NC State hosts No. 3-ranked Virginia (18-1, 6-1 in the ACC) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at PNC Arena on ESPN2. Here is a breakdown of the Cavaliers.
Season Overview
Virginia was expected to be among the top teams in the country with three returning starters and key reserve De’Andre Hunter back from last year's squad, and the Cavs haven’t disappointed.
UVA got a break when Alabama transfer Braxton Key being ruled eligible for this season by the NCAA. The 6-8, 225-pounder is chipping in 7.2 points and 5.7 rebounds and shooting 30.3 percent on three-pointers in 21.3 minutes per game this season.
Virginia also knows the regular season success is not how they’ll be judged, after last year’s stunning 74-54 loss to No. 16-seeded Maryland-Baltimore County in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to finish the season 31-3.
Maryland, Wisconsin and Dayton hung in with Virginia, but Duke is the lone team to top the Cavaliers. The Blue Devils won 72-70 on Jan. 19 despite playing without freshman point guard Tre Jones. UVA shot a miserable 3 of 17 on three-pointers that afternoon.
Once again, the Cavs defense is dominant. Fifteen of Virginia's opponents were held to 25 points or less in the first half.
Rankings
In the newly established NET rankings done by the NCAA, through games of Jan. 27, the Cavaliers are ranked No. 1 in the country, which means it would qualify as a quad one contest for the Pack. ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) and Kenpom.com also both have UVA ranked No. 1 in the country.
The Cavaliers are ranked sixth in the old RPI formula used by the NCAA — according to RealTimeRPI.com.
Virginia is ranked No. 3 in both The Associated Press poll and coaches’ poll.
For comparison, NC State is 19th in coaches poll, 21st in BPI, 23rd in The Associated Press, 29th in NET, 32nd in Kenpom.com and 105th in RPI.
Shooting
Virginia has topped 80 points in six wins this season, and part of that is due to better shooting. The Cavaliers are 32-1 under head coach Tony Bennett when scoring at least 80 points, and 118-7 when scoring at 70-plus points.
UVA can play four three-point shooters at once this season thanks to Key, who is the weakest of the four shooters at 30.3 percent. Even two of the three Virginia post players — junior Mamadi Diakite and redshirt sophomore Jay Huff — have combined to go 11 of 23 on three-pointers.
Junior shooting guard Kyle Guy leads the way at 46.0 percent on three-pointers, redshirt sophomore forward De’Andre Hunter is next at 41.5 percent and junior point guard Ty Jerome has improved to 40.2 percent.
Rebounding
Virginia’s good defense has meant more rebounding opportunities in league games. The Cavaliers are second in the ACC with 30.0 defensive rebounds per contest, just behind Virginia Tech, and are fourth overall at 38.0 boards a game in seven league contests. UVA leads the ACC with an 8.0 rebounding margin, and overall are fourth in rebounding margin through 19 contests (6.4).
Defense
Unsurprisingly, Virginia leads the ACC in all three major defensive statistical categories — points per game (52.6), field-goal percentage (37.3) and three-point field-goal percentage (24.9). The same holds true through seven league in all three categories.
Depth
Virginia typically plays three guys off the bench— with Key, Huff and freshman point guard Kihei Clark carving out those roles. Wings Marco Anthony and Kody Stattmann round out the bench.
Key is the main performer and was ranked No. 64 coming out of Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy in the class of 2016 by Rivals.com. He has started five games, but has settled in as the sixth man, which is the role Hunter had last year. That has allowed UVA to start post players Jack Salt and Diakite together for a bigger lineup with Hunter.
Star Watch
Guy earned first-team All-ACC last year as a sophomore, and is playing even better this season.
Former NC State assistant coach Rob Moxley once offered the baby-faced assassin, but he quickly picked Virginia during a whirlwind recruitment. Rivals.com ranked him No. 43 overall in the class of 2016, and he earned a spot in the McDonald’s All-American Game. He quickly made an impact for the Cavaliers his freshman year, shooting 49.5 percent from three-point land.
Guy took a dip from beyond the arc last year to 39.2 percent, but thus far this season is shooting at 46.0 percent. He is also shooting a career-high 47.6 percent from the field en route to 15.0 points per game.
The slender 6-2, 175-pounder has reached double figures in all but three games, and poured in 30 points and went 7 of 9 on three-pointers in a 100-64 win vs. Marshall on Dec. 31. He has made at least three three-pointers in 11 games.
Stats To Watch
Virginia assist/turnover ratio: The Cavaliers lead the ACC and the country with just 8.4 turnovers per game and have a 1.72 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is third in the country. UVA is also third in the ACC in turnover margin with plus-3.63 per contest.
The scary part is that UVA has lowered its turnovers per game to 8.0 in the ACC. Point guard Jerome has gone the last two games without a turnover in a combined 62 minutes played, and he has one turnover in last 97 minutes.
Bench points: Virginia got just six points off the bench against NC State last year in a 68-51 home win. Then NC State freshman reserve guard Lavar Batts had 12 points and fifth-year Lennard Freeman chipped in nine points and five boards last year against UVA for the Wolfpack’s 21 bench points. The trio of Key, Huff and Clark are averaging 17.1 points per game.
Fouls/free throws: Virginia ranks 11th in the country with 14.9 personal fouls called per game, which is third in the ACC behind Notre Dame and Miami. Hunter fouled out of the VCU game, the lone time he had more than three fouls, and Salt and Diakite played with four fouls in three games.
NC State thus far has yet to be whistled for fewer fouls or attempt more free throws in seven ACC games.
Game Within The Game: Torin Dorn vs. De’Andre Hunter
Former NC State assistant coach Rob Moxley had a good eye for the talent of younger players, and not just Guy. He offered Hunter as a sophomore at Wynnewood (Pa.) Friends Central School, the same high school that produced Amile Jefferson, who picked Duke over NC State.
Hunter was coming off a season-ending injury and wasn’t a big name, but his trainer was a former Charlotte guard that Moxley had coached. Hunter wasn’t overly prioritized by NC State in the class of 2016, but he eventually blew up into a national recruit and ranked No. 60 in the country by Rivals.com. Virginia landed him and elected to redshirt him.
He quickly proved to be a quality sixth man last year in averaging 9.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, and his worth was never more evident than when he missed the NCAA Tournament loss to No. 16-seeded Maryland-Baltimore County.
Some Virginia insiders think if he had been healthy, he would have had a great NCAA Tournament run and leave for the NBA Draft. Instead, he’s back for his sophomore year and has become one of the top players in the ACC. He’s averaging 14.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, and shooting an impressive 53.5 percent from the field and 41.5 percent on three-pointers. The 6-7, 225-pounder has reached double figures in all but three games, and over 20-plus points in four contests.
The 6-5, 210-pound Torin Dorn did a good job in checking Jordan Nwora of Louisville, a sophomore stretch four, and he had 18 points and six boards in the loss at Louisville. He should be matched up against Hunter often Tuesday. Dorn is averaging 14.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game and shooting 48.9 percent from the field and 31.4 percent on three-pointers.
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