Last year, Calvin Baker hit a three, this year it was an end-to-end layup.
In overtime, Virginia and Georgia Tech swapped knockout punches and after a steal and dunk from Gani Lawal, Calvin Baker didn't stop and mope. Baker took the ball and went the length of the court to make the crucial go-ahead basket. Lewis Clinch then rushed down the floor and took what I consider to be a bad shot that missed just as badly. Virginia finished off the Yellow Jackets with free throws and moved to 1-0 in the conference with an 88-84 win.
The situation wasn't too unfamiliar for Calvin Baker. Baker also hit the game-winning shot at Georgia Tech last season, a three pointer from the wing.
Virginia jumped out to a hot start in the game behind freshman Sylven Landesberg. Landesberg finished with 26 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists and just 1 turnover. All things considered, not too bad for a freshman, right? Compare his performance to Georgia Tech's hyped freshman, Iman Shumpert. Shumpert struggled early, but finished with 18 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, but 7 turnovers. While the two didn't match up, Shumpert matched Landesberg's play for the final 30 minutes. The first 10 minutes saw Shumpert go scoreless, get into foul trouble and turn the ball over far too often.
Similarly, Georgia Tech simply didn't match Virginia's toughness and intensity to start the game and it might have cost them a conference win.
Calvin Baker has received a lot of criticism from Virginia fans for his decision making with the ball and his shot selection. Fans have called for Dave Leitao to remove Baker from the starting lineup, but for one night it appears the coach was right.
Factor of the Game
These two teams were pretty evenly matched, and the factor of the game wasn't as obvious in this one. The one thing I noticed was an increase in the 3 point shot from both teams as the game went along. In particular, Georgia Tech saw a large increase at the end of regulation and an increased usage during OT. Along those lines, Georgia Tech got away from their strength of Aminu and Lawal in the post and it may have cost them the game.
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