Quarantine helps U.Va. in one way
Morsell finds his rhythm after layoff, helps Cavaliers ease past Notre Dame
CHARLOTTESVILLE — Sitting out for two games while he quarantined didn’t seem to do much to hurt Virginia guard Casey Morsell’s shooting rhythm. In some strange way, it may have actually helped him.
U.Va. cruised to an 80-68 victory Wednesday against Notre Dame behind forward Jay Huff ’s 18 points, which included four 3-pointers in the first half, and 15 points each from forward Sam Hauser and Morsell, who was back after missing No. 18 U.Va.’s wins against Wake Forest and Boston College.
“I just used the quarantine to my advantage,” said Morsell, who had been nursing a sore shoulder earlier this season. “I felt fresh. My shoulder felt good. I just came out here really relaxed and confident.”
Despite having just two practices under his belt before Wednesday’s game since going into a 10-day quarantine, Morsell still appeared far more comfortable shooting against Notre Dame, making 6 of 7 shots from the floor off the bench, than he was the last time he was on the court Dec. 30 at Notre Dame.
He made just 2 of 9 field-goal attempts in his last outing against Notre Dame. Morsell’s production Wednesday represented a career-high in scoring against ACC competition.
“We have him in a spot that’s pretty good,” U.Va. coach Tony Bennett said. “I always want him to be a bulldog defensively . ... Offensively, I think he’s simplified and you kind of saw that (Wednesday).”
As efficient as U.Va. (8-2, 4-0 ACC) was offensively, shooting 54.4% from the floor on its way to building a lead as large as 24 points with 12:22 left, it had to navigate a bit of a defensive lull in the second half.
Notre Dame (3-8, 0-5) went on a pseudo-run in the second half, outscoring U.Va. 25-11 and twice trimming the Cavaliers’ lead to 10 points in the final six minutes, but the Cavaliers were able to keep the
Fighting Irish from seriously threatening down the stretch.
With a stretch of four games against struggling ACC foes — Notre Dame twice, Wake Forest and BC — behind it, U.Va. will now get a chance Saturday to see how far it’s progressed when it plays at No. 12 Clemson. U.Va. has only played one other ranked opponent this season, losing 98-75 on Dec. 26 against No. 1 Gonzaga.
Three things we saw
Coming into the game, Notre Dame was first in the ACC in 3-point shooting percentage, making 37.7% of its attempts. U.Va., which also got 12 points from guard Kihei Clark and 10 points from guard Trey Murphy, limited Notre Dame to 5-of22 shooting from long range, including 1 of 13 in the first half.
“They missed a lot of open looks in the first half, then they got on a little mini-run there in the second half,” Bennett said. “They are a dangerous team with how they move the ball and space the floor.”
Hauser had already scored all 15 of his points when he collected his ninth rebound with 11½ minutes left and appeared well on his way to posting his fourth consecutive double-double in ACC play. Instead, he didn’t grab another rebound the rest of the way.
Bennett attributed some of U.Va.’s defensive lapses in the second half to missed assignments — aspects of the Cavaliers’ approach within the pack-line defense he’s obviously harped on quite a bit with his players.
“We drifted into some old habits defensively that aren’t going to cut it,” Bennett said.
NO. 18VIRGINIA 80, NOTRE DAME 68
NOTRE DAME (3-8)
Durham 4-6 2-2 10, Laszewski 4-8 3-4 12, Goodwin 1-8 0-0 2, Hubb 4-9
1-1 9, Ryan 4-8 7-7 16, Wertz 4-9 2-2 13, Djogo 1-3 4-4 6, Morgan 0-0 0-0 0, Sanders 0-0 0-0 0, Zona 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-51 19-20 68.
VIRGINIA (8-2)
Hauser 6-13 2-2 15, Huff 7-13 0-1 18, Beekman 2-5 2-2 7, Clark 5-11 1-1
12, Murphy 4-6 0-0 10, Morsell 6-7 0-0 15, Caffaro 1-2 1-1 3. Totals 31-57 6-7 80.
Halftime—Virginia 37-25. 3-Point Goals—Notre Dame 5-22(Wertz 3-5, Ryan 1-3, Laszewski 1-4, Djogo 0-2, Hubb 0-2, Goodwin 0-6), Virginia 12-24(Huff 4-8, Morsell 3-3, Murphy 2-4, Beekman 1-2, Clark 1-3, Hauser 1-4). Rebounds—Notre Dame 24(Laszewski 8, Virginia 24(Hauser 9). Assists—Notre Dame 10(Wertz 4), Virginia 16(Clark 6). Total Fouls— Notre Dame 8, Virginia 17. A—250(14,593).