Second-Chance Scoring Powers Virginia to 78-51 Win Over Rider

When the shots aren't falling, sometimes all you can do is go after the rebound and try again. That was Virginia's mentality on Wednesday night as the Cavaliers attempted an astonishing 76 field goals, but made only 29 of them. But by winning the rebounding battle 60-22 and scoring 26 second-chance points, Virginia (7-2) pulled away in the second half for its third-consecutive victory, beating Rider (2-6) 78-51 on Wednesday night at John Paul Jones Arena. 

To say that Virginia's offense was ice-cold to start the game would be something of an understatement. Rider came out in a compact zone defense, goading the Cavaliers to shoot threes, knowing that they convert just 26.0% of the time, 298th in the country. That strategy worked like a charm, as Virginia shot 2/16 from the floor in the first quarter, including 0/6 from beyond the arc. Rider wasn't much better at 5/16, but a late three-pointer from Jessika Schiffer gave the visiting Broncs a 15-11 lead at the end of the opening quarter. 

UVA's offense improved marginally in the second quarter, with Sam Brunelle and Kaydan Lawson making three-pointers and Jillian Brown scoring back-to-back layups as part of a 6-0 run to give Virginia the lead. The Cavaliers still shot just 31% in the first half as compared to 40% for the Broncs, but UVA managed a 32-27 halftime lead thanks to eight points from the free throw line, eight second-chance points on 15 offensive rebounds, and 10 points from Camryn Taylor. 

The Cavaliers were even more aggressive on the offensive glass in the second half, but they also managed to generate higher quality shots against Rider's zone with better ball movement. 

"We had to move the ball, get the zone shifted, get the ball inside by passing to our post players but also by punching gaps and our guards attacking," said Coach Mox after the game. "We were just trying to draw one or two people from the zone and kick, attack closeouts, get the ball inside, let our post players go to work. In the first quarter, we didn't do that. We kind of just stood on the perimeter with the ball on top of our heads."

An and-one from Jillian Brown and three-pointers from Alexia Smith and Edessa Noyan helped Virginia string together a 15-2 run to build a 17-point lead midway through the third quarter. Smith scored seven points in the third and Noyan scored five as UVA won the quarter 25-13 to take a 57-40 lead to the final period. 

Rider opened the fourth quarter on a 7-1 run to get back within 11 points, prompting a timeout from Coach Mox. It was all Cavaliers after that, though, as Virginia responded with a 10-0 scoring run that included four points from Camryn Taylor and four more from Kymora Johnson. UVA knocked down two more threes late in the game from Brunelle and Olivia McGhee, ending the game on a 20-4 run to cement the 78-51 victory. 

"I'm really happy to see that we rallied, especially in the second half," said Coach Mox. "Thought we were a little stagnant against the zone. But once we got going, we saw some good things."

Taylor led the Cavaliers with an 18-point, 13-rebound double-double and Alexia Smith joined her in double figures with 11 points. 12 different UVA players scored in the game and six had at least seven points. Edessa Noyan and Jillian Brown gave Virginia a solid lift off the bench with eight points apiece and a combined 17 rebounds between the two of them. 

Virginia outrebounded Rider 60-22 and grabbed a mind-boggling 31 offensive rebounds, leading to 26 second-chance points. UVA scored 40 points in the paint and got 33 points from its bench. 

"With a lot of missed shots, the message is go get the board, give us extra possessions," Coach Mox said. "To have 31 offensive rebounds is crazy, like I'm not even sure I've seen that before. 60 total rebounds to their 22. When you're missing shots, just go get 'em and then get high-percentage shots, layups, things like that."

Now 7-2 on the season, Virginia gets 10 days off for final exams before hosting Wofford on Saturday, December 16th at 1pm at John Paul Jones Arena. 

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