Wahoo Wire

After losing three of their last four games, the Virginia Cavaliers desperately needed a win at home against the meddling Maryland Terrapins, and they got one. In dominating fashion, the Cavaliers took down Maryland 71-44 and moved to 20-6 overall and 7-5 in the ACC. This game, as surprising as it may seem, was tied at halftime 31-31. Virginia came out of the locker room firing after halftime and never looked back as they outscored the Terrapins 40-13 in the second half.

The second half rout, which was started by an early 16-0 Virginia run was one of the ugliest halves of basketball Maryland coach Mark Turgeon had ever seen. The half included only 13 Maryland points to go along with 12 Maryland turnovers and four Maryland team timeouts. Coach Turgeon said although he didn’t want to use it as an excuse, it was tough for his team to come back and play a day and a half after defeating Boston College. “Our preparation wasn’t what it usually is”, Turgeon stated.

When asked if this was a low point for his team this year, Turgeon responded “It reminded me of Puerto Rico today.” Early in the year, Maryland lost two of three in Puerto Rico including two 20+ point losses to Iona and Alabama. With the loss, Maryland falls to 15-11 on the season and 5-7 in the ACC. The loss is a huge blow to Maryland’s NCAA tournament hopes as they still lack a quality win this season.

Virginia forward Mike Scott took another step forward in his attempt to win the ACC Player of the Year. Scott shot 10 of 20 from the field and finished with 25 points after getting off to a great start in which he scored 14 early points. Malcolm Brogdon also had a great game for the Cavaliers off the bench and finished the game with 14 points.

Virginia coach Tony Bennett was extremely pleased with his team’s effort, especially on the defensive side of the ball. After the game, Bennett explained that his message to the team had not changed all season long and that he wanted his team to always “have that intensity form start to finish”. In fact, Bennett was even pleased with his team’s defensive effort in the first half, even after allowing 31 points to the Terrapins. Coach Bennett was happy that all of the Terrapins’ first half shots were contested, even the 7 first-half threes.

Virginia seems to have almost locked up their NCAA tournament spot, but their seed is still undecided. With two huge home games coming up, the Cavaliers have a chance to secure a 5 or 6 seed in the tournament if they can somehow manage to pick up a win against ranked UNC or Florida State.

Virginia takes on the rival Virginia Tech on Tuesday in Blacksburg.