Thomas' double-double, De Ridder's late 3 push UVa by SMU
Senior playmaker Malik Thomas had a double-double, scoring a game-high 23 points and pulling in 11 boards, to help No. 16 UVa come from behind and beat SMU 72-68 in Dallas on Saturday afternoon.
The Wahoos saw their second-half lead slip away and trailed by one with 2:49 left when Thijs De Ridder hit a 3-pointer to put his team up for good. It was UVa’s last FG of the day but the Hoos (16-2, 5-1 ACC) were 5-for-7 from the free-throw line from then on to seal it.
De Ridder was one of two Cavaliers other than Thomas to score in double-figures, finishing with 17. Devin Tillis came off the bench and scored 11 on 3-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc in a game that saw 13 lead changes and five ties.
The Mustangs (13-5-, 2-3) were led by Jaron Pierre, who had a team-high 16 with all but four coming in the second half. He was one of four to score in double-figures, joined by BJ Edwards (13), Boopie Miller (12), and Samet Yigitoglu (10).
Virginia, which outrebounded SMU 40-32 and finished with a 22-14 advantage in second-chance points, trailed early as Yigitoglu had his way inside and the home team led 12-5. But a key 13-2 run by the Hoos, including a 3-pointer and an alley-oop dunk by Ugo Onyenso gave them the advantage back. UVa would end up leading by four at the break.
They led by as many as seven early in the second half, too, at least until a 9-0 run by the Mustangs put them back in front with 13:09 left. Tillis hit a 3, as the lead flipped back and forth four times before UVa’s 6-0 run put the Hoos back in command with 5:19 remaining.
SMU refused to go quietly, though, getting a 3 from Edwards and an and-1 drive from Pierre to push back in front. Thomas hit the second of two at the line with 3:11 left to tie it up before Yigitoglu made the first of two at the stripe to put his team ahead for the final time.
That’s when De Ridder made his only 3-pointer of the day, as momentum swung towards the Cavaliers for good. They finished with 18 assists on 25 made baskets but gave up 14 points to SMU off 11 turnovers.
