CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — No. 13 Virginia’s Tayce De Ridder scored 16 points to beat Wake Forest 75-70 on Tuesday night to earn the No. 2 seed and a double bye in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Jacari White scored 14 points, Johann Grunloh had 12 points, nine rebounds and two blocks, and the Cavaliers (26-4, 14-3) defeated the Demon Deacons for the 14th time in their past 16 games.
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The Cavaliers missed 28 of 35 3-point attempts in their loss to No. 1 Duke, but their long-range shooting struggled again. Virginia missed its first eight 3-point attempts and went 3-for-17 from beyond the arc in the first half.
After halftime, the Cavaliers’ performance improved, making 10 of 32 three-pointers, including Malik Thomas’ three-pointer, which rewritten the score to 71-62 with 1 minute and 23 seconds left in the game. Thomas finished with 11 points.
Mekhi Mason scored 26 points and Juke Harris added 21 for the Demon Deacons (15-15, 6-11), who had the outcome in doubt until the final seconds. Wake Forest tied the score at 73-70 with 6.1 seconds left, but Virginia’s Dallin Hall sealed the victory with two free throws with 5.2 seconds left.
With 4 minutes and 48 seconds left in the first half, the two sides were tied at 22. The Cavaliers went on a 10-2 run and returned to the locker room with a 32-24 lead.
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It was a horrible shooting half for both teams. They totaled 18-for-60 from the field.
Next
Wake Forest: Host California on Saturday.
Virginia: Host rival Virginia Tech on Saturday.
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