Virginia takes Belmont in second round, 79-67

The Sports Xchange

9 years ago

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) drives to the basket against Belmont Bruins forward Amanze Egekeze (32) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. Virginia won 79-67. (Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Evan Nolte (11) handles the ball against Belmont Bruins guard Taylor Barnette (20) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Justin Anderson (1) reacts to a play during the second half against the Belmont Bruins in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) blocks the shot of Belmont Bruins forward Amanze Egekeze (32) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Justin Anderson (1) passes the ball against Belmont Bruins guard Craig Bradshaw (23) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Belmont Bruins forward Amanze Egekeze (32) fights for a loose ball with Virginia Cavaliers forward Darion Atkins (5) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Belmont Bruins guard Reece Chamberlain (22) fights for a loose ball with Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Belmont Bruins guard Evan Bradds (35) shoots the ball against Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Belmont Bruins guard Craig Bradshaw (23) drives to the basket against Virginia Cavaliers guard London Perrantes (32) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Belmont Bruins guard Craig Bradshaw (23) drives to the basket against Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) during the second half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. Virginia won 79-67. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Evan Nolte (11) reacts during the second half against the Belmont Bruins in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. Virginia won 79-67. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Gill (13) celebrates with guard Justin Anderson (1) during the second half against the Belmont Bruins in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. Virginia won 79-67. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Forward Anthony Gill’s five key points down the stretch helped Virginia stay out of danger and fend off Belmont 79-67 in an NCAA East Regional second-round game Friday afternoon at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Guard Malcolm Brogdon poured in 22 points for Virginia, which saw a double-digit lead shrink to two points with less than five minutes to play.

After guard London Perrantes hit a shot, Gill’s five points — two free throws followed by a three-point play in a 42-second span — helped the Cavaliers stretch their lead to 69-60. Brogdon followed with two free throws, putting Belmont too far behind with 1:32 remaining.

Gill ended up with 16 points. Cavaliers guard Justin Anderson chipped in with 15 points off the bench, scoring for the first time in three games since returning from a broken finger. Virginia forward Darion Atkins added 10 points.

Second-seeded Virginia (30-3) advances to meet seventh-seeded Michigan State, which defeated Georgia 70-63 in the first game of the session. The Virginia-Michigan State game will be a rematch of last year’s East Regional Sweet 16 game won by the Spartans.

Guard Craig Bradshaw racked up 25 points for 15th-seeded Belmont (22-11), which had a seven-game winning streak snapped. Guard Evan Bradds added 10 points.

A 9-0 run for Belmont in the second half pulled the Bruins within 51-48, creating some anxious moments for the Virginia contingent.

It was 60-57 with five minutes to play. Bradshaw’s second 3-pointer in a 40-second span cut the gap to 62-60, but the Cavaliers scored the next nine points.

Earlier, Virginia appeared to have things in good control, building an 11-point lead before taking a 40-32 lead at halftime.

Brogdon had 16 first-half points, continuing a torrid scoring pace that included 22 points in the second half against North Carolina a week earlier when the Cavaliers were eliminated from the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.

Anderson also gave Virginia a boost, with his first-half 3-pointer breaking his scoring drought since suffering the finger injury on Feb. 7.

NOTES: Virginia had a 9-3 record against other NCAA Tournament teams entering the postseason. … Virginia coach Tony Bennett is a former NBA player with the Charlotte Hornets. He met his future wife in Charlotte. … Virginia improved to 12-16 all time in games played in Charlotte. … Belmont won at least 26 games in the previous four seasons, so the string ended with the 22-11 record. … Belmont arrived at the tournament coming off two one-point victories (over Eastern Kentucky and Murray State) to capture the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship.