Hauser sparks No. 22 Virginia past Wake Forest, 70-61

Sam Hauser scored 11 of his 16 points during a 28-10 run to open the second half and No. 22 Virginia returned from a coronavirus pause to beat Wake Forest 70-61 on Wednesday night. The Cavaliers (6-2, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) trailed 39-34 at halftime after the Demon Deacons shot 63% in the first half, but Virginia clamped down on defense in the second half and used the fast start offensively to pull away.

Hauser also grabbed 11 rebounds and Trey Murphy III scored 13 points for the Cavaliers, who had all five starters score in double figures. Isaiah Mucius and Jonah Antonio scored 14 points each and Ismael Massoud had 13 for the Demon Deacons (3-2, 0-2). Wake Forest was 8 for 21 (38%) from the field after halftime. Wake Forest used a 19-9 run to open a 24-14 lead midway through the first half. Virginia's 16-6 burst got the Cavaliers within 32-30, but they trailed 39-34 at the half.

BIG PICTURE

Wake Forest: The Cavaliers' trademark tough defense isn't as sharp so far this season, and the Demon Deacons showed that by making their first four 3-point tries and five of their first six. They started 12 for 17 from the field before finishing 23 of 45 overall (51%) and 10 of 19 from beyond the arc (52.6%).

Virginia: The Cavaliers, coming out of their second COVID-19-related pause, were without reserves Casey Morsell and Austin Katstra and three assistant coaches — Jason Williford, Orlando Vandross and Brad Soderberg — because of contact tracing. Coach Tony Bennett also announced that junior guard Kody Stattmann is sidelined with a cardiac condition that he said was unrelated to COVID-19.

UP NEXT

The Demon Deacons remains on the road, playing at No. 21 Duke on Saturday.

The Cavaliers head north to play at Boston College on Saturday.