Virginia

Wake Forest’s defeats Virginia behind second-half beatdown

Published

11 months ago

January 13, 2024

Wake Forest’s defeats Virginia behind second-half beatdown

WINSTON-SALEM, NC – Wake Forest’s Tuesday loss to Florida State was a bump in the road, but if it carried over to Saturday, it could have been much larger. Instead, the Deacons flipped the table, shooting 50% against one of the best defenses in the nation, and holding Virginia to 28.1% from the floor en route to a 66-47 second-half beatdown.

“I think we learned a lot about our team,” Andrew Carr said postgame. “It’s not always going to be easy, especially [when] you win nine in a row. You kind of forget what the feeling is like when you lose. We definitely took that hard…we were ready to move on.

“Coming away from that game, we [had to] be able to really impose our identity into the game, and I felt like we did a good job of that, especially in the second half.”

Saturday was also a time for Carr to forget, and move past, some of his own struggles during a three-game skid. Other than the game-sealing three-pointer against Boston College, Carr had a hard time scoring, going a combined 5-14 from the field. In particular, physicality was not up to standards on both sides of the court.

Not so against Virginia. Carr knocked down four shots from the field, pulled down 12 rebounds and played strong defense in 34 minutes of action. It was his first double-double in ACC play this season, and much of it can be attributed to his aggression.

“I felt like today, the opportunity presented itself,” Carr said. “It definitely was a mindset to try and be as aggressive as possible attacking close-outs…I was coming into the game ready to take advantage of it and try to be physical in the paint.”

“I thought he played tremendous,” head coach Steve Forbes later added. “I told Andrew to get out of his head. Sometimes he’s a little too analytical…he gets down on himself more than I’ve ever been down on him.

“He does so many things. He gets a lot of those tough rebounds around the basket. He made some tough shots today. He guarded big guys, he guarded guards. He’s always covering up and helping. I think he’s a very integral part of our team.”

Though Wake Forest again labored with turnovers — posting 17 after giving up 20 against the Seminoles — it made up for ball-security with elite defense. The Deacs held Virginia, a team averaging 66 points per game, to 47 on 28% shooting. In the second half, where Wake Forest turned the game from close to comfortable, the Hoos shot under 24%.

“Defensively, they put the game plan into the game today for 40 minutes,” Forbes said. “It was relentless. [The Cavaliers] have their struggles offensively, but they still make you guard them… you got to stay with it. And the moment you fall asleep, they’ll make you pay.

“Last year, they made 15 threes here. This year, we wanted to not let them attempt 15. They didn’t get 15 off. They got 12.”

Specifically, Wake Forest found success defending Virginia’s prolific guards — Reece Beekman and Isacc McKneely. The pair combined to go 5-22 from the field.

“I thought they did a good job,” Virginia head coach Tony Bennett said, referring to the guards. “They were physical. They got into them. If we didn’t set a good screen or we didn’t set them up, they just guarded us tough and hard. They made them earn.”

“I thought that our defensive effort was outstanding,” Forbes said. “For Hunter and Cameron [Hildreth] to chase those guys off the screens all game long like that, I don’t know if you realize how hard that is and what elite condition they have to be in to do that…Boopie was good too, now.”

Miller, who mostly defended Beekman, held the primary scorer to just 10 points.

“I feel like he’s the engine for the team,” Miller said. “I feel like if I can get a couple stops on him, everybody else would play along with it.”

Miller finished the game with 15 points and seven assists on the offensive end.

Bennett also mentioned the size that Wake Forest had down low, which provided “backline support” on helps. That made “finishing over the rim” a challenge. Most notably, that applies to Carr’s play and Efton Reid, who finished with five blocks.

After scoring 10 against Florida State — his lowest as a Demon Deacon — along with recording four turnovers, Hunter Sallis came back with one of his best performances. The Gonzaga transfer finished with 23 points on 8/13 from the field and five threes. Additionally, Sallis pulled down nine rebounds to go with just one turnover and foul each.

“I’m not sure I’ve had a player have a better overall game on both ends of the court since I’ve been here,” Forbes said. “Offense and defense. He did it all today…Hunter was at a different level, I thought, today.”

Sallis’ rebounds were a part of a complete effort from Wake Forest on the boards. To go with Carr’s 12 and Sallis’ nine, Reid notched eight and Zach Keller, who earned Forbes’ compliments, pulled down four. The Deacons outrebounded Virginia 40-27.

Hunter Sallis (23) pulls up for a three-pointer

Evan Harris/Blogger So Dear

Following a six-point halftime lead, Wake Forest stormed out of the locker room with a 10-2 run. From there, the Deacs never led by less than 11. A 12-5 late charge allowed Wake to walk away with the 19-point difference.

