Virginia Basketball: 10-Game Report Card

The primary ten video games of the 2022-2023 Virginia males’s basketball season are formally within the books. With the Cavaliers on one other prolonged break for the vacation earlier than their subsequent recreation, it is time to take a second to guage how issues are going for UVA via the primary third of the season. 

Let’s begin with a snapshot of Virginia’s resume up to now:

Document

Total: 8-2
ACC: 1-1 
House: 5-1
Away: 1-1
Impartial: 2-0
Streak: L2

Outcomes

defeated NC Central (NET 182) 73-61
defeated Monmouth (NET 358) 89-42
defeated Baylor (NET 20) 86-79
defeated Illinois (NET 43) 70-61
defeated Maryland Jap Shore (NET 278) 72-45
defeated Michigan (NET 80) 70-68
defeated JMU (NET 69) 55-50
misplaced to Houston (NET 2) 69-61
misplaced to Miami (NET 39) 66-64

NET Resume

NET Rating: nineteenth
2-2 vs. Quad 1
2-0 vs. Quad 2
0-0 vs. Quad 3
4-0 vs. Quad 4

KenPom

KenPom rating: thirteenth
Adjusted Offensive Effectivity: 113.5 (fifteenth)
Adjusted Defensive Effectivity: 91.4 (twenty first)

Document vs. present AP High 25: 2-2

The primary ten video games of the season have been a blended bag for the Virginia Cavaliers, who had an excellent begin, however have not regarded practically as robust prior to now 4 or 5 video games. Here is the Good and the Not So Good of the Virginia males’s basketball season up to now:

The Good

8-2 document via ten video games in a aggressive schedule 

Virginia performed maybe its hardest non-conference schedule of the Tony Bennett period and with one recreation left, the Cavaliers have gone via that out of convention slate with just one loss to a non-conference workforce. For those who had advised UVA followers that within the 4 video games towards Baylor, Illinois, Michigan, and Houston, Virginia would go 3-1, that would definitely have been an appropriate end result. 

After ten video games final season, Virginia was 6-4 with unhealthy losses to Navy and JMU, a one-point residence loss to Iowa, and a 20-point blowout loss at Houston. This season, Virginia is 8-2 with these solely two losses coming towards a top-five Houston workforce and on the highway towards a ranked Miami squad. The losses are recent and the Cavaliers have not been enjoying excellent basketball over the past a number of video games, however the spectacular wins towards Baylor, Illinois, and Michigan present what this workforce can accomplish when play to their potential. 

Virginia remains to be a much-improved three-point capturing workforce regardless of the current droop

We’ll get into UVA’s three-point capturing drop-off afterward within the “Not So Good” part. However general, UVA remains to be capturing 36.5% from past he arc as a workforce even after the droop, a major enchancment over final season’s 32.3% clip. There are merely extra gamers on the roster this 12 months that may hit an open shot from the perimeter, which suggests opposing groups are nonetheless compelled to respect the Cavaliers across the arc. When Reece Beekman is wholesome, he takes benefit of the spacing created by that capturing risk to assault the lane and create much more open photographs. Virginia’s three-point capturing and all-around offensive output ought to enhance drastically as Beekman returns to 100%. 

Talking of Reece Beekman

A wholesome Reece Beekman regarded like an All-American candidate and a possible first spherical NBA draft choose via the primary few video games of the season earlier than the harm hassle started. Clearly, his protection has been distinctive all through his profession and that has continued this season, however Beekman has extra importantly begun to come back into his personal on the offensive finish. Aggressively attacking the basket, capturing the three-ball at a career-high 42.9% clip, and organising open photographs for his teammates, Beekman took the reins of the UVA offense and was the important thing to Virginia’s early offensive success. 

That a lot turned painfully clear when Beekman suffered an ankle harm after which a hamstring pressure and Virginia’s offense reverted to its stagnant, unproductive type that appears concerningly much like the 2021-2022 Cavaliers. However even injured, Beekman has nonetheless had a major impression on each ends of the ground. His on-ball protection has nonetheless been nice, a testomony to his IQ and positioning to remain in entrance of opposing ball-handlers regardless of the restrictions to his lateral motion. Offensively, he’s capturing and scoring considerably much less, however has nonetheless managed to make performs for his teammates, dispensing 5 assists towards Houston and 9 assists at Miami. Count on a few of Virginia’s offensive points to be corrected as Beekman turns into wholesome once more. 

The impression of Ben Vander Plas

Ben Vander Plas had his worst recreation of the season towards Houston, going scoreless on 0/7 capturing, together with an 0/6 mark from three-point vary. How did he reply within the subsequent recreation? His first 20-point efficiency in a Cavalier uniform, capturing 7/13 from the ground and 4/9 from past the arc at Miami. Vander Plas has been an excellent addition on each ends of the ground for Virginia. His capacity to stretch the protection along with his perimeter shot and his passing abilities within the low publish are two issues the Cavaliers merely did not have of their arsenal on the ahead place final 12 months. Vander Plas has been enjoying the 5 fairly a bit, permitting Virginia to go small to match opposing groups, and for probably the most half has picked up the Pack Line Protection remarkably rapidly. 

Spectacular freshmen

Isaac Traudt and Leon Bond III are redshirting this season, however Isaac McKneely and Ryan Dunn have contributed rather more than anticipated at this early stage of their careers. 

Dunn’s athleticism is eye-popping and he has confirmed to be a dependable defensive possibility able to guarding a number of positions. It was shocking that he did not play a lot towards Houston after enjoying very effectively in stretches towards Florida State and JMU, however as he continues to get a really feel for the sport and enhance in his defensive fundamentals, anticipate Ryan Dunn to proceed to be a significant component for Virginia the remainder of the season. 

