CHARLOTTE, N.C. - When you're shooting better than 50 percent from 3-point range, you know things are going well.
Georgia Tech did just that -- as well as an overall shooting clip of 60 percent -- to turn a close game against Virginia into a 94-76 blowout.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Georgia Tech's Lewis Clinch is getting hot, and the Virginia players can't seem to get anything to fall. Sean Singletary is driving to open up teammates, but every UVa. shot seems to rattle out. And what was a mostly one- or two-point game is now a seven-point edge for the Jackets with 10 minutes to go. Virginia is dangerously close to letting this game get away.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - It looks like Virginia didn't need to read this blog to know it needed to play some better defense in the second half. (Though if they were reading in the locker room, who would blame them? Yay, blogs!) The Cavaliers are making it much tougher on Georgia Tech and now have a two-point lead four minutes into the second half. Virginia's Mike Scott (not the former Houston Astros' pitcher) is attacking the rim ferociously here in the opening minutes of the half, and has gotten himself a big dunk and some free throws.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - You can't help but wonder what would be happening in this game if Virginia was playing better defense. As it stands, the Cavaliers trail 44-42 at the half, but that is with the Yellow Jackets shooting 57 percent. The Tech starters are 14-for-21 shooting, while no one besides Mamadi Diane has more than two field goals for Virginia.
Tech is getting good shots -- which is to say, shots inside -- thanks to crisp passing and finding the open man. They're also getting out on the break and hold a 10-point edge in transition. But if Virginia plays some defense in the second half, this one should be interesting.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - I wish Jarrett Jack still played for Georgia Tech, because then I could channel John Cougar Mellencamp and tell you all about Jack and Diane. As it stands, there is no Jack, so I'll have to stick with Diane. But not like you're thinking. This one is Mamadi Diane (and it's pronounced Dee-AHN-ee), and he is absolutely killing it right now for Virginia with his jump shot. In fact, his 14 points are a huge reason why the Cavaliers are only down four, 39-35, to the Yellow Jackets right now. Hey, "Jackets" -- that'll work: A little ditty about Jackets vs. Diane. Oh well, maybe not.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - This game continues to be a tight affair, and the good news for Virginia is that it's been that way despite a lack of scoring from do-it-all guard Sean Singletary. The first-team All-ACC selection only has three of the Cavaliers' 25 points right now, but the rest of the Wahoos are picking up the slack. Considering part of Virginia's problem all year is that their offense is a one-man show, this is a great sign for them.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Well, it's good to be covering this game between No. 7-seed Georgia Tech and No. 10-seed Virginia, if for no other reason than it means I'm no longer watching the last game of the first session, between Miami and N.C. State. Not to harp on that one too much, but one long-time columnist called it "the worst game I've ever seen." And the man has seen a lot of games.
This game is off to a bit more of a rollicking start. We've already had numerous made baskets and even had a guy smack his head into the floor, albeit not on purpose. It's back and forth here in the opening minutes, with Tech currently up one.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke's 87-65 win tonight over ACC rival Virginia at Cameron Indoor Stadium was never in doubt with the Blue Devils taking a 12-point lead into halftime. With the win, Duke improves to 13-1 overall and 1-0 in the ACC. Virginia, on the other hand, falls to 10-4 and 0-1.
DeMarcus Nelson led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and 3-of-4 from three-point range, as three other Blue Devils scored in double figures. Gerald Henderson was one of those players, hitting seven of his 12 shots (1-for-3 from three) for 18 points, and Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer finished with 13 and 12, respectively.
Singler and David McClure led the Duke effort on the glass, as both tallied six rebounds to help the Blue Devils claim a 35-34 edge on the boards. The Blue Devils also held the advantage shooting the ball, hitting 50.7 percent (34-of-67) of its field goals while UVA made 42.4 percent (25-of-59) and 28.4 from long range.
