CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 19 points, but it wasn't nearly enough, as No. 9 Virginia Tech struggled to contain the hot-shooting Cavaliers and fell to No. 4 Virginia 81-59 in a Commonwealth Clash battle played Tuesday night at John Paul Jones Arena.
With the loss, the Hokies dropped to 14-2 overall, 3-1 in the ACC and saw their nine-game winning streak snapped. Virginia moved to 16-0, 4-0 in league play.
It was all Virginia in the first half, as the Cavaliers grabbed the lead from the opening tip and never relinquished it. They made 13 of their first 17 shots from the floor, including nine 3-pointers, in jumping out to a 35-19 lead. They later extended that lead to 22 at halftime when Kihei Clark buried a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Virginia 44-22 advantage at the half.
The Clark 3-pointer capped an unbelievable shooting display by the Cavaliers in the first half. They made 17 of 25 from the floor (68 percent) and hit 10 of 14 from beyond the 3-point arc (71.4 percent) in the first half. Ty Jerome led the barrage, scoring 12 points and hitting four 3-pointers, while De'Andre Hunter scored 11. In contrast, the Hokies shot just 35 percent (7 of 20) and hit just two 3's in the first 20 minutes.
The Hokies cut the lead to 14 on an Ahmed Hill 3-pointer with 15:47 remaining, but the Cavaliers answered by scoring on nine straight possessions. They pushed their lead to 25 and never looked back.
Alexander-Walker hit 6 of 10 from the floor, including two 3-pointers to lead the Hokies, who shot 50 percent in the second half and finished at 43.2 for the game. Hill added 14 points.
Hunter paced the Cavaliers with 21 points, while Kyle Guy had 15 points and Jerome finished with 14. Virginia shot 58.5 percent from the floor for the game and made 13 3-pointers.
COMMONWEALTH CLASH
The Tech-UVA men's basketball game annually is part of the Commonwealth Clash, a points-based competition between the two schools in which the schools fight for a point among the sports in which they compete. The Commonwealth Clash is presented by Virginia529, the official college savings plan of Virginia Tech Athletics and the University of Virginia Athletics. The score for the Commonwealth Clash is now 4-3 in favor of Virginia Tech. Learn more about Virginia529 and this competition at www.thecommonwealthclash.com.
(1/15/2019) 2019 MEN'S BASKETBALL at VIRGINIA
QUOTES TO NOTE
Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams
(On Virginia's shooting, particularly in the first half)
"I think they did really well. They do move the ball, I think, not necessarily just against us, I think that's probably a big part of what they do offensively. Shot the ball incredibly well in the first half, and we were just behind – behind on ball pressure, behind on rotation, behind on stunts, and with space, categorically, their whole team can make shots. They did, for sure, in the first half."
(On the danger of paying too much attention to Jerome when the other players can go off)
"I agree. It's a little bit of pick your poison because I don't think there is necessarily ever a non-shooter or a non-offensive player on the floor. I think they're incredibly sound in what they do. They're doing more than what they have done in the past that utilizes that talent in different ways. But there's not a guy that they put on the floor that can't make shots or make a play for one another."
(On the biggest difference between Tech's defense tonight and on other nights when it has been so effective)
"I think Virginia is incredibly well-coached. I don't think that they get off track. I think they're very sound fundamentally, and when you're late on whatever late it would be – whether it's late on a ball-screen coverage, whether it's late on a show, on a pin down or a low down screen … they make you pay. Very rarely do they take a forced shot. They're very comfortable late in the clock. So I think defensively you're stressed from the beginning."
GAME NOTES
• The Hokies went 14 of 17 from the free-throw line. They now have made at least 10 free throws in 10 of 16 games this season.
• Alexander-Walker now has scored in double figures in 14 of the 15 games in which he has played.
• Hill has scored in double figures in seven of the past eight games.
• Justin Robinson, who scored nine points, dished out two assists, giving him 531 for his career. He needs just 13 more assists to move past former guard Malcolm Delaney and 17 more to move past former guard Bimbo Coles on Tech's all-time list.
• The 44 points allowed by the Hokies were tied for the most allowed in a first half this season (Purdue).
• The Cavaliers' shooting percentage in the first half – 68.0 percent – marked the best shooting percentage against the Hokies in any half this season.
UP NEXT
Tech resumes play Saturday when it serves as the host to Wake Forest. The Hokies have won five of six in the series, and the game tips off at 4 p.m.