Bennett, Cavs expect Devils' best

Playing the No. 1 team in the country. Getting heckled by Cameron Crazies. Being televised on ESPN — not the “Deuce” or the “U,” but on the mothership.

Yes, this is the game that Virginia’s “Six Shooters” — Cavalier coachTony Bennett’s heralded six-man recruiting class — had in mind when they were high school seniors and signed on the dotted line to become Wahoos.

Still, there could be more than just a few jitters this afternoon when UVa takes the floor at Duke.

“I’m sure they will [be nervous],” said Bennett, when asked how he thought his batch of freshmen would respond to playing in one of college basketball’s most storied venues. “I haven’t had a revelation yet what to tell them, but we always try to say, ‘Try and control what you can control.’

“They’re certainly going to have to have a level of composure and toughness and effort that will be really tested.”

Especially since Duke (15-1, 2-1) is anxious to start another winning streak. The Blue Devils had a horrid shooting performance in their 66-61 loss at Florida State on Wednesday — their first defeat since last March — and will likely come out against an undermanned Virginia with guns blazing.

“They’d be focused either way, but I’m sure they’ll be quite hungry,” said Bennett, when asked whether he thought Duke would be more fired up than usual. “It will be quite a setting. When you play Duke, you always get their best shot.”

Virginia (10-6, 1-1), meanwhile, is coming off a loss to North Carolina last Saturday.

Today, UVa will once again be without senior co-captain Mike Scott — he’s now officially out for the rest of the season after electing to undergo a second ankle surgery. Somehow, the Cavaliers will need to make up for his team-leading 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds per outing.

In the loss to UNC, Virginia was doing well — until a huge scoring drought.

“Offensively, if you are going to miss shots, you have to play defense and rebound,” said Virginia freshman KT Harrell, “and that’s what really hurt us.”

UVa is extremely thin in the frontcourt. Behind expected starters Assane Sene and Will Sherrill, Bennett only has freshmen Akil Mitchell and Will Regan to turn to.

If anybody gets into foul trouble, Bennett will have to resort to a small-ball lineup that could get eaten alive by Duke’s big men, though the Plumlee brothers (Miles and Mason) and Ryan Kelly combined for just six points against Florida State.

All-American forward Kyle Singler, who had 20 points, will present the biggest matchup problem for Virginia.

UVa’s best chance could be to employ the same strategy that the Seminoles did on Wednesday — forcing the Blue Devils to hit perimeter shoots. In theory, that is what Bennett’s “Pack-Line” defense is supposed to.

Last season, the Pack-Line worked quite well in the ACC Tournament against Duke. Virginia, playing without leading scorer Sylven Landesberg and senior Calvin Baker, played the gritty, defensive-minded style that Bennett-coached teams had been known for at Washington State. The Wahoos were very respectable in a 57-46 loss.

“I think we were very solid in the conference tournament against them last year, [but] it’s a different team -- for us and for them,” Bennett said. “They’re probably better, I would say.”

Controlling the tempo and limiting turnovers will be two of the major keys, Bennett said. Of course, when you have a squad as young as Bennett’s, those things are sometimes easier said than done.

“If you get rattled, if a mistake or two happens or if there’s a bad stretch -- you try and bounce back,” Bennett said. “[You have] to keep coming, to keep grinding and not get overwhelmed by a situation.

“You have to have a short memory. You have to learn from it, but you have to keep coming. I think that’s definitely something that we’ll talk about as a team — just bring the toughness and soundness and keep fighting. And if there’s a good patch, don’t think that you’ve arrived. You’ve got to be steady.”

Bennett himself has never played or coached a game in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what it’s like,” he said.

Dunks

Today marks Virginia’s first road game in the last 41 days...Duke leads the all-time series, 112-48 (48-8 at Cameron Indoor Stadium)...Virginia has lost 13 consecutive games at Cameron Indoor Stadium...UVa’s last win in the series was a 68-66 OT home win in 2007...Virginia has a 1-27 record vs. teams ranked No. 1 in the AP poll (0-13 on the road).