Isaac McKneely remains to be looking for some consistency in his three-point shot on the faculty stage. He has made 13/38 (34.2%) three-point makes an attempt, however is simply 5/22 in his final 5 video games. McKneely has stored his confidence up and his type is great, so there’s little doubt that he’ll develop right into a dependable shooter for UVA. However what has been actually spectacular is his protection and rebounding. McKneely was getting beat off the dribble fairly a bit within the first few video games of the season, however he has considerably improved since then, staying in entrance of opposing guards and fulfilling his function within the Pack Line Protection at an sufficient stage. He’s a formidable rebounder, even towards UVA’s most athletic and bodily competitors, coming down with 5 rebounds in each of Virginia’s ACC video games. 

The Not So Good

Virginia is trending down

UVA’s two losses this season can hardly be thought of catastrophic, as they got here towards two High 25 groups by a mixed 10 factors. A house loss to a prime 5 Houston workforce and a highway loss to a ranked Miami workforce by two factors are not any cause to hit the panic button. However the larger difficulty is that Virginia has been trending downward over the past a number of video games. The Cavaliers regarded good in early blowout wins towards outmatched competitors they usually regarded merely phenomenal within the wins over Baylor and Illinois. When the Hoos went down by 11 at Michigan, they confirmed they might reply to adversity, coming from behind to win in Ann Arbor. 

For the reason that Michigan recreation, Virginia hasn’t precisely impressed confidence, particularly on the offensive finish. Virginia received by solely 5 factors towards a Florida State workforce that was 1-8 on the time, then equally beat James Madison by 5 factors. Then got here the losses to Houston and Miami, because the Cavaliers continued to play poorly towards competitors that would not allow them to get away with it. 

Virginia’s three-point capturing fell off a cliff

Via the primary three video games of the season, UVA shot a blistering 51.6% from three, making 33 of 64 three-point makes an attempt as a workforce. Within the final seven video games, Virginia is 45/139 or 32.4%, nearly precisely the identical proportion as final 12 months’s workforce. Have been the primary three video games a fluke? Opposing defenses adjusted to the Cavaliers’ early three-point success and guarded them extra diligently on the perimeter, however UVA has nonetheless been getting a number of open appears to be like from past the arc per recreation and is lacking these photographs at a regarding charge. 

Reece Beekman’s harm has harm UVA’s three-point capturing efforts on a number of fronts, because the Cavaliers are getting fewer open appears to be like from the perimeter since Beekman is not as aggressively moving into the paint, however he’s additionally taking fewer three-point photographs himself and he has been Virginia’s greatest three-point shooter at 42.9%. It isn’t a superb signal that an harm to at least one participant has resulted within the complete collapse of UVA’s general offensive manufacturing. 

UVA’s drop-off in three-point capturing has taken place throughout the roster. Armaan Franklin was 9/17 from three within the first three video games, however simply 8/26 since then. He knocked down two threes in three-straight video games, however went 0/3 at Miami. Franklin remains to be capturing 39.5% general and Kihei Clark has been proper there with him at 38.2%, however is trending down as effectively. Ben Vander Plas bounced again with a superb recreation towards Miami, however was 2/18 within the earlier six video games after going 6/10 within the first three video games of the season. 

Defensive breakdowns are extra regarding 

Naturally, Tony Bennett is rather more displeased with UVA’s defensive lapses than he’s along with his workforce’s missed photographs on offense. The Cavaliers are nonetheless making an attempt to determine their optimum lineup, however they’re notably struggling towards smaller groups that run versatile, athletic bigs. These groups are prepared to surrender the scale benefit to Virginia in favor of stretching the UVA protection with bigs that may shoot, go, deal with the ball, and run the ground. Kadin Shedrick has not been capable of assert his dimension benefit in these matchups, not forcing the difficulty within the publish on offense and never dominating the glass as he ought to because the tallest participant on the ground. In the meantime, Virginia’s different tall heart Francisco Caffaro has seen his minutes dwindle away, enjoying double-digit minutes in solely two of UVA’s video games this season and never enjoying in any respect in three of the video games. The change is smart, as Caffaro would not give Virginia a lot offensively and definitely struggles to maintain up with smaller and extra athletic forwards. 

Taking part in Ben Vander Plas on the 5 permits the Cavaliers to match up with opposing groups once they go small, however that has not prevented Virginia from having many extra defensive breakdowns than Tony Bennett’s accepted commonplace. UVA is giving up open threes and straightforward layups at an alarming charge and people defensive lapses got here in essential moments within the losses to Miami and Houston. These two groups shared the ball extraordinarily effectively, punishing any errors dedicated by the Cavaliers. If that continues to be a pattern, that might current an equally restrictive ceiling for Virginia as does the workforce’s offensive struggles. 

It is nonetheless early and there is loads of time for this workforce to enhance, as Virginia groups coached by Tony Bennett often do, particularly on the defensive finish. It’s important that the UVA teaching workers determine the optimum lineups to run in several matchups and it is important that the Cavaliers get out of their capturing funk and start to knock down open threes once more. Virginia would not have to shoot 50% like firstly of the season, but when the Hoos can transfer the needle somewhat nearer to 40% as a workforce and hit extra of their open appears to be like, then they will nonetheless compete with and defeat any workforce within the nation. That a lot is obvious from Virginia’s collective performances towards Baylor, Illinois, Michigan, Houston, and Miami. Even within the losses when the Cavaliers could not get something to fall, they nonetheless had an opportunity to win. 

On the prime of Virginia’s vacation want listing are the next three objects: emerge from the three-point capturing droop, patch up the defensive breakdowns, and get Reece Beekman again to 100%. If issues even marginally enhance in any of those areas, the Cavaliers will likely be alright. 

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