Monday Motivation: Hoos rule the Emerald Coast!

I hope everyone enjoyed their long holiday weekend! Let’s get to the action.

Rapid Fire

-Former head coach for Virginia Men’s Soccer (and assistant lacrosse coach) Bruce Arena is back in as head coach of the US Men’s National Team! Congrats, Bruce!

-Fourth year Will Mason won the 133 pound championship - the second of his career and first at the 133 weight class - at the Mat Town Open on Sunday. Mason swept all three of his matches on his way to the victory. Next up, Virginia welcomes Gardner-Webb on Friday at 7pm.

-The All-ACC football team was released today, with three Wahoos making the first team.

All-purpose RB Taquan “Smoke” Mizzell earned Honorable Mention.

-Virginia Football alum Chris Long sealed the victory for the New England Patriots on Sunday with this slick move:

-Virginia Women’s Basketball picked up a 73-51 win over Nebraska to close out the South Point Shootout. The Hoos, now 5-1 on the season, were led by Lauren Moses who had 19 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field. Next up, the Hoos will play at Northwestern on Thursday for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Hoos on the Spot: Justice Bartley

Team of the Week

Well, looks three straight it is in the Team of the Week award. Virginia Men’s Basketball, up to No. 6 in the polls, won three games this week. On Tuesday, the Hoos utterly demolished Grambling State 90-34. The 90 points scored was the first time in Tony Bennett’s tenure the Hoos hit the 90-point mark, and the 56-point victory was the largest Virginia victory since a 60-point win over Bethune Cookman in 1994. Kyle Guy - who led the Virginia in scoring with 20 points in just 13 minutes of play - was still three years from being born.

Next, the Hoos headed south to the beautiful Destin, Florida, for the Emerald Coast Classic. First up, the Iowa Hawkeyes. Much like the teams that came before them, Virginia cruised to a comfortable halftime lead and were able to close out the game with ease, winning 74-41. Once again, a balanced attack led the Hoos as the stifling defense irritated everyone.

Check out the highlights:

In the championship, Virginia faced Providence, a team that boasted a top-25 defense on KenPom. Although this game was more closely contested, the Hoos entered halftime with a 14-point lead, managed to hold off a mini-run by the Friars, and pull away for a 63-52 win. The 52 points given up were the most relinquished by Virginia this season. That’s pretty good.

Champs!

Next up, Virginia hosts Ohio State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Wednesday at JPJ. Tip off is scheduled for 9pm on ESPN2.

Wahoo of the Week

This week’s StLMMPotW is none other than the incomparable London Perrantes, who was named the MVP of the Emerald Coast Classic (I think StLMMPotW may overshadow that honor, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take).

In the two games in the Classic, Perrantes scored 23 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and had nine assists, two turnovers, and three steals...all while shooting 9-for-17 from the field and 5-for-9 from three. Not too shabby. To say that Providence head coach Ed Cooley was impressed would be an understatement.

That’s high praise coming from someone who coached Kris Dunn (and presumably saw Malcolm Brogdon on the court). As the leader of the team, London also showed grit diving for a loose ball in the second half against the Friars. Perrantes has said himself that he’s not much of a talker and prefers to let his actions speak. So far, so good.

On the season, Perrantes is averaging just over nine points per game, has 26 assists to just six turnovers in 161 minutes of play. He’s also shooting 48% from the floor and 37% from three. Oh, and his hair is awesome (and more impressive in person). Well done, LP. Well done.

New Favorite GIF That You’ll See A Lot From Me

Go Hoos!