De Ridder goes for career-high 27 points as UVa routs American
Thijs De Ridder set a new career-high with 27 points along with a team-high eight rebounds as No. 21 UVa dominated American 95-51 in its final non-conference outing before the start of ACC play.
De Ridder carried the Hoos (11-1) early, accounting for 13 of their first 17 points. By the end of the half, he was already up to 21 points with four rebounds. The rest of the Cavaliers accounted for 24 points, despite two separate scoring droughts that lasted over three minutes.
And yet, UVa still shot a proficient 54.8% (17-for-31) from the field and dominated the glass with 26 total rebounds, 18 of them defensive, to American’s 12 total. The Eagles (7-6) also made just nine of their 39 field-goal attempts.
The UVa offense was even more proficient in the second half, shooting 70% from the field (21-for-30), bringing the overall percentage up to 62.3. In contrast, the Eagles shot just 31.7% from the field.
UVa also outrebounded American 45-23 and scored 56 points in the paint, while the Eagles had just 16. The Hoos racked up 25 assists with just nine turnovers.
Aside from De Ridder, four other Cavaliers finished in double-figures: Malik Thomas (11), Sam Lewis (11), Elijah Gertrude (11) and Chance Mallory (10). Only two Eagles— Julen Iturbe with 13 and Greg Jones with 10—scored double digits.
Gertrude’s 11 points in 15 minutes came in large part because UVa was without Jacari White, who was in street clothes and had a wrap on his left wrist. Ryan Odom confirmed after the game that the sharpshooting guard broke the wrist on the huge dunk he had Saturday against Maryland. He’s scheduled for surgery on Tuesday.
“It’s his off hand, and so that’s the best news that we could get in a situation like this,” Odom said. “And, you know, the strength of this team is the depth that we have, and you saw it tonight with Elijah getting in there and playing.”
The Hoos will now have nine days off before playing at sold out Virginia Tech on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m.