For the Cavaliers, senior guard Sean Singletary was the team's high scorer with 18 points after going 6-for-12 from the field and 2-for-4 from three. Backcourt mate Calvin Baker, meanwhile, dropped in 13 before going down late in the game on a drive to the basket, and Mamadi Diane bolstered Virginia's frontcourt play with 11 points and six rebounds in 32 minutes of action. Senior forward Adrian Joseph led the Cavalier effort on the glass, posting nine rebounds in 30 minutes, but never got a chance to get loose on the offensive end in contributing only three points.
As we wrap things up here in Posting Up, make sure to check out a more in-depth look at this game in Hang Time, so until then, we say goodnight from Cameron Indoor Stadium.
DURHAM, N.C. -- The Cameron Crazies are singing goodbye to Virginia and telling the Cavaliers to "drive home safely" after Jon Scheyer just knocked down a three with one second left on the shot clock to put the Blue Devils up, 85-64, with one minute remaining.
Duke will leave here tonight with a 1-0 mark in ACC play and a 13-1 record overall as the buzzer sounds with a final score of Duke 87, Virginia 65.
We'll be back with some notes along with a column in Hang Time after the press conferences.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Virginia forward Ryan Pettinella just air-balled what looked to be one of the ugliest free throws that Posting Up has ever seen in its history of watching organized basketball, and the Cameron Crazies are certainly letting him know about it now.
In the meantime, it's Duke still holding onto a 20-point lead with 4:30 remaining, and the Blue Devils are milking the clock and not allowing Virginia to make any sort of a late comeback.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Kyle Singler just threw down a jam on a Duke fast-break and the Blue Devils are now up 20 on Virginia at 7:37 in the second half, leaving the Cavaliers with little hope of a comeback in this one.
The Cameron Crazies are dancing during this timeout as the Blue Devil mascot runs back and forth in front of the Posting Up perch and his cape has swiped by our screen more than a few times tonight.
On the court, the Blue Devils have managed to stay out of foul trouble with Lance Thomas as Duke's high man with three fouls to this point, while Singletary has also acquired three of his own at the seven-minute mark.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Nolan Smith's reverse layup has Duke back out in front by 16 with the score at 67-51 with 10:17 left to play, and the Cameron Crazies are giving a small group of Virginia fans behind Duke's basket a hard time, razzing them with waving hands as we come out of a timeout.
DeMarcus Nelson has just knocked down another three from the right corner for his 17th point of the night, and Duke has its biggest lead at 19.
Sean Singletary is still sitting on 18 points and Calvin Baker is the other UVA player in double digits so far with 13.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Sean Singletary is doing all he can to keep Virginia in this game, as Duke continues to lead big, 62-48, with less than 12 minutes remaining.
The Blue Devils are getting it done with some strong play by senior guard DeMarcus Nelson who has hit shots from all over the floor tonight and managed to power his way to the basket on several drives.
Kyle Singler and Gerald Henderson both have 11 for Duke, and Singletary, in the meantime, has 18 for Virginia.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke is starting to pull away from Virginia in its ACC opener here at Cameron Indoor Stadium, as the Blue Devils continue to shoot lights out from three with a 58-41 lead at 15:03 in the second half.
Taylor King just hit a three from the top of the key off a nice drive and kick from senior DeMarcus Nelson and Nolan Smith also hit a smooth jumper six feet out in transition on the previous possession.
The Cavaliers are going to need to respond now if they hope to have any chance of getting back in this game, and it's going to need to start with senior leader Sean Singletary.
Speaking of Smith, the freshman from Marlboro, Md., just went down after knocking his head along with scorer's table and Charles Thomas has replaced him for the time being.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke has come out strong in the second half, playing with a lot of energy as Virginia continues to struggle against the Blue Devils' pressing defense with scoreboard reading 51-38 in favor of the home team.
Mike Krzyzewski has to be pleased with the way his team has come out with the intensity that it has shown through the first 25 minutes of this ballgame, and unless the Cavaliers start turning things around in a hurry, they'll be leaving Durham with an 0-1 mark to start ACC play.
DURHAM, N.C. -- With two minutes remaining here at Cameron Crazie Court -- my own new name for this "holy place" -- it's Duke still leading by double digits with Jon Scheyer taking it inside on Virginia for an easy score around the goal.
