The Virginia Cavaliers, once a force to be reckoned with, found themselves on the losing end of two consecutive and devastating blowout games. After a 22-point defeat to Tennessee on Thursday night, they followed it up with an even worse 25-point loss to the St. John’s Red Flame on Friday evening, falling 80 - 55. Now standing at 3 - 2 this season, the ‘Hoos will return to Charlottesville to lick their wounds before facing two buy games against Manhattan and Holy Cross next week.

Five Takeaways for the Cavaliers Moving Forward

Virginia Lacks the Athletes to Compete

In the game against the St. John’s Red Flame on Friday night, the Cavaliers were completely outclassed. While the Red Storm was soaring from the rims, dominating the paint, and running with ease in transition, Virginia seemed stuck in the mud. The Red Storm finished the game with an impressive six dunks, 13 steals, three blocks, and 11 points in transition. In contrast, Virginia managed only one dunk, four steals, one block, and zero points in transition while turning the ball over a staggering 16 times. This lack of athleticism is not the only issue plaguing this UVA team. St. John’s is above average in terms of athleticism, but Virginia’s inability to play above the rim, match foot speed, and win individual matchups anywhere on the floor was crippling and is likely to continue to limit the team’s potential this season.

All Offense Rests on Three-Point Shooting

This loss further confirmed that Virginia’s only somewhat reliable source of offensive production is its outside shooting. When the Cavaliers get an open look from deep, their shooters have a tendency to make the shot. However, the real problem lies in creating those shots. Virginia has no real post presence, and they cannot consistently beat a man off the dribble or through a ball screen. When these deficiencies are combined, the presence of shooters such as Isaac McKneely, Andrew Rohde, Taine Murray, Elijah Saunders, and Jacob Cofie becomes less significant. The UVA offensive scheme has been adjusted to be more perimeter-based, which has made the offense more efficient in recent seasons. With more shooters on the floor, there is more space to attack and more opportunities for efficient shots. But in execution, Virginia’s personnel has not been able to take full advantage of these schematic updates. Against St. John’s, the ‘Hoos scored a mere 12 points in the paint. Making some shots from beyond the arc is nice, but that seems to be the extent of their offensive capabilities.

Newcomers Have Not Delivered as Expected

With only three rotational players returning from last year’s team, Virginia was heavily reliant on transfers and potentially freshmen. Unfortunately, the production from these players was lacking in The Bahamas. Duke transfer TJ Power scored only three points in two games while shooting 1 for 9 from the floor. On the season, he has scored 14 points in five games while shooting 25% from three-point range, which is where he is supposed to excel. Fellow transfers Saunders and Ames have provided more of a tangible boost, but Ames is averaging 3.7 turnovers per contest in his last three games, and Saunders has been exploited on the boards and played inefficient offense. He is shooting just 43.5% from the floor despite being the team’s best post presence. Meanwhile, freshman Cofie had a rough start in The Bahamas, scoring only four total points (while shooting 2 for 10 from the field) as St. John’s and Tennessee’s physicality down low overwhelmed him. These players are not the only ones who underperformed, and they have only played five games into their UVA careers, so a larger sample size is needed before passing judgment. Nevertheless, these two losses served as a wake-up call.

The Cavaliers Appeared Defeated

On Thursday against Tennessee, the ‘Hoos showed some fight and hung around for 30 minutes. After cutting their deficit to just one point at the end of the first half, they were down only five points with about ten minutes remaining in the second half. But then, the wheels came off as the Vols dominated the glass and hit their three-pointers with ease. Friday night’s contest seemed like a continuation of those last ten minutes against Tennessee. UVA managed to take a 7 - 6 lead at the 15:58 mark of the first half before St. John’s found its offensive rhythm. The Red Flame then went on a 33 - to - 19 run to close out the half, including an 8:52 scoreless stretch for Virginia. The second period was more of the same. Saunders scored UVA’s only six points across the first six minutes while St. John’s extended its lead to 23. Once St. John’s got on a roll, the ‘Hoos looked defeated. McKneely had some big individual plays, but UVA never truly mounted a serious comeback effort. According to David Teel, this is the first time in 14 years that Virginia has lost back-to-back games by 20 or more points. For a young team that is still getting to know each other and just lost its Hall of Fame coach to retirement 35 days ago, these back-to-back performances raise concerns about the team’s potential. Of course, a turnaround could be on the horizon once the Cavaliers have more time to gel and play less challenging opponents.

Ron Sanchez Misses a Signature Win

It is no secret that interim head coach Ron Sanchez is fighting for the opportunity to remove the interim title after this season. Winning a game in The Bahamas would have been a significant milestone in his quest for the athletic department’s approval. Losing both games – and losing them badly – puts the basketball program and the athletic department one step closer to conducting a national search for the next head coach. Of course, nothing is set in stone yet. It was only two games against tough competition. But every data point matters, and these two losses were not in Sanchez’s favor.