Marial Shayok scored a career-high 23 points, and London Perrantes led all scorers with 24 as fifth-seeded Virginia rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to beat No. 12 UNC Wilmington, 76-71, in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday.
The Cavaliers (23-10) trailed big early, down 26-11 halfway through the first half. A 19-3 run, however, propelled the Hoos to a 30-29 halftime advantage. Virginia extended their lead to as many as 10 points in the second half before UNC-W cut it to 3 points with 3:30 remaining. Keyed by a huge bank-shot from Marial Shayok to bring the lead to 4 with 26 seconds remaining, Virginia held on for a five point win.