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Virginia holds on to down North Carolina State

Sat 28th, January 2012

Raleigh, NC (Sports Network) - With Sammy Zeglinski and Jontel Evans draped all over him, Lorenzo Brown's three-pointer at the buzzer from the right wing fell short and No. 19 Virginia held on and escaped Raleigh with a 61-60 win over North Carolina State.

Mike Scott had 18 points and five rebounds to lead the Cavaliers (17-3, 4-2 ACC), who won their second straight game since dropping a 47-45 decision to in-state rival Virginia Tech last Sunday.

C.J. Leslie had 17 points while Richard Howell finished with 11 points and a career-high 18 rebounds for NC State (15-7, 4-3), which has dropped its last two contests.

"I feel so bad for our players, because of the way they played," NC State head coach Mark Gottfried said. "They're hurting right now. The guys never quit, they never let down, they played with unbelievable desire. We had some great shots at it, but they just didn't drop."

Trailing 56-47 with 5:13 remaining in the game, the Wolfpack began to slowly chip away at the deficit.

A pair of free throws by Howell and Leslie on consecutive possessions made it 56-51 with four minutes to play.

A bit later following two Scott free throws, C.J. Williams knocked down a jumper to make it 61-57 with 1:31 remaining.

The Wolfpack, who held an 18-5 advantage on the offensive glass, once again benefited on the offensive boards.

Leslie missed a pair from the line with 50 seconds left, but the Wolfpack got the offensive rebound and Scott Wood nailed a three-pointer from the left corner to pull the Wolfpack within one with 45 seconds to play.

Following Zeglinski's miss from the top of the key, the Wolfpack called timeout with eight seconds left.

Brown received the inbounds pass on the left wing and dribbled around the perimeter looking for an opening. He found none, and his desperation heave at the buzzer fell short.

"I thought Akil [Mitchell] did a terrific job of taking [Lorenzo] Brown out of the play. We just played our ball-screen defense, and he was quick with his slide. He didn't let him turn the corner and let us get into our defense. We had to string it out wide as the clock was ticking, and then we made him take a tough shot. Fortunately, there wasn't too much time or they might have gotten a 19th offensive rebound," Virginia head coach Tony Bennett said of Virginia's defense on Brown's final shot.

The Cavaliers came out scorching from the field, connecting on seven of their first nine shots -- including three treys. But it was the Wolfpack who held a slim 18-17 advantage due to their 7-0 discrepancy on the offensive glass. Leslie netted nine points in the first eight minutes.

Scott helped Virginia slowly pull away to close the half. He had six points during a 9-3 flurry to give the Cavaliers a 36-27 advantage with just over two minutes to play in the opening stanza.

Virginia took a 38-31 lead into the locker room. Scott had 10 points while Zeglinski nailed three treys in the opening half to pace the Cavaliers.

Game Notes

The Wolfpack outrebounded Virginia 42-25...Virginia held NC State to 35.5 shooting in the second half...The Wolfpack were 2-of-15 from beyond the arc...Joe Harris and Zeglinski finished with 12 points apiece for Virginia.