The No. 11 Virginia Cavaliers rolled past NC State, 90-51, in Charlottesville in an emphatic performance on both ends of the floor in their second game on the newly named Tony Bennett Court.
The Cavaliers set the tone early with defense, honoring their old coach by holding the Wolfpack to just 19 first-half points (the first “Tony” on the new court) and 61 total. On the other end, Virginia looked more like the group we saw earlier in the season during out-of-conference play, especially after halftime.
UVA exploded for 59 second-half points and put five players in double figures: Thijs De Ridder (19), Sam Lewis (16), Jacari White (15), Malik Thomas (12), and Chance Mallory (11).
With NC State entering the night sitting fourth in the ACC standings, this looked like a legitimate test at the start of Virginia’s biggest week of the season. The Cavaliers passed it with ease, moving to 25-3 and setting up a massive showdown Saturday at No. 1 Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Here are five takeaways from the win:
Virginia’s defense set the tone immediately
Virginia’s best stretch of the first half came on the defensive end, when the Cavaliers opened up a 15-5 run over the first 9:38 by completely disrupting NC State’s rhythm.
As has often been the case, the interior defense led the way. Johann Gruenloh and Ugonna Onyenso anchored the paint and made life miserable at the rim for the Wolfpack. Even without much offensive production, the two bigs combined for 12 blocks, with Gruenloh posting a new career high with eight.
That kind of rim protection took an NC State offense that came in averaging 84.9 points per game and knocked it off schedule early.
UVA’s offense started slow again – but the defense gave it time to settle in
For as sharp as Virginia was defensively in the opening half, the offense took a while to find its footing.
Loose ball-handling and some sloppy passing led to seven first-half turnovers, which kept the Cavaliers from establishing consistent rhythm in the half court. It wasn’t pretty early, but Virginia’s defense gave the offense enough margin to work through it.
That’s part of what made this performance so encouraging: even while the offense struggled, Virginia still controlled the game and went into halftime comfortably in front at 32-19.
However, with the Cavaliers headed to Cameron Indoor this weekend and sights set on a potential deep NCAA tournament run, these offensive struggles to start games are definitely a cause for concern.
Virginia found another gear in the second half
Virginia came out of the halftime break shooting well, but NC State didn’t go away quietly. The Wolfpack answered with a few big shots to keep things from getting out of hand early in the half, with Paul McNeil Jr. leading the way with 22 points.
Then came the turning point.
About two and a half minutes into the second half, a scuffle led to technical fouls for Sam Lewis, Darrion Williams, and Scottie Ebube, who was ejected. From that point on, it felt like the game got personal for Virginia and the Cavaliers responded by playing some of their best basketball of the season over the final 15 minutes.
You could see it all over Thijs de Ridder, who played with real edge down the stretch and hammered home multiple dunks. He finished with 19 points, his third straight game in double figures, and quieted any concerns about a late-season dip after a couple of quieter outings in ACC play.
De Ridder did leave the game with about four minutes remaining after banging knees with an NC State player, but it appeared to be precautionary. He was smiling on the bench with under a minute to play.
The “Bench Mob” delivered again
Virginia’s second unit has been a weapon all season, and it showed again Wednesday night.
The Cavaliers’ bench outscored NC State’s bench 32-5, continuing a trend that has defined this team: depth, energy, and reliable production. Virginia has leaned on that depth all year to create sparks and keep its starters fresher late in games.
Jacari White was a huge part of that again, finishing with 15 points and going 4-for-5 from three. Since switching from the brace to a less restrictive wrap, his shooting stroke has looked much more like itself, a development that could be huge for Virginia down the stretch.
Chance Mallory (11 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) and Ugonna Onyenso (4 points, 4 blocks) also made major contributions off the bench.
This game also marked the return of Devin Tillis after a one-game absence. He didn’t score, but his 12 minutes mattered, especially in helping give De Ridder a breather after his 36-minute outing against Miami.
Virginia locked up a top-four ACC Tournament seed and set up a massive Saturday at Duke
This was a massive win for UVA, and not just because of how dominant it looked against one of the ACC’s better teams.
With the win, the Cavaliers clinched a double bye in the ACC Tournament, meaning they would need just three wins to take the conference title in Charlotte. That matters — especially this time of year, when rest and depth become even more valuable.
The 29-point margin also gave Virginia a major analytics boost, jumping the Cavaliers from No.19 to No. 14 in KenPom, a significant leap this late in the season.
And now comes the one everyone has been circling.
Virginia’s win sets up the battle with No. 1 Duke on Saturday at noon (ESPN) in what could very well decide the ACC regular-season title. The Cavaliers sit one game behind the Blue Devils, and a win in Durham would move Virginia into first place thanks to the head-to-head tiebreaker.
With Wake Forest and Virginia Tech still left on the schedule after Duke, a win on Saturday would put Virginia in a strong position to control its own path the rest of the way.
