In Wednesday’s ACC Action, Virginia nearly upset Memphis, going down 64-62, and Georgia Tech beat the dreaded UMBC Retrievers, 92-81.

Virginia has had a tough time since Tony Bennett shocked the basketball world by retiring just prior to the season.

Virginia really didn’t shoot all that well – offensive specialist Isaac McKneely was just 2-7 and hit only one of his four three point attempts. Elijah Saunders led the way with 15 points and Taine Murray had a surprising game off the bench with 14.

Virginia was up 30-21 at the half and it looked like Bennett Ball was back.

But it wasn’t.

Memphis threw out a full-court press to start the second half and started turning over the ‘Hoos. PJ Haggerty had 21 points in the second half.

Virginia still had a chance to win but flubbed a key possession late when Dai Dai Ames couldn’t work a drive.

Georgia Tech fell behind 11-2 to UMBC and Damon Stoudamire quickly called timeout to right the ship. It worked: Tech took the lead back at 13-11 at the 14:13 mark and never looked back. The Yellow Jackets were up 53-41 at the half and while the Retrievers pulled closer, it was over.

Baye Ndongo and Naithan George, who are keys for this team, got back on track. Ndongo finished with 17 points, nine rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block.

For his part, George had 18 points and eight assists.

Stoudamire tweaked his lineup a bit and started two sons of outstanding players at other schools: Ryan Mutombo, son of the late Dikembe, started and had six points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Jaeden Mustaf, son of former Maryland star Jerrod, has been coming on fast for the Yellow Jackets. He had 15 points, five assists, five rebounds and one steal.

It’s too early to know how well the tweaks will work but we’ll get a better idea soon as Duke visits Hotlanta Saturday.

That’ll be a busy day and we’ll get to it soon.

On Wednesday Night, the Virginia Cavaliers (6-5) fell 64-62 to the No. 21 Memphis Tigers (9-2) at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Cavaliers posted a strong first twenty minutes backed by an uncharacteristically poor half from three for Memphis (2/14 3PT FG), but newfound intensity from Memphis in the second half on both ends of the floor quickly erased the deficit, and ultimately the Tigers’ defensive pressure, streaky offense, and a strong performance from star guard PJ Haggerty (27 points) proved just too much for the Hoos to overcome in the narrow loss.

Read below for five takeaways from tonight’s game:

In a game where Virginia’s regular contributors lagged behind offensively, veteran Taine Murray gave a team-best performance off the bench. Murray finished with an efficient 14 points, matching a career high on 5/9 shooting and maintained an impressive level of intensity on both ends of the floor throughout his 26 minutes of action. Coach Sanchez mentioned post-game how proud he was of the fourth year for his gritty performance.

Despite the loss, the Virginia defense deserves credit for building a nine-point halftime lead Wednesday night. Memphis came into the night as the second-best three-point shooting team in the nation, and a disciplined Cavalier defense held the Tigers to just 2/14 from three in the first half, and a season-low 21 points through the first 20 minutes of action. The Memphis offense found more rhythm in the second half, backed by a return to their normal rate of free-throw line trips (18 free throw attempts in the second half), but the Cavalier defense maintained an admirable level of intensity as they fought for a ranked win on their home floor.

After their lowest-scoring half of the entire season in the first 20 minutes of their visit to JPJ, the Tigers came out of the halftime locker room with an impressive level of intensity, and one that proved too high for the Cavaliers to meet. The Hoos struggled to battle the Memphis full-court press and increased half-court pressure throughout the development of the second half, and particularly right out of the break. Dai Dai Ames’ return to the lineup was a welcomed presence, but the second-half pressure from the Memphis guards proved a challenge for him in his return to action as he finished with eight points on just 2/11 shooting.

The frenzy of the Memphis second-half pressure sent Virginia spiraling into foul and turnover trouble early, with four team fouls in the first two minutes of second half action, and Memphis in the bonus by the 10-minute mark of the half. The Memphis pressure carried over to the offensive end, where they attacked the rim and got to the free-throw line. After just two first-half free throws, the Tigers finished the contest with 17 free throws on 21 attempts.

Virginia has struggled with turnovers throughout the first ten games of the ’24 campaign, and for the first time tonight came out and won the early turnover battle. The Hoos entered the halftime locker-room with 14 points off of seven Memphis turnovers, compared to just three points off of four Virginia turnovers.

Unfortunately, that story flipped in the second half. Memphis’ pressure forced a slew of lackluster decisions from the UVA offense, who looked quite unprepared to battle the full-court press and half-court pressure with no alternatives to Dai Dai Ames as a primary ball-handler. The points-off-turnover gap rapidly closed with four UVA turnovers in the first four minutes of second-half action.

Some fans may not believe in moral victories, but if they do exist, tonight’s loss against Memphis was certainly just that. In the words of Head Coach Ron Sanchez in his post-game presser, Virginia “battled for all 40 minutes” Wednesday night while competing against an AP Top 25, high-level Memphis team, something that hasn’t happened when the Cavaliers have faced good teams this season. It is crucial this narrow loss serves as a source of confidence, and motivation, for this group as they turn to ACC play soon.

Up next, Virginia hosts American on Sunday at 2pm at John Paul Jones Arena before taking more than a week off until the full ACC portion of the schedule arrives.

Virginia vs. Memphis Live Updates | NCAA Men’s Basketball

Sanchez Gives Injury Update on Dai Dai Ames on Coach’s Corner Radio Show

Report: UVA Basketball Set to Host Bosnian Sharpshooter for Visit

Point/Counterpoint: Injury Reports and Gambling in College Sports

Both of West Virginia’s starting linebackers entering the season are set to move on from the program. Josiah Trotter entered the transfer portal shortly after Neal Brown’s firing and recently committed to Missouri.

Wednesday afternoon, Max Olson of ESPN reports that redshirt sophomore Trey Lathan plans to enter the portal as well.

In 13 games this season, Lathan recorded 79 tackles, nine tackles for loss, two sacks, and a forced fumble. Last year, Lathan got out to a red-hot start after beating out Jairo Faverus for the starting gig, immediately becoming one of the best blitzing linebackers in the Big 12. His season came to an abrupt end when he suffered a knee injury in the win over TCU. Lathan pieced together a strong 2024 campaign but had his fair share of struggles in pass coverage.

Lathan will have two years of eligibility remaining.

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

Curt Cignetti Gives a Shoutout to Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia on Pat McAfee Show

Garrett Greene Reflects on His Career at West Virginia Following Frisco Bowl

Evaluating West Virginia’s Five Biggest Transfer Portal Needs

Who Are the Top Five Offensive Players Rich Rodriguez Must Retain?