NCAA Basketball: Keegan Murray, UVA struggles among key takeaways

Virginia will continue to struggle

After two weeks and four games played, the Tony Bennett-coached Virginia Cavaliers are ranked No.318 in scoring as they average 61.5 points per game. The concerning part is not that it is almost seven fewer than last season, it is that the Cavaliers averaged two fewer points in conference play, and there is no reason that the same will not occur this season.

The Cavaliers have managed to maintain a .500 record as they have faced Navy, Radford, and Coppin State, three teams who are not considered to be in the top 150. In addition to losing to Navy, the Cavaliers lost 67-47 to Houston. The reasons for the Cavaliers’ struggles and why there is little hope for improvement are multiple.

The Cavaliers are prone to scoring droughts, such was the case versus Houston as the Cavaliers went six minutes without scoring at one point. The primary reason they will be prone to these droughts is because of the three-out double post-half-court set they use. Coach Bennett has them attacking baseline with the post in order to kick out to the perimeter. This worked nine of nineteen times versus Radford, but on the season they are shooting worse than 31 percent from three-point land.

Currently, point guard Kihei Clark -a career 33 percent shooter from beyond the arc – is their leading three-point shooter. With just Clark and Armaan Frankling connecting on more than one three-pointer per game, when the subs begin for Coach Bennett there are often -at least – two players on the court who pose no offensive threat. Once conference play begins, scoring is only going to become more difficult for the Cavaliers.