virginia has a dominant defensive frontcourt that will be tough to score on consistently.

3. What is the health of Thijs De Ridder?

The Cavaliers have been led all season by Thijs De Ridder, who has been a freshman sensation. He went down with an injury late in the game against NC State after being twisted and going down. He was seen being stretched out late in the game and wouldn’t return after the five-minute mark. De Ridder finished with 19 points on 7-10 shooting from the floor and went 4-4 from the charity stripe. The Hoos have a major contest coming up on Saturday when they play the Duke Blue Devils. His health will be something to watch the rest of the week to see if he will suit up.

4. The Bench prevails again

The marker of this great Cavaliers team is that their bench has shown up night in and night out for them. In the first half, Jacari White led the way for the Hoos with a team-high nine points on 2-4 shooting from the floor. Of the 32 points scored, 13 came from the bench in the first half alone. Virginia finished with 32 points off the bench. White led the way with 15 points on 4-6 shooting off the bench. Chance Mallory added 11 points. Even Elijah Gertrude came in and contributed with a poster dunk over two NC State players to put an emphatic exclamation point on the game. The bench is very special for the Cavaliers.

5. Virginia is a physical basketball team

The Cavaliers didn’t back down all night, and the Hoos continued to exert their will and physicality on both ends of the floor. At 17:35 in the second half of the game, a skirmish broke out; the Cavaliers didn’t get emotional or cause it to affect their team with a bonehead mistake. Instead, they kept their calm and used poise in a heightened situation. Virginia would be the victor of the scuffle, getting two technical free throws and the ball. I bring that situation up just to say the Hoos keep their composure no matter what, and don’t allow what an opponent is doing to affect them and how they play the game of basketball. They can take the fight to anyone and won’t be exploited or intimidated by anyone. That is a good sign, especially with March Madness right around the corner and tougher matchups that will await them in a few weeks.