College Basketball: Virginia rallies against Northeastern
The Cavaliers overcame a poor first-half shooting slump to secure a 97-72 victory, setting the stage for a matchup with Arkansas.
By Jack Weber ·
Sam Lewis and Chance Mallory each tallied 20 points as No. 9 Virginia defeated Northeastern 97-72 on Friday night in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Cavaliers turned a sluggish start into a dominant second-half performance, pulling away from the Huskies to improve their record to 2-0.
Virginia began the game with considerable difficulty, shooting 2 for 10 from the field and 0 for 7 from three-point range in the first eight minutes. The team committed four turnovers during that opening stretch and did not take its first lead until Mallory made a layup with 8:23 remaining in the first half. Despite these early struggles, Virginia outscored Northeastern 22-11 over the final nine minutes of the half to enter the locker room with a 38-31 advantage.
Thijs De Ridder contributed 16 points, six rebounds, and four assists for the Cavaliers. Johann Grunloh, playing through an injured right ankle, added 13 points. Northeastern’s Rashad King scored 26 points, while guard Louis Bond added 21. The Huskies committed 19 turnovers, with 11 of those occurring in the first half alone.
Virginia’s starters played only 34 minutes, as the coaching staff rested them for the final six minutes of the game. This rotation strategy may prove beneficial ahead of a Sunday matchup against No. 12 Arkansas, given that the team relies heavily on the four key players it retained from last year’s 30-win squad.
In other action, No. 4 UConn defeated No. 16 Michigan 85-77 at TD Garden. Braylon Mullins scored 23 points and made 10 of 11 free throws to help the Huskies win a rematch of last season’s NCAA championship game. Silas Demary Jr. finished with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Colben Landrew added 14 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Michigan, which dropped to 1-1, struggled from beyond the arc, going 7 for 28 on three-point attempts. UConn connected on nine three-pointers and shot 42% from the field overall. The Wolverines held the Huskies to 41% shooting but could not overcome an 18-point first-half deficit.
No. 14 Miami beat Wagner 83-57 in Coral Gables, Florida. Shelton Henderson scored 19 points for the Hurricanes, who outscored Wagner 24-3 in fast-break points and recorded 18 assists. No. 17 Kansas routed Middle Tennessee 89-45, with Trey Kaufman-Renn scoring 17 points in 18 minutes.
No. 18 Iowa State defeated Southern Mississippi 83-57, with Tre Singleton scoring 19 points in the first half. No. 20 Alabama beat Arkansas State 101-86, as Amari Allen recorded a triple-double with 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists. No. 22 UCLA crushed North Florida 114-63, with Nikola Kusturica scoring 29 points. No. 23 Kentucky won 89-80 against James Madison, led by 16 points from Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins.
