Gardner Scores 26, Virginia Outlasts Georgia Tech 63-53

The Cavaliers held off the Yellow Jackets to win their fourth game in a row

Matt Newton | Feb 12, 2022

As Tony Bennett always says, you have to earn every win in the ACC.

Virginia led Georgia Tech by as many as 17 points in the first half, but the Yellow Jackets fought back and made a game out of it in the second half, cutting the UVA lead to just two points.

Behind 26 points from Jayden Gardner, Virginia outlasted Georgia Tech and earned a 63-53 victory on Saturday evening at John Paul Jones Arena.

Virginia delivered a smothering defensive effort in the first half, holding the Yellow Jackets to just six points through the first 12 minutes of the game. The Cavaliers used a 12-0 run to open up a 22-6 advantage out of the gate and built a lead as large as 17 points at 30-13 with less than two minutes to go in the first half. Jayden Gardner scored 15 points on 6/7 shooting in the first half to help UVA take control.

After Gardner hit a turnaround jumper with 1:48 left in the first half, he was outscoring the Yellow Jackets all by himself. However, Georgia Tech ended the half on a 6-2 run to make it 32-19 at the half.

The Yellow Jackets continued that run at the start of the second half and ended up scoring 11-straight points to get themselves right back in the game. Michael Devoe and Jordan Usher were the catalysts for the Georgia Tech comeback. Devoe, the ACC’s second-leading scorer at nearly 19 points per game, scored 17 points and, perhaps even more importantly, had Reece Beekman in foul trouble throughout the game. Usher scored all 11 of his points in the second half as Georgia Tech continued to chip away at the lead.

Georgia Tech strung a few runs together, but Virginia was always able to answer back with baskets in order to maintain at least a small lead. Gardner continued to be a go-to option for the Cavaliers in the second half and the East Carolina transfer finished with 26 points on 10/19 shooting and had seven rebounds, two assists, three blocks and a steal.

With less than six minutes remaining, Michael Devoe knocked down a three-pointer to make it 49-47. Gardner responded with back-to-back baskets to push the Virginia lead back to six points.

Crucially, the UVA defense was able to hold Georgia Tech scoreless for nearly three minutes, after which Kihei Clark made a clutch three-pointer to put Virginia up by eight with two and a half minutes to play. Clark finished with 15 points, including three three-pointers, and had four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

Georgia Tech still had a chance to come back in the final minutes, trailing by just six points. Michael Devoe used every move in the book to try to get free, but Reece Beekman stuck to him like glue and forced a heavily contested fadeaway that Devoe missed badly. Beekman controlled the rebound and then made both ends of a one-and-one to essentially put the game away. Kihei Clark made four free throws to seal the deal.

After alternating wins and losses for nine-consecutive games, the Cavaliers have now won four games in a row, matching their longest win streak of the season. Virginia has managed to maintain the momentum from the significant victories over Miami and Duke last week and now sits at 16-9 overall and 10-5 in ACC play. The Cavaliers will look to make it five in a row on Monday night in Blacksburg as they play at Virginia Tech in the second meeting of the Commonwealth Clash.

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