Field Level Media
Nov 21, 2018
De'Andre Hunter scored 15 points, dished out nine assists and pulled down eight rebounds to pace No. 4 Virginia past Middle Tennessee 74-52 Wednesday night in the quarterfinals of the Battle 4 Atlantis at Paradise Island, Bahamas.
Virginia (4-0) led by as many as 24 late in the second half before cruising to the 22-point win in its first game away from home this season.
The Cavaliers will now face Dayton in Thursday's semifinals after the Flyers knocked off Butler on Wednesday. The Blue Raiders will play Butler later Thursday.
Junior guard Kyle Guy joined Hunter with 15 points. Guy knocked down three 3-pointers, while Braxton Key scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds.
Middle Tennessee (3-2) got to within 38-30 with 18 minutes to play before Virginia used a 9-0 run to regain control of the game.
The Blue Raiders entered the game with five players averaging in double figures scoring this season but managed just 11 points from leading scorer Antonio Green. Reggie Scurry added 10 points to round out just two Blue Raiders in double figures.
Virginia committed an uncharacteristic 13 turnovers after coming into the game leading the country in the statistic at just 5.7 per game. The Cavaliers shot 46.4 percent from the floor and knocked down eight 3-pointers on the night.
Middle Tennessee shot just 39.2 percent and connected on only three of its 13 3-point attempts.
Virginia led by as many as 21 in the first half after starting the game 7 of 10 from the field. The Cavaliers ended the half shooting 56 percent, as Hunter scored 11 before the break.
After looking lethargic early on, Middle Tennessee used a 16-4 run in the first half to get back in the game. The Blue Raiders recovered from a 2-of-10 shooting start to shoot 9 of 26 in the half as they forced seven Virginia turnovers.
Virginia led 38-25 at the halftime break.
--Field Level Media