The No. 11 Virginia Cavaliers (25-4, 13-3) fell 77-51 to the No. 1 Duke Blue Devils (27-2, 15-1) on Saturday in Durham, North Carolina. Virginia was never able to make the comeback after Duke took an early first-half lead. Duke’s win secures them at least a share of the ACC regular season title and sends them into the conference tournament as the top-ranked team.
Meanwhile, the story of Virginia’s loss? Poor shooting.
Despite Virginia’s eight second-half comebacks this season,
the last twenty minutes against Duke mirrored the first: dry, with not a single comeback run.
Virginia shot a dismal 29% (16-for 55) from the field and only 20% (7-for-25) from three. It couldn’t compete with Duke’s 49% field goal and 50% three-point shooting.
Despite sitting on the bench for much of the first half after two early fouls, Thijs De Ridder led the team with 16 points, followed by Chance Mallory’s nine.
De Ridder’s foul trouble really hurt the ’Hoos, who suffered a scoring drought that lasted over seven minutes in the first half. Virginia eventually implemented full-court pressure, but by halftime, they had buried themselves into a 41-26 deficit, Duke’s largest halftime lead against an AP-ranked team since 2019. Virginia’s last possession before the break ended with a turnover.
The ’Hoos lacked any kind of momentum in front of a loud Duke crowd. Virginia struggled to penetrate beyond the three-point line and seemed flustered with the early deficit. They committed nine turnovers (mostly due to weak or sloppy passes) and lacked offensive ball movement. A couple of airballs here and there, even when uncontested, buried the morale early on.
Duke opened the second half with a few non-shooting fouls that could have turned things in Virginia’s favor. De Ridder hit an open three to bring the score to 44-29. Dallin Hall followed with a transition three, bringing it to 46-32. But Duke continued to respond.
Virginia’s defense couldn’t make up for its stale offense. Duke was prepared to handle the post double-team –either breaking through defenders on the block or dumping the ball for the weak-side bucket. While Virginia missed a number of good looks, Duke made significantly more, often uncontested. Duke’s Isaiah Evans led both teams with 19 points, including five from deep. Cameron Boozer, predominantly matched up against De Ridder, followed with 18 points – eleven of which from the free-throw line.
Virginia just couldn’t lock them down. While the game would have assured Virginia’s tournament trajectory, the ’Hoos buckled under the top-ranked team and seemed unprepared for the Blue Devils’ length and athleticism. It’s as if Virginia looked on to Duke wide-eyed – as if they, too, weren’t a top-ranked team (and within one game of the Blue Devils).
The Cavaliers will now face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (14-14, 5-10) at home on March 3.
