I thought instead of doing a more formal writeup for this feature I might just hit you with some quick thoughts following No. 18 UVa’s 73-61 season-opening win over NC Central last night.
Overall, I thought the Wahoos got out of this experience what they needed. Tony Bennett saw plenty of things that worked, some things that need work, the guys got pushed by a veteran group who wouldn’t let it be easy, and they figured out a way to win the game.
Would the Real Kadin Shedrick please stand up?
This might be something that is a bigger deal to me than it might be to others but I thought Beast Mode Kadin ™ was not only good to see but necessary. Simply put, Virginia is a different team when he’s doing what he did in the second half of that game. I’m not sure what sparked the change or how one goes about flipping that switch, but beyond the shooting and all that, this was Takeaway No. 1 for me: When Shedrick is as engaged and aggressive as he was for most of the latter part of the game, the Cavaliers have a very different ceiling. He finished with 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting but it was the way he impacted the game elsewhere, with seven boards, a pair of assists, a pair of blocks, and a pair of steals, that really shined. When he’s in that zone, everything changes for UVa. Suddenly teams aren’t getting anything near the looks they were getting, his size-to-athleticism balance is hard for folks to match, and overall the Hoos seem to feed off his ability to cover so much ground. THAT is the Shedrick we need to see more often than not. And it was great to see him impact the game in such a dramatic way after such a slow start, and especially after UVa looked like it might be losing the thread on this game.
Cousin Armaan’s hot streak continues
This running gag refuses to go away in large part because Armaan Franklin continues to shine. He had a game-high 21 points in the win on 5-for-9 shooting, 4-for-7 from the arc. It was his fourth 20-point game as a Wahoo. Per UVa, Franklin has made 23 of his last 48 attempts from long range in his last 10 games dating back to last season. If the kid is going to shoot it this well, UVa is going to have a pretty good year. But even bigger than that, to carry over that success from last season to this one is a very good sign.
“Different Guys, Different Times”
This old Bennettism is going to be the theme this year in ways I don’t think even I expected. He alluded to it last week but it was on full display in this game how much the Hoos are going to not only lean on their depth but they’ll need to do so. In this game, last year’s leading scorer Jayden Gardner was held to just 3 points on 0-for-4 shooting in only 20 minutes of action. For most UVa teams, to have a lead guy struggle that bad in a game like this, there’s the likelihood of an upset. But the Cavaliers pulled away here because of Franklin, Shedrick, and then both Kihei Clark and Reece Beekman fueling that 15-2 run. There’s no way to know on which night what the lead group will definitively look like but there’s no doubt this team needs different guys who are willing to make up that group. We’ll see Bennett continuing to play with matchups and such but it was interesting to watch UVa get next to nothing from Gardner and still have the fuel to get by a veteran team hungry for an upset.
BVP and the Impact From 3
Lastly, I mentioned that Clark and Beekman were key to that run in the second half which not only pushed UVa ahead for good but also slammed the door on NC Central. So too was Ben Vander Plas, who finished with 7 points on 2-for-4 shooting from deep. I’m singling him out here because having a dude with this much experience and this much potential from long range to come off the bench is not a luxury UVa has often had. The way he fits into the rotation will obviously be sorted out in the next few weeks but the guy clearly makes Virginia better in a variety of ways. How much he and Gardner play and how much small ball Bennett looks to go with will be interesting to watch. Beyond what he did in this game itself, his impact could be substantial given the makeup of this team.
Overall, I thought the Wahoos got out of this experience what they needed. Tony Bennett saw plenty of things that worked, some things that need work, the guys got pushed by a veteran group who wouldn’t let it be easy, and they figured out a way to win the game.
Would the Real Kadin Shedrick please stand up?
This might be something that is a bigger deal to me than it might be to others but I thought Beast Mode Kadin ™ was not only good to see but necessary. Simply put, Virginia is a different team when he’s doing what he did in the second half of that game. I’m not sure what sparked the change or how one goes about flipping that switch, but beyond the shooting and all that, this was Takeaway No. 1 for me: When Shedrick is as engaged and aggressive as he was for most of the latter part of the game, the Cavaliers have a very different ceiling. He finished with 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting but it was the way he impacted the game elsewhere, with seven boards, a pair of assists, a pair of blocks, and a pair of steals, that really shined. When he’s in that zone, everything changes for UVa. Suddenly teams aren’t getting anything near the looks they were getting, his size-to-athleticism balance is hard for folks to match, and overall the Hoos seem to feed off his ability to cover so much ground. THAT is the Shedrick we need to see more often than not. And it was great to see him impact the game in such a dramatic way after such a slow start, and especially after UVa looked like it might be losing the thread on this game.
Cousin Armaan’s hot streak continues
This running gag refuses to go away in large part because Armaan Franklin continues to shine. He had a game-high 21 points in the win on 5-for-9 shooting, 4-for-7 from the arc. It was his fourth 20-point game as a Wahoo. Per UVa, Franklin has made 23 of his last 48 attempts from long range in his last 10 games dating back to last season. If the kid is going to shoot it this well, UVa is going to have a pretty good year. But even bigger than that, to carry over that success from last season to this one is a very good sign.
“Different Guys, Different Times”
This old Bennettism is going to be the theme this year in ways I don’t think even I expected. He alluded to it last week but it was on full display in this game how much the Hoos are going to not only lean on their depth but they’ll need to do so. In this game, last year’s leading scorer Jayden Gardner was held to just 3 points on 0-for-4 shooting in only 20 minutes of action. For most UVa teams, to have a lead guy struggle that bad in a game like this, there’s the likelihood of an upset. But the Cavaliers pulled away here because of Franklin, Shedrick, and then both Kihei Clark and Reece Beekman fueling that 15-2 run. There’s no way to know on which night what the lead group will definitively look like but there’s no doubt this team needs different guys who are willing to make up that group. We’ll see Bennett continuing to play with matchups and such but it was interesting to watch UVa get next to nothing from Gardner and still have the fuel to get by a veteran team hungry for an upset.
BVP and the Impact From 3
Lastly, I mentioned that Clark and Beekman were key to that run in the second half which not only pushed UVa ahead for good but also slammed the door on NC Central. So too was Ben Vander Plas, who finished with 7 points on 2-for-4 shooting from deep. I’m singling him out here because having a dude with this much experience and this much potential from long range to come off the bench is not a luxury UVa has often had. The way he fits into the rotation will obviously be sorted out in the next few weeks but the guy clearly makes Virginia better in a variety of ways. How much he and Gardner play and how much small ball Bennett looks to go with will be interesting to watch. Beyond what he did in this game itself, his impact could be substantial given the makeup of this team.
