Virginia Shakes Slow Start, Pulls Away From Albany for 66-46 Win
Back-to-back losses to ranked opponents were far from catastrophic, but the same can't be said for UVA's start to Wednesday night's game against Albany, as with a little over five minutes left in the first half, the Cavaliers found themselves trailing the Great Danes, a team that entered the night 5-9 and 318th in the NET rankings.
At last, the Hoos got the train back on the tracks and played the way they should against an inferior opponent, using an 18-0 run spanning halftime to take control of the game as Virginia defeated Albany 66-46 on Wednesday night at John Paul Jones Arena.
Without Reece Beekman, who was held out of the game by the UVA coaching staff to rest his strained hamstring, Virginia played poorly on both ends of the floor for the first 15 minutes of the game. Albany used separate 6-0 and 8-0 runs to build a lead as large as four points.
Albany's Da'Kquan Davis, who scored eight of his team-high 11 points in the first half, hit a three-pointer to put the Danes up 24-22 with 5:15 to go in the first half. Albany would not score another point until more than three minutes into the second half, a scoring drought of nearly nine minutes spanning across halftime. Armaan Franklin sparked the run with a three-point play to give the Cavaliers the lead for good. Franklin finished with a game-high 20 points on 7/13 shooting, including 3/6 from beyond the arc, and was a staggering +36 in his 31 minutes on the floor.
Franklin got things moving in the right direction, but it was Kihei Clark who fueled Virginia's momentous turn. In a stunning sequence that Tony Bennett said he had seen only once before from his former Charlotte teammate Muggsy Bogues in the NBA, Clark picked the pocket of Malik Edmead in the backcourt on back-to-back plays, coasting for a pair of easy layups separated by just 11 seconds.
As he has for his entire five-year career at Virginia, Clark brought the crowd at JPJ to its feet. It was only fitting that Clark did so in his 139th career game, as he surpassed London Perrantes and Mike Tobey for the most games played in UVA program history.
Virginia ended the first half on an 11-0 run and led 33-24 at halftime despite shooting 14.3% from three and 44.8% from the floor. Jayden Gardner and Armaan Franklin led the way with 10 points each in the first half.
The run continued for the Cavaliers to start the second half, as they continued to play well on both ends of the floor. All told, UVA went on an 18-0 run over that more than eight-minute span, turning a two-point deficit into a 16-point lead. Virginia smothered Albany defensively and shot 63% from the floor through the first eight minutes of the second half.
Franklin continued his stellar play after halftime, hitting all four of his shots in the second half, including two three-pointers. Franklin hit three of UVA's five threes, as the Cavaliers continued to struggle from distance, shooting just 27.8% from beyond the arc.
Fortunately for the Wahoos, they dominated in the paint to the tune of a 34-18 advantage in paint points. Jayden Gardner finished with 16 points on an efficient 7/11 shooting and he collected seven rebounds. Kihei Clark put on a show in his 139th career game, recording eight points, ten assists, four rebounds, and the two highlight steals.
The Cavaliers led by as many as 28 points as they took complete control of the game early in the second half. Albany knocked down a few three-pointers late in the game against UVA's bench unit, but Virginia still cruised to the comfortable 66-46 win to snap a two-game losing skid.
Now 9-2 on the season, Virginia returns to ACC play for the rest of the season as the Cavaliers travel to Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech on New Year's Eve at 12pm.
To stay up to date on all Virginia Cavaliers sports news, follow CavaliersNow on social media:
Facebook: @CavaliersNow
Twitter: @CavaliersNowFN
See more Virginia men's basketball news and content: Virginia Men's Basketball on Sports Illustrated
See more Virginia sports news and content: Virginia Cavaliers on Sports Illustrated
