Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 27, 1993 TAG: 9303290387
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. LENGTH: Medium
The Cavaliers were so consumed by Cincinnati's pressure defense that the only public mention of rebounding was by the Bearcats.
Erik Martin said it might be a blowout if Cincinnati couldn't hold its own with Virginia on the boards, and the Bearcats weren't about to let that happen. Seventh-ranked Cincinnati grabbed 24 offensive rebounds on its way to a 71-54 victory Friday night.
The Bearcats (27-4), in their bid for a second straight Final Four appearance, will meet top-seeded North Carolina (31-4) in the East Region championship game Sunday at 1:30 p.m. The Tar Heels defeated Arkansas 80-74 in Friday night's second game.
Cincinnati twice led by nine points in the first half, but the Cavaliers (21-10) made their first eight shots of the second half and led 40-36 with less than 15 minutes to go.
UVa was still on top, 44-43, before Martin scored on a follow shot - appropriately enough - with 10:34 remaining. It was the beginning of a 14-2 run for the Bearcats.
The basket that put Cincinnati ahead 57-46 came on a 3-pointer by All-America guard Nick Van Exel - again after an offensive rebound. Van Exel, who was 3-of-16 at one stage, scored 11 of his 19 points in the last 8:58.
The Bearcats also got 19 points and 11 rebounds from 6-foot-10 center Corie Blount, their only starter taller than 6-6. Martin had 15 points and 12 rebounds. Cincinnati's 48-32 rebounding margin was the largest against Virginia all season.
"We do that all year," Bearcats' coach Bob Huggins said. "Nothing changes. It's the same from November 1st. If you don't rebound the basketball, you're not going to win."
Cincinnati's press forced Virginia into 21 turnovers, but many came in the halfcourt offense or in transition.
One of UVa's biggest turnovers was on a three-on-one break when Doug Smith's pass to the wing was intercepted by Van Exel, who fed Martin for a breakaway dunk that made it 62-52.
"I'm not sure it wasn't a four-on-one break," UVa coach Jeff Jones said. "We score there and it's a six-point game with almost four minutes left."
After a jump hook by Virginia's Ted Jeffries made it 62-54 with 2:06 left, the Bearcats scored the last nine points as their fans chanted, "Where's Dick Vitale, where's Dick Vitale?"
Vitale had predicted all week that Virginia, an eight-point underdog, would upset the Bearcats. It might have been possible if the Cavaliers hadn't missed 11 of their last 12 shots.
Alexander, who had led the Cavaliers in scoring in their previous seven games, was held to 11 points on 3-of-14 shooting from the field. Alexander and Burrough also missed one-and-one opportunities when the game was in the balance.
Burrough finished with a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds and Jason Williford wrapped up a creditable NCAA Tournament performance by accounting for 12 points and six rebounds.
"I'm someone who takes pride in his rebounding," Williford said. "Anytime you get beat on the boards like we did, it hurts. It's embarrassing."
Jeffries, a force in the postseason, had one rebound in the second half and three for the game. He was no match for Blount, averaging fewer than 10 points a game for the last month.
"Coach Huggins and I discussed the importance of rebounding in a meeting last night in our hotel," Blount said. "Everything was working out well for us tonight. I thought we moved our feet better than they did."
The Bearcats, who had shot 50 percent or better in four of their past five games, finished at 40.3 (27-of-67). Van Exel, who missed 12 of 13 shots during one stretch, was 6-of-21.
"The shots were there for me," said Van Exel, who is 10-of-41 in the postseason. "For a little while they weren't going in for me, but I didn't stop shooting. I don't think I'll ever stop shooting."
Van Exel picked up a technical for arguing a call early in the second half, but said that had a calming effect, as did a brief trip to the bench later in the half.
"When I got the technical foul, I knew I was a little out of control," said Van Exel, who had 11 of Cincinnati's 14 assists. "I think I deserved it."
Huggins sensed Van Exel was tired when he sat him down for a minute, but the Bearcats' pressure took more of a toll on their opponent, as it usually does.
"Our guys were tired," Jones said. "They were taking themselves out of the game and they almost never do that. That's [fatigue] something that's hard to see and maybe even harder to measure." \
see microfilm for box score
Memo: shorter version ran in the Metro edition.