The Good, Bad and Ugly of Virginia Basketball’s Victory Over Miami

The Virginia Cavaliers walked away with another win, but it was not without challenge.

Virginia Cavaliers forward Thijs De Ridder and Miami Hurricanes forward Shelton Henderson | Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

The Virginia Cavaliers added another victory to their resume after defeating the Miami Hurricanes 86-83 on Saturday. This win did not come without its challenges, but that was to be expected. The Hurricanes entered the matchup third in the ACC standings, just behind the Cavaliers at No. 2.

Despite the obstacles faced on the court, the Hoos still managed to rally. Before the Cavaliers take on their next matchup, let's take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly of the Virginia-Miami meeting.

The Good

Virginia Cavaliers guard Jacari White | Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

UVA's bench continues to show up in its best form, and that became even clearer when Virginia faced Miami. Between Jacari White, Chance Mallory and Ugonna Onyenso, the Cavaliers' bench has played an integral role in their success this year.

By the end of their matchup against the Hurricanes, White was leading UVA with 17 points, while Mallory led Virginia in both rebounds (six) and assists (six). White is the fifth-leading scorer for Virginia and Mallory is the fourth-leading scorer. As for Onyenso, he is a powerful force on both sides of the ball—the Cavaliers would not have been nearly as successful this year without him. This was not his most productive matchup, as he scored four points and recorded one steal, but his contributions were still key to Virginia's victory.

The Bad

Virginia Cavaliers forward Thijs De Ridder and Miami Hurricanes forward Shelton Henderson | Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

The Hoos have been steadily improving on defense throughout the season, but the Cavaliers were put to the test over the weekend. Miami is largely led by senior Malik Reneau, who averages 19.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. However, he was limited to 16 points, three rebounds and two assists on Saturday. The Hoos were challenged while defending the Hurricanes, and head coach Ryan Odom took note of this during his postgame press conference. As he stated:

"... It's just something that we've got to improve upon. They're really good. Like they get to the basket and they're a very physical team, and you have to stop them before they get to the paint if you're going to have a chance. And when we did, we were pretty successful. When we didn't, they made us pay."

The Ugly

Virginia Cavaliers guard Chance Mallory | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

This was another tight game for the Cavaliers, and numerous ties crept in, risking UVA's position in the game. Virginia just barely pulled ahead toward the end, but once the Hoos face the Duke Blue Devils, they are going to need to crank up their play a few notches. This left little room for error—the victory could have been easily handed to Miami.

"... Clearly, we were still doubling, and that put us in some rotations, and you can give up some offensive rebounds when you are doubling the post," Odom explained. "But it was a necessity for us to do that, but these guys, our guys, just continue to find ways to finish games, and certainly we were fortunate tonight. Miami is a really good team. They've won 21 games or whatever it is, just like our team. They've found ways to be successful."