Thijs De Ridder Gets Back To Normal Self In Rout Of Georgia Tech On The Road

Thijs De Ridder finally looked like himself on Wednesday night against Georgia Tech in Atlanta. He finished with 22 points on 9-13 shooting and grabbed five rebounds. De Ridder attacked all night and used his strong, powerful frame to bully smaller Georgia Tech defenders.

He not only got it done offensively but also on the defensive side of the floor, finishing with three steals and a block. He turned those steals into instant offense and he had a number of thunderous dunks on the fast break.

Head coach Ryan Odom talked about what allowed him to get back into a rhythm one play at a high level.

"I think he was just motivated to play tonight. You know, he's had, you know, a couple of, you know, subpar games for him. He was motivated to play his best, and uh you could see it right away. You know, sometimes once you see that first shot go in or make a good play, you know, then that can snowball in the right direction for you. And I think that happened certainly for him tonight. He's a really good player and uh you know, it was just a matter of time before he he kind of broke out of that,” said Odom.

De Ridder also continued to attack with his left hand and dominated the defense with his off hand, showing how ambidextrous he is.

"Yeah, I think he did. Yeah, think he's comfortable driving to his left. He's comfortable driving to his right. The key for him is just the pace and having a little bit more nuance to it, where he can create some fouls, getting to the basket. But I thought he did a nice job tonight of taking what was given to him and really stretching out and getting to the rim,” said Odom.

Virginia is such a deep team that despite De Ridder’s recent struggles, it didn’t affect the team and lead to a loss. They have so many guys who can step up on any given night. However, when De Ridder is playing at an optimal level and producing, the Hoos are a tough team to beat, and one nobody wants to see in the tournament. De Ridder leads them with 15.7 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. If De Ridder can find his groove back at a consistent level, Virginia will be in a prime position to make a run.

More Virginia Basketball News:

•Preview and Final Score Prediction For No. 15 Virginia vs Florida State

•How to Watch No. 15 Virginia vs Florida State: Tipoff Time and TV Channel

•How Valuable Has Ugonna Onyenso Been To The Success Of The Virginia Cavaliers?

•Why Duke's Loss to North Carolina Was Huge for Virginia and Their Quest To Be ACC's Top Team

•Virginia Ranked No.15 In The Latest AP Basketball Poll Rankings