Northwestern sparked through transitions but fell apart on the glass, overpowered by Virginia's interior dominance.

Northwestern (4-1) lost to Virginia (5-1) 83-78 in its first game of the Greenbrier Tip-off series in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. The Wildcats erased the first-half deficit and briefly led by seven earlier in the second half, but the Cavaliers' size and physicality down the stretch proved too much to overcome.

Jayden Reid led Northwestern with 25 points and five assists, while Arrinten Page powered the frontcourt with 20 points and six rebounds. On the other side, UVA countered with balanced scoring — Thijs De Ridder dominated with 26 points and eight rebounds, Chance Mallory added 16 off the bench and Malik Thomas chipped in 14. The Cavaliers controlled the glass, outrebounding Northwestern 49-25.

Northwestern started strong with Angelo Ciaravino's transition dunk and Jayden Reid's tough drive, building an early 14-8 lead behind Arrinten Page's post moves and a three-pointer. Nick Martinelli added a deep three, and Jake West contributed a mid-range jumper off a pump fake as the Wildcats looked in control.

But Virginia flipped the script by dominating the offensive glass. The Cavaliers used second-chance opportunities to fuel a comeback, with Thomas scoring four straight points to cut Northwestern's lead to one. Johann Grunloh's putback and-one gave Virginia momentum, and Mallory's free throws handed the Cavaliers their first lead.

Northwestern answered through Reid-to-Page alley-oop connections—twice the starting guard found Page for thunderous finishes. Reid remained unfazed by Virginia's full-court pressure, knocking down a three off Page's assist. But the Cavaliers kept crashing the offensive boards, with De Ridder finishing multiple second-chance opportunities.

The momentum swung heavily toward Virginia late in the half. After Martinelli converted just one of two free throws, the Cavaliers ripped off a 10-3 run capped by Sam Lewis's three-pointer, taking a 32-27 lead. Tre Singleton briefly stopped the bleeding with a putback and-one, completing the three-point play.

De Ridder dominated the final minutes, overpowering Martinelli on a post-up hook shot before Mallory intercepted Page's pass for a transition bucket. De Ridder drew Northwestern's 10th team foul and converted both free throws to push Virginia's lead to 38-30.

Reid kept Northwestern afloat with a jumper through traffic and two late free throws, but the Wildcats trailed 40-36 at halftime, struggling to contain Virginia's interior duo and offensive rebounding onslaught.

Northwestern opened the second half with urgency. Singleton found Ciaravino cutting weak side for a layup, then Reid drained a contested three to cut the deficit to one. Page retook the lead for the Wildcats with a dominant dunk over Grunloh, then stepped back and buried a three-pointer. Martinelli broke his scoring drought with a strong finish off the glass, pushing Northwestern's lead to 55-48 before Page picked up his third foul at 14:29.

Virginia responded with Mallory's three-pointer, and Northwestern spiralled into foul trouble — committing five fouls in under a minute midway through the half. But the Wildcats tightened defensively, forcing a UVA turnover. West found Martinelli on the right post for a hook shot over De Ridder, then added a bouncing jumper to maintain a 61-55 advantage.

De Ridder and Lewis combined for five points to trim the gap to three. After Reid's turnover, De Ridder added two free throws, then Dallin Hall drilled a three-pointer following Reid's blocked shot attempt to give Virginia a 63-61 lead.

Northwestern answered out of a timeout. Justin Mullins hit a fadeaway jumper under pressure, Martinelli blocked De Ridder's shot, and Reid used Page's screen to finish a pull-up layup with a foul. The sequence gave Northwestern a 66-63 lead and forced a Virginia timeout.

Page scored two free throws and delivered a chase-down block on Grunloh, but Grunloh responded with an alley-oop to Mallory. The game remained tight after Mullins converted free throws in transition, but Mallory tied it again from the line.

Virginia seized control late. Hall's three-pointer built a four-point lead with under two minutes remaining. Reid kept Northwestern alive with free throws, but after Singleton fouled out with one minute left, the Cavaliers pulled away. Grunloh blocked Page's corner three, Hall added another free throw, and despite K.J. Windham's late contested three cutting it to 79-76, Virginia closed at the line, sealing the 83-78 victory.

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