Sean Singletary, at the other end of the floor, just missed a fall-away jumper but Duke was unable to capitalize on the final possession, as Taylor King missed from deep, leaving the Blue Devils up by 12 at halftime with the scoreboard reading 43-31.
I'll be back with halftime stats in a few minutes once they get printed and handed out.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Sean Singletary is playing his final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and he's hoping to make it a memorable one after hitting a pair of free throws to pull Virginia to within 11 at 32-21 at 4:30 in the first half.
Greg Paulus has just knocked down a three from the left wing to extend the lead back to 14, and the Cavaliers don't seem to be able to get a stop after a basket.
Calvin Baker, the 6-foot-2 transfer from William & Mary, has managed to keep the Cavs somewhat close, getting a layup in traffic and then finding Ryan Pettinella down the lane for another one to trim the lead back down to 10 at 35-25 with 3:17 left before halftime.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Nolan Smith has hit a 15-foot jumper on a curl off an in-bound pass along with a pair of free throws to put Duke up, 27-15, over Virginia with seven minutes remaining in the first half.
After a Jon Scheyer breakaway layup and a three-pointer from DeMarcus Nelson, the margin has grown to 15 with six minutes remaining and Virginia is going to need to turn defense into offense in order to get back into this one before halftime.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke is enjoying a comfortable 21-11 lead at 11:47 in the first half, and it's been largely due to Coach Mike Krzyzewski's pressing defense, which has forced Virginia into a few bad decisions already.
Freshman forward Kyle Singler just got a cut on his face and will have to leave the game for a moment, and Lance Thomas has come into the game to replace the Medford, Ore., native.
DeMarcus Nelson has tallied seven points so far to lead Duke, and Calvin Baker has just hit a smooth fadeaway to cut the Blue Devils' margin to eight.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke has gained control of the game early on with some sweet three-point shooting from DeMarcus Nelson and Gerald Henderson, who has five points in the first six minutes of play.
The Blue Devils currently lead by nine after turning the ball over, and Sean Singletary is struggling from the perimeter right now. Credit Duke's defense and particularly Nolan Smith, who is making sure it's tough for the senior from Philadelphia to get a good look at the rim.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke has got off to a fast start with David McClure assisting DeMarcus Nelson on an outlet pass for an easy layin to put the Blue Devils up, 12-4, but Sean Singletary answered right back for Virginia to cut the early margin to 12-6 with 16:15 remaining in the game.
Virginia has had some good looks at the basket early on yet hasn't got the easy ones underneath the hole to drop.
DeMarcus Nelson, in the meantime, leads all scorers with four points.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Greetings from Cameron Indoor Stadium, where tonight we'll see No. 9 Duke and ACC foe Virginia open up conference play with a packed house on crowd for this Sunday night hoops game.
The Blue Devils are coming in with only one loss in non-conference, a one-point defeat to Pittsburgh in the Aeropostale Classic at Madison Square Garden, but longtime coach Mike Krzyzewski won't have 7-foot-1 center Brian Zoubek after the sophomore reinjured his foot this week in practice. At only 11 minutes a game, though, the Blue Devils will be relying on DeMarcus Nelson and Kyle Singler to pick up the slack on the glass against a feisty UVA squad.
Virginia (10-3), meanwhile, begins ACC play after getting blown out by 38 points, 108-70, at Xavier's Cintas Center. The Cavaliers, who have a dynamic scorer in senior guard Sean Singletary and have won four of their last five games, are hoping to steal a win tonight in the toughest place to play in America, and with this being my first appearance in Cameron, it's certainly louder than any place I've ever been in. Virginia will be looking to win its second straight ACC opener after defeating N.C. State last season, and the Cavaliers have proved to get it done against tough opponents with Virginia having won four consecutive games against AP ranked opponents. Last season, the Cavs were pretty good against Top 10 competition, winning two out of their three contests (No. 10 Arizona and No. 8 Duke), and this season, Dave Leitao's team has already knocked off Arizona back on Nov. 17.
One last stat to note: Virginia leads the nation in rebounding margin at 12.4+ per game
The action's about to start, so let's get ready for the tip.
