Michael Devoe has connected on 57.1 percent of his three-point attempts at home in ACC games. (photo by Danny Karnik)
Devoe labored through a 1-for-8 shooting night against Virginia, including that missed three in the closing seconds. Afterwards, Pastner counted at least four instances where his junior had a clean look at a three, only to bypass it for a drive into a crowded paint.
All unselfish scorers have to feel out the line between bravado and deference. Devoe may need to do a better job of that Wednesday. The good news: he’s coming off the second highest KenPom offensive rating of his career versus Notre Dame, and he’s shooting 57.1 percent from three-point range in home ACC games (20 of 35).
Michael Devoe – 3pt.%
- Home ACC: 57.1% (20 of 35)
- Away ACC: 33.3% (6 of 18)
For its part, Georgia Tech forced some existential crises out of several Virginia scorers as well. Point guard Kihei Clark (9.7 ppg) missed his first nine shots before hitting the go-ahead jumper with 1:08 left. He dished out eight assists against the Jackets, but he still finished with his second-worst offensive rating in an ACC game in the last two years. Wing Trey Murphy III, the Cavs’ third leading scorer (11.3 ppg) and a 49-percent three-point shooter, finished with a season-low three points. And reserve guard Tomas Woldetensae, who had a season-high 14 points in Virginia’s win over Pittsburgh, only played one minute against Tech.
Virginia survived last month in spite of Sam Hauser (22 points) and Jay Huff (18 points) shouldering most of the offense. Pay attention to those complementary players for Virginia – if one of them gets going, it could loosen up the spacing in Virginia’s halfcourt offense.
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Pastner had another reason to feel celebratory Monday: his grandfather turned 102 years old that day. A World War II veteran, Pastner says his Dad’s father still drives and exercises four days a week. Perhaps knowing “the go-to man is the open man” is another secret to his longevity.
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Hauser and Huff both proved their worthiness for ACC Player of the Year last month, the 6-8 Hauser with his ability to pick-and-pop or back down smaller defenders from the long post, and the 7-1 Huff showing his length and inside-outside game. The pair combined to shoot 6-of- 8 from three against Tech; the rest of the Cavaliers went 2-for-10.
Huff was also a handful in his post-up defense of Moses Wright – the senior managed just 6-of-17 shooting against the ACC’s second leading shot blocker. When Virginia has struggled this year, opposing “5” men have often had a field day. Tech’s big men will have to be active in the alleys.
As Virginia clawed back from an 11-point second half deficit, Georgia Tech also had trouble containing the Cavaliers’ mover/blocker action in the halfcourt. The sets usually revolve around Hauser and Huff as screeners, with the other three players continuously coming off flares and pindown screens. That off-ball action in turn creates looks for Hauser and Huff.
Virginia’s offense is designed to wear opponents down – the Cavaliers rank last in the country in tempo – and their three-point shooting (6th NCAA, 39.8%) makes teams pay for trying to short-circuit that tempo by gambling for steals. Part of what makes Virginia tricky is their top three-point shooters are their “3,” “4” and “5” men. Can Georgia Tech have better discipline staying connected on that action Wednesday?
