No. 4 Virginia remains unbeaten with easy 83-56 win over BC

BOSTON (AP) — Mamadi Diakite matched his career-high with 18 points, De’Andre Hunter also scored 18 and No. 4 Virginia remained unbeaten with an 83-56 victory over Boston College on Wednesday night.
Ty Jerome added 13 points and Kyle Guy 10 for the Cavaliers (14-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).
With No. 15 Houston getting upset by Temple earlier Wednesday, Virginia remained one of only two undefeated teams along with second-ranked Michigan.
It’s Virginia’s best start since opening 2014-15 with 19 straight victories.
Nik Popovic had 16 points and Ky Bowman 15 for Boston College (9-5, 0-2).
The Cavaliers came out looking very business-like during warmups and in the opening half, walking off the court toward their locker room appearing just as relaxed at halftime with a 43-31 edge.
Leading 28-23 in the closing minutes of the first half, Virginia went on an 11-3 run over a 3:55 stretch, pushing its advantage to 39-26. The Cavaliers moved the ball very well, getting open looks that led to easy baskets.
The Eagles had a matchup problem with 6-foot-9 forward Diakite in the first half. He scored 17 points — with all of his baskets in the paint — on 7 of 10 shooting.
BC made a brief spurt at the start of the second half, closing it to 45-39 on Popovich’s 3-pointer from the top of the key before the Cavaliers took charge by turning up the defense and going on a game-breaking 19-2 spree, holding the Eagles scoreless for over seven minutes.
BIG PICTURE
Virginia: The next three games may give a better picture of how good the Cavaliers can be this season. Following a trip to Clemson Saturday, they host ninth-ranked Virginia Tech on January 15 before what’s likely to be a highly-anticipated matchup at top-ranked Duke on January. 19
Boston College: The Eagles opened their ACC season with a loss at Virginia Tech on Saturday before facing Virginia. For a young team looking for some early-season confidence, they were overmatched in their first two games.
ROAD SUCCESS
It was the Cavaliers’ 11th straight ACC road win and a nation-leading 12th “true” road victory in row.
They went 9-0 on the road in the league last season.
EXTRA INTERST
Boston Celtics’ President Danny Ainge watched the game courtside, holding a touchscreen device watching the end of the Celtics game played about 5 miles away until it ended.
Seated baseline were 26 NBA scouts — an unusually high number for a game at Conte Forum.
EXTRA SUPPORT
Midway into the first half, the Cavaliers were serenaded with a chant of “Let’s go ‘Hoos!” from a large contingent of Virginia fans.
UP NEXT
Virginia: At Clemson Saturday at noon.
Boston College: At Notre Dame Saturday at noon.