Chance Mallory scored 16 points, Thijs De Ridder had 15 and No. 6 Virginia took total control early in a 95-61 blowout of Bucknell on Tuesday night in Charlottesville, Va.
Playing for the fourth time in eight days, the Cavaliers (4-0) showed no signs of fatigue as they raced to a 28-5 lead and improved to 10-0 under second-year coach Ryan Odom when scoring 90-plus points.
Mallory added six assists and De Ridder had eight rebounds, four assists and four steals. Nolan Adekunle scored 14 points and Johann Grunloh finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and three blocks.
The Cavaliers used their superior size to dominate the rebounding battle (52-30) and outscored the Bison 46-16 in the paint. The defense produced 12 steals and 11 blocks and Virginia scored 27 points off turnovers.
Bucknell (0-3) has been outscored by at least 20 points in all three of its losses. Aleksander Pachucki and Luke Soden scored 12 points apiece and Rocco Lamuno added 10.
An 11-0 run expanded the Cavaliers’ lead to 67-36, capped by Mallory’s three-point play with 14:59 left in the game.
Virginia’s advantage swelled to 78-41 on De Ridder’s 3-pointer with 11:01 to play.
The Cavaliers shot 50.7% from the field and 34.3% (12 of 35) from 3-point range, sinking double-digit treys for the fourth time in as many games. They held the Bison to 35.1% shooting, including 33.3% (11 of 33) from behind the arc.
Virginia led 53-31 at halftime. The Cavaliers scored the first 11 points of the game, put together a 14-0 run to open up a 28-5 lead and led by as many as 24 points at 38-14.
Bucknell was scoreless until Lamuno’s 3-pointer with 15:24 left in the first half. The Bison didn’t reach double figures until Soden’s triple made it 31-11 with 7:53 remaining.
Both teams return to action on Friday night. The Cavaliers play their first road game at Maryland and the Bison will host Columbia in Lewisburg, Pa.