Instant Takeaways From UVA’s Monumental Win Over Arkansas

No. 9 Virginia took on No. 12 Arkansas, an extremely physical squad, in the mildly neutral confines of Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

The Cavaliers won that physical battle. Combined with dunks, threes, blocks and other highlights worthy of SportsCenter, Virginia earned a signature 91-72 win — one that will shine very brightly on its postseason resume.

Here are instant takeaways live from D.C.:

Virginia proved itself as one of the best teams in college basketball

The Razorbacks feature some of the best freshmen in the country, plus one of the more underrated star duos in Billy Richmond III and Jeremiah Wilkinson. They all looked mortal more often than not (except for D.C. native Jordan Smith Jr.). In the second half, Virginia led by a whopping 27 points at one juncture. That's simply absurd.

The Cavaliers should be ranked no worse than No. 7 Monday afternoon. And if Virginia continues to steamroll opponents like this, it could very well find itself ranked in the top five along with UConn by the time they clash in New York City in late December.

Every starting Cavalier scored in double figures Sunday afternoon. Corner threes along with crisp catch-and-shoot opportunities were constant.

Johann Grunloh played the best game of his UVA career

Thijs De Ridder picked up his second foul just two minutes into the game. To accomodate that foul trouble, Coach Ryan Odom turned to extended minutes for Grunloh. The second-year stepped up.

Grunloh set a career-high in minutes (excluding overtime games) with 35. Grunloh played stellar defense and also scored 15 points. He added four rebounds, five blocks and two assists.

The bench has been narrowed down to Gertrude, Dixon, Carrere and Anya

Virginia entered the season with a surplus of reserve options. Odom usually likes to run a nine-man rotation, though. It looks like has one now. Christian Harmon could still factor in (he is still rehabbing a broken foot) — but the rest of the bench looks clear.

Gertrude is the obvious sixth man, as he has been one of the team's very best offensive players. Dixon's scoring ability also keeps him in the mix. Carrere and Anya provide size and length — maybe some untapped offensive potential. Maybe Jan Vide still gets minutes, but he was absent until garbage time today.

With Gertrude, Dixon, Carrere and Anya, Odom has his nine-man rotation. And considering that the core four starters will play heavy minutes regardless, the reserves are more of an insurance policy than extremely crucial contributors.

Team defense was stellar

Arkansas loves to slash to the rim and win in the paint. That didn't happen nearly as often as Coach John Calipari would have liked. While it did feel like football (or wrestling) down low, Grunloh and De Ridder emerged victorious more often than not.

Even better, smaller guards contributed in the paint as well — getting a hand on the ball frequently. The Razorbacks didn't score their 60th point until there were just over five minutes left in the game.

This was a fantastic team win, especially on defense.

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