After a wobbly tournament performance during Thanksgiving week, the needle is once again pointed firmly upward on this Virginia Cavaliers roster following a 59-47 victory over Texas A&M. Propelled by a dominant defensive effort against one of the nation’s most efficent offenses, the Cavaliers controlled the game from the opening tip and notched their best win of the season in their inaugural ACC-SEC Challenge matchup.
The “Stifling” Award: Virginia’s team defense
The Cavaliers held a Texas A&M offense ranked in KenPom’s top 10 for offensive efficiency to a meager 47 points. Pace factors a bit into this number, but the Aggies hadn’t scored below 73 points in a game all season — Virginia slowed them to 26 points below that previous season low.