Now rated No. 37 in KenPom at the time of publication, Wake Forest faces off with NC State on Tuesday evening in Raleigh. Tip off is set for 7pm on ACC Network.

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Virginia

West Virginia Mountaineers: Commitment 101: Jahmir Davis

Published

2 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

West Virginia Mountaineers: Commitment 101: Jahmir Davis

Cincinnati (Oh.) La Salle 2025 offensive tackle Jahmir Davis has committed to West Virginia.

The 6-foot-6, 305-pounder, picked the Mountaineers after a weekend official visit to campus where he earned a scholarship offer from the Big 12 Conference program.

The Buckeye State product also held offer from Marshall and Kent State but had been on the West Virginia radar since the summer.

That interest picked up over the past several weeks after a strong senior season where he earned Division II Southwest District All Star first-team selection honors.

Davis was recruited by recruiting coordinators Trey Neyer and Ken Signoretti and then developed into a connection with offensive line coach Matt Moore.

The offensive tackle fills a need for West Virginia in the 2025 class and becomes the third offensive lineman to commit to the program this cycle behind Olney (Md.) Good Counsel 2025 offensive lineman Gavin Crawford and Olney (Md.) Good Counsel offensive lineman Eidan Buchanan.

Overall, Davis is the 23rd prospect to commit to West Virginia in the 2025 class.

WVSports.com breaks down the commitment of Davis and what it means to the West Virginia Mountaineers football program both now and in the future.

Skill set:

Davis possesses excellent size and good athleticism for an offensive tackle. He also has an impressive wingspan which is going to help him in his role at the position. An under-the-radar type, West Virginia has had a lot of success over the years with identifying these athletic body types and molding them for their roles along the offensive front and Davis has the potential to do the same.

The Mountaineers needed to find another tackle type body in this class and Davis checks that box physically, while also impressing with his play on the field as a senior.

Fitting the program:

West Virginia needed more offensive tackle body types in the program with the Mountaineers set to lose both of their starters from the 2024 season to graduation. Buchanan is a major piece to that puzzle, but Davis is also is exactly what the doctor ordered. An intriguing frame, with plus athleticism, Davis is going to need to develop his body at the college level and fill out but has the physical qualities that you’re looking for at tackle.

The offensive lineman has already visited Morgantown so there is a comfort level there and he should be able to step and in start that process in an offensive line room that will lose four players at the end of the year.

West Virginia has continued to make Ohio a key state when it comes to targeting players and Davis is just the latest to join the program in the past couple seasons.

Recruiting the position:

In terms of offensive tackles Davis fills the need there but the Mountaineers are still recruiting one key target on the offensive line in Ohio commitment Parma (Oh.) Padua Franciscan 2025 offensive lineman Brandon Homady. Like Davis, Homady took an official visit over the weekend to Morgantown and the Mountaineers have made him a priority down the stretch as an interior option on the offensive front.

———-

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Virginia

West Virginia Turnpike | Thanksgiving holiday travel forecast

Published

10 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

West Virginia Turnpike | Thanksgiving holiday travel forecast

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – The West Virginia Parkways Authority is expecting an estimated 715,100 total transactions to take place at the West Virginia Turnpike’s three toll booths in the six-day Thanksgiving holiday travel period from Tuesday, November 26, 2024, to Sunday, December 1, 2024.

“Wednesday and Sunday of Thanksgiving week are typically two of the busiest travel days we experience on the West Virginia Turnpike during the entire year” said Jeff Miller, executive director of the Parkways Authority.

On Wednesday, November 27, 2024, 150,000 transactions are expected to take place on the West Virginia Turnpike, with 160,000 transactions expected on Sunday, December 1, 2024.

A total of 127,500 transactions are expected on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, with heavier traffic from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.; 65,000 transactions estimated on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 28, 2024; and 82,500 transactions estimated on Friday, November 29, 2024. On Saturday, November 30, 2024, the West Virginia Parkways Authority estimates 127,500 transactions at Turnpike toll booths.

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Virginia

UVA Football Report Card: Handing Out Grades for Virginia vs. SMU

Published

19 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

UVA Football Report Card: Handing Out Grades for Virginia vs. SMU

It’s time to break down Virginia’s 33-7 loss to No. 13 SMU on Saturday by handing out some report card grades for various players, position groups, and other categories to evaluate the Cavaliers’ performance in week 13.

