The Virginia Cavaliers picked up their second ACC victory late on Wednesday night, beating the Cal Golden Bears 84-60 behind a dominant second half. Shooting guard Malik Thomas carried the ‘Hoos, scoring 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the floor and a 4-for-8 mark from behind the arc.
Thomas’ performance is an encouraging one as he continues to find his stride as UVA’s go-to scorer in the backcourt. His three-point shooting has been a head scratcher throughout the first 14 games of the season
– he’d hit just 29% coming into Wednesday’s contest despite making over 39% in his previous two years at San Francisco.
The graduate transfer has hit 7-of-16 (43.8%) triples in the squad’s last two outings which could be a sign that his threat from deep is reverting to the mean.
It was the Virginia defense that put the late-night matchup with Cal on ice. The Golden Bears shot 44.4% from the floor and 33.3% from deep in the first 20 minutes. In the second period, those dropped to 25.9% and 0.0%.
Cal’s final 35.2% shooting mark was meaningfully impacted by Virginia’s nine blocked shots, including four from Ugonna Onyenso, two from Thomas, and one apiece from Johann Gruenloh, Sam Lewis, and even Chance Mallory. Rim protection remains the strength of the UVA defense.
Mallory added three steals as well, continuing to both be a defensive pest and fill up the box score with eight points and seven assists in addition to his defensive playmaking.
Speaking of assists, Virginia’s ball movement continued to be lethal. The Cavaliers assisted 23 of their 30 buckets against Cal for an impressive 77.7% assist rate. Thijs de Ridder dished out four assists in a relatively quieter outing for the Belgian with 12 points and four rebounds as well. Lewis (four), Dallin Hall
The ball movement lent itself to a well-rounded attack for Ryan Odom’s squad. In addition to Thomas’ 20-point outing, four ‘Hoos scored 12 points (Lewis, De Ridder, Gruenloh, and Onyenso).
Of note, Devin Tillis went down with what appeared to be a knee injury – he was wearing a wrap on his right knee – on two different occasions. After he underwent preseason knee surgery, that;s something worth monitoring especially as UVA awaits the return of guard Jacari White, who continues to recover from the wrist injury he suffered on one of the sickest dunks in Wahoo history.
Virginia entirely overwhelming Cal at home is further confirmation that this team knows how to bury inferior opponents. The blemish against the Virginia Tech Hokies on the road on New Year’s Eve Day was a frustrating one. But the way that Odom’s group has rebounded highlights both their capacity to handle their business when shots are falling and the experience and moxy the roster boats. There was no hangover from dropping a triple overtime game to their rival.
This Saturday, the ‘Hoos face a similar challenge that they did on Wednesday, welcoming Stanford to John Paul Jones Arena. The Cardinal happen to be two spots ahead of their in-state conference rival. Another commanding victory could put the Wahoos on the right track before a monumental test on the road against Louisville – and Isaac McKneely – on Tuesday.
