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The Plus/Minus: Virginia Bounces Back Against Louisville

Virginia returned home to the friendly confines of JPJ and defeated Louisville handily, 77-53

Val Prochaska

The Plus/Minus: Virginia Bounces Back Against Louisville
The Plus/Minus: Virginia Bounces Back Against Louisville /
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Virginia got back in the win column with a comfortable 77-53 victory over Louisville on Wednesday night at John Paul Jones Arena. Val has the Plus/Minus to break down what we saw from the Cavaliers in their bounce-back win. 

Plus

A win is a win is a win. Louisville is not a good team. Let’s establish that from the get-go. Plus, they dressed only seven scholarship players. Ask Coach Mox what fun that is. But behind a solid shooting night from Isaac McKneely (18 points in 19 minutes on 4/7 shooting from deep,) Virginia took care of business. Coach Tony Bennett is now 18-2 against Louisville as a Virginia coach. 

Plus

Bennett made a major change to his lineup rolling out both Blake Buchanan and Jake Groves at the same time. This moved Ryan Dunn to the 3 and freed him up to slash at the basket from the wing. Dunn had one of his better games as a Cavalier, notching 15 points on 7/8 shooting and grabbing 10 boards. He even made a pair of jump shots!

Plus

Blake Buchanan got the most meaningful minutes he’s gotten in over a month. Reece Beekman, ever the consummate point guard was looking to establish Buchanan from the get-go.

It was still a bit of a rough night for Buchanan. He’s got really good hands, and he had the prettiest assist of the night.

But he really struggles to hold on to the ball when strength is needed down low. And when he does keep the ball, he cannot get separation or lift. He usually doesn’t foul, but he got tagged for three of the softest fouls imaginable tonight. Being the 5 in the Pack Line is a challenge, especially for a rookie, and he missed a couple of rotations, but Bennett kept him on the floor. And this is hard for Bennett. He’s got a notoriously short leash for bigs who blow rotations. But I don’t care how hard you practice, the game is the best teacher, and the only way this guy is going to grow into what Virginia needs come tournament time, is to play. So kudos to Bennett.

Plus

Virginia outrebounded Louisville 34-27 and surrendered only five offensive boards to the Cardinals. And that’s largely down to the effort of Jake Groves. He didn’t have the best shooting night, but he grabbed nine boards and cleared out under the glass so well that one of his box-outs drew cheers from the crowd. I have no idea what Bennett told him when he transferred, but I seriously doubt that Groves expected to find himself manning the 5. His effort, all season long, has been really impressive.

Plus

In sentences that I’m sure no one expected to read, Taine Murray had perhaps his finest game as a Hoo. He scored 12 points on 5/6 shooting (2/3 from deep) and he constantly attacked the rim. Going into the season, I presumed Murray was going to be the 11th man, getting minutes just one degree ahead of garbage minutes. And here he was, on the floor at crunch time. Yet another reason I don’t make predictions…

Minus

Leon Bond III was the casualty, minutes wise, of Dunn spending time at the 3 and Murray’s good night. It was definitely a step back for him. He only took one shot and he didn’t score, but he had four rebounds and a pair of assists in seven minutes. He’s simply got to play more.

Related:  Matt's comprehensive game report.

Plus

Fresh off a 2/11 performance from deep against the Fighting Irish, Virginia shot a much more respectable 10/26 from beyond the arc. McKneely is still far too static along the perimeter, and Andrew Rohde wasn’t as active curling around screens, but the team’s ball movement on the night was very good. It was the fourth time this season that the Cavs made 10+ threes. This team can win games shooting like this.

Plus

If there is one thing Louisville is good at, it’s getting to the line. They average 28 free throws a game. Virginia only sent them to the pin stripe for 13 free throws. And six of those came in the garbage minutes at the end of the game.

Minus

This was a good, old-school Tony-Bennett outing. Virginia was in control the entire game, even if they never ran away with the game. But the game was at home and Louisville is a poor team. Other than Buchanan’s minutes signaling a potential change in Bennett’s rotations, there is not anything from this game that is going to change Virginia’s outlook for the rest of the season. The statement wins are going to have to come from somewhere else.

Next Up: Virginia travels to Raleigh to take on NC State on Saturday, January 6th. Game time is 2pm and the game will be on the ACC Network. 

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Val Prochaska
VAL PROCHASKA

Val graduated from the University of Virginia in the last millennium, back when writing one's senior thesis by hand was still a thing. He is a lifelong fan of the ACC, having chosen the Tobacco Road conference ahead of the Big East. Again, when that was still a thing. Val has covered Virginia men's basketball for seven years, first with HoosPlace and then with StreakingTheLawn, before joining us here at Virginia Cavaliers on SI in August of 2023, continuing to cover UVA men's basketball and also writing about women's soccer and women's basketball.

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