National Basketball Association
Virginia 79, Belmont 67
When: 3:10 PM ET, Friday, March 20, 2015
Where: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, North Carolina
Officials:
# Keith Kimble, # Gene Steratore, # Mark Whitehead
Attendance:
16551
By SportsDirect Inc.
Virginia 79, Belmont 67: Malcolm Brogdon scored 22 points as the Cavaliers survived the upset-minded Bruins in NCAA Tournament round of 64 action from Charlotte, N.C.
Anthony Gill scored 16 points and Justin Anderson had 15 off the bench as No. 2 seed Virginia (30-3) advanced to a matchup with seventh-seeded Michigan State on Sunday. Darion Atkins pitched in 10 points and seven boards for the Cavaliers, who shot 18-of-21 from the free-throw line in the second half and finished with only seven turnovers.
Craig Bradshaw poured in 25 points for the 15th-seeded Bruins (22-11), who shot 47.4 percent against the nation's top defensive team, which entered allowing 51.2 points per contest. Belmont ultimately was doomed by a 21-5 deficit at the foul line and the fact that it grabbed only six offensive rebounds on its 30 missed shots.
Bradshaw drained a 3-pointer with 4 1/2 minutes remaining to get the Bruins within 60-57 before London Perrantes made a jumper and Gill scored five quick points during a 9-0 run that Brogdon capped with two foul shots with 1:32 to play. Anderson, who had not scored in his first two games since returning from a long-term injury stint, went 4-of-4 from the foul line in the final 1:14 to help wrap it up.
Belmont made seven of its first 10 shots, including 3-of-4 from the arc, en route to an early 20-17 lead before Virginia scored 13 straight points and went into the locker room ahead 40-32. The Cavaliers extended their cushion to 51-37 early in the second half, but the Bruins uncorked an 11-0 run behind five points from Bradshaw and four from Mack Mercer.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Brogdon led all scorers with 16 first-half points. Bradshaw scored 10 first-half points to lead the Bruins at intermission. ... Virginia allowed 71 points in its last game - a loss to North Carolina in the ACC tournament semifinals. Before these two games, the Cavaliers had not given up more than 60 points in a game since Feb. 2. ... Anderson, who missed eight games with a fractured finger followed by an appendectomy, had not scored since Feb. 7.
Top Game Performances
Belmont |
|
Virginia |
Craig Bradshaw 25 |
Scoring |
Malcolm Brogdon 22 |
Reece Chamberlain 4 |
Assists |
London Perrantes 3 |
Craig Bradshaw 9 |
Rebounds |
Darion Atkins 7 |
Evan Bradds 2 |
Free Throws Made |
Anthony Gill 8 |
Reece Chamberlain 3 |
Steals |
Justin Anderson 1 |
Mack Mercer 1 |
Blocks |
Darion Atkins 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Belmont
|
67 |
47.4 |
8-25 |
5-6 |
12 |
26 |
2 |
4 |
12 |
Virginia
|
79 |
45.6 |
6-17 |
21-25 |
11 |
34 |
3 |
5 |
7 |