During one stretch Friday night, everything that could go wrong for Virginia did. The Cavaliers had trouble handling the ball and couldn’t buy a basket.
And then Cincinnati’s Nick Van Exel got hot.
That spelled defeat for Virginia, which collapsed under Cincinnati’s pressure. The Bearcats used a 14-2 run midway through the second half to cruise to a 71-54 victory over Virginia in the semifinals of the NCAA East Regional at the Meadowlands Arena.
Cincinnati (27-4) advanced to Sunday’s East Regional final game, where the Bearcats will face top-seeded North Carolina for a shot at a second straight trip to the Final Four.
During the first minutes of the second half, Virginia (21-10) had done the unthinkable. The Cavaliers handled Cincinnati’s pressure, hit their first seven shots and used a 16-5 spurt to take their first lead since early in the first half. They went up 40-36 on a Junior Burrough 13-footer with 14 minutes 49 seconds left.
Then things went haywire for Virginia.
The Cavaliers turned the ball over five times in the next seven minutes. Virginia also went cold from the field. The Cavaliers took their last lead, at 44-43, on a Cory Alexander three-pointer at the 11:26 mark.
It was just about all Cincinnati from that point.
The Bearcats had a 14-2 outburst, taking a 57-46 lead on a Van Exel three-pointer with 7:28 left. Virginia cut Cincinnati’s lead to seven late in the game, but the Bearcats closed it out with a 12-2 run. Virginia wound up with 24 turnovers, including 15 in the second half.
“They did a great job of essentially wearing us down,” said Virginia coach Jeff Jones. “They just keep coming at you. And even though they might not have as much size as other teams, they have a lot of heart and their players continually pound the board, particularly on the offensive end.”
That’s one thing Virginia was supposed to have in its favor. The Cavaliers were bigger, and so were supposed to romp on the boards. But Cincinnati ended up outrebounding Virginia 48-32, with 24 coming at the offensive end.
“We do that all year,” said Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins. “Nothing changes. It’s the same from Nov. 1. If you don’t rebound the basketball, you’re not going to win. That is one of the keys to the game all the time.”
The other key was Van Exel, who had been mired in a slump during the tournament. He had scored just 10 points in two games, including a season-low three against New Mexico State in the quarterfinals.
After hitting his first two shots of the game, Van Exel (19 points, three three-pointers) slowed down, ending the first half with eight points on 3-of-12 shooting.
Van Exel even got so frustrated that he was whistled for a technical foul three minutes into the second half. Huggins sat him down.
“It did help me calm down a little and get back into the game,” Van Exel said. “I didn’t want to go out at the time but, looking back on it, I think it was for the best.”
Van Exel hit two three-pointers during Cincinnati’s first run of the second half, and three key free throws late. He shared scoring honors with Corie Blount (19 points, eight rebounds).
Apparently, Van Exel’s slump is over.
“The shots were there for me,” he said. “For a little while, they weren’t going in for me but I didn’t stop shooting. I don’t think I’ll ever stop shooting.”
“He’s stepped it up in key situations,” said Alexander. “That’s what good players and seniors are supposed to do.”