We’ll save the QB debate of Colandrea vs. Muskett and Tony Elliott’s handling of that situation for another time. We’re only interested in grading Colandrea’s quarterback play on the field… which left a whole lot to be desired. We’ll give Colandrea some slack because he was frequently under duress throughout the game and didn’t turn the ball over for the first time in over a month. What we won’t give him credit for is his artificial completion percentage. He completed 18 of 27 passes (67%), but fueling that (on paper) decent stat is Colandrea’s mind-boggling refusal to throw the ball away or attempt to push the ball down the field. The offensive line is not in good shape, but at least a few of those nine sacks were instances where Colandrea ran himself into sacks instead of getting rid of the ball. The one touchdown pass to Malachi Fields late in the fourth quarter represented everything good and bad about Anthony Colandrea all wrapped up into one play, as he retreated 20+ yards to evade pressure before unleashing a beautiful throw to a target he may or may not have seen open in the back corner of the end zone for a four-yard touchdown pass that traveled more than 30 yards through the air. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers have only seen but rare glimpses of that “electrifyingly good” version of Anthony Colandrea in the last several weeks.

Tony Elliott, at least partially, threw the offensive line under the bus in his postgame press conference on Saturday, citing the team’s inability to protect the quarterback as a reason why inserting Tony Muskett into the game would not have made much of a difference. While that point is debatable, it is true that UVA’s offensive line struggled mightily against SMU, giving up nine sacks and two more quarterback hurries, 12 tackles for loss for a total of -72 yards, and blocking for a ground game that averaged just 1.7 yards per carry. You’re not going to win a lot of games like that.

Something is seriously wrong with Virginia’s passing game and the responsibility is shared among several parties. Anthony Colandrea is scrambling too quickly before going through his reads, isn’t willing to throw receivers open, and hasn’t been able to hit on deep balls since early in the season. For their part, the Cavalier receivers have struggled to gain separation, nor have they been able to turn the short throws into big plays – Chris Tyree has not been nearly as impactful as hoped and Trell Harris is severely missed as a deep threat. We’ve already discussed the offensive line, which has to encourage Colandrea to stay in the pocket by keeping that pocket intact for more than a second or two. And of course, the coaches bear responsibility for not being able to adjust the scheme to put Colandrea and his receivers in better positions to connect, especially in the middle of the field. The outcome of all of this is that an SMU defense that came into this week ranked 13th in the ACC in pass defense managed to hold Virginia to a season-low 108 passing yards.

This isn’t surprising at this point, but it doesn’t make it any less of a problem. Virginia has had games of 73, 68, 7, and 65 yards rushing this season. Not being able to win the line of scrimmage is a big part of it, but Saturday added injury to insult as the Cavaliers lost Kobe Pace and Xavier Brown to injury, leaving Noah Vaughn as the team’s leading rusher in the game. Brown will be out for the rest of the season with a broken collarbone, while Pace is questionable for next week at Virginia Tech.

Virginia averaged 2.6 yards per play. That just about sums it up.

Virginia’s best stat of the game was that SMU running back Brashard Smith, who entered the week as the ACC’s third leading rusher averaging more than 100 yards per game and more than six yards per carry, managed just 63 total rush yards and only 3.3 yards per rushing attempt. The bad news for Virginia is that SMU more than made up for that in the passing game…

The Mustangs threw for 323 yards through the air, including a series of big plays as the Cavaliers were carved up by Kevin Jennings and company. Still, UVA managed to bend, but not break until the late stages of the game, holding SMU to field goals and even coming up with a couple of turnovers to try to set up the Virginia offense with good field position.

For the second week in a row, the UVA defense played well enough to make this a competitive game, only to watch as the UVA offense continued to drop the ball. This game was 7-0 late in the first half and it was even still within reach early in the fourth quarter. John Rudzinski’s unit has been playing well for the last three weeks.

There were no catastrophic special teams miscues, but Will Bettridge missed a 41-yard field goal, Chris Tyree and Kam Courtney both tried to catch a kickoff and fumbled it (barely recovering), and the Cavaliers allowed a 48-yard punt return to Roderick Daniels Jr. Daniel Sparks had a good day punting the ball, so that’s nice.

Virginia finishes the season with a 2-4 record at home, losing those four games by a combined 71 points. The announced attendance on Saturday was 36,305, which was the second-lowest attendance of the season. It seems to be a cyclical problem of poor performances contributing to poor turnout and the resultant poor atmosphere meaning the Cavaliers essentially have zero home field advantage.

Virginia Football: Xavier Brown Out for Season With Collarbone Injury

By the Numbers: Breaking Down Virginia’s 33-7 Loss to SMU

VIDEO: Tony Elliott, UVA Football Players React to SMU Loss

Five Takeaways from Virginia Football’s 33-7 Loss to No. 13 SMU

Virginia Football Rolled By No. 13 SMU 33-7 in Home Finale

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