Virginia 51, NC State 47

RALEIGH, N.C. — Guard Malcolm Brodgon scored 15 points, including four free throws in the final minute, and second-ranked Virginia, playing without one of its top players, defeated North Carolina State 51-47 on Wednesday night at PNC Arena.

N.C. State guard Trevor Lacey hit a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left but missed a potential tying layup with eight seconds to go.

Center Mike Tobey, who made two free throws with seven seconds to play, added 11 points and forward Anthony Gill had nine points for first-place Virginia (22-1, 10-1).

Lacey finished with 14 points for N.C. State (14-11, 5-7), which lost for the fifth time in the last six games as its NCAA Tournament hopes took another dent. Guard Anthony “Cat” Barber scored 11 points, including a layup with 1.7 seconds left.

The Cavaliers played their first game without standout guard Justin Anderson, who’ll likely miss at least a month after undergoing weekend surgery on a finger. Anderson led the team in scoring going into last weekend.

N.C. State, which had been off since losing Feb. 3 at Wake Forest, was locked up in a close game with the Cavaliers going down the for the second time this season.

It was tied 31-31 with eight minutes remaining.

Gill’s three-point play with a dunk sent Virginia to a 36-33 lead at the seven-minute mark, giving the Cavaliers their largest lead of the game. Guard Devon Hall scored on a fast break as the edge moved to 38-33.

Brogdon picked up his fourth foul with 5:42 to play. Thirty-four seconds later, it was 38-37.

A flagrant foul on N.C. State forward Caleb Martin resulted in one Brogdon foul shot and then Tobey converted a three-point play for a 42-37 margin.

Barber responded with a three-point play to set up a tight finish.

Virginia notched its ninth consecutive road victory, already having its longest stretch of road success since the 1980-81 season.

Barber scored on two drives late in the first half as North Carolina State took a 21-19 lead to halftime.

Virginia shot 33 percent (9-for-27) from the field in the first half, marking its second-lowest scoring half of the season (behind only a 17-point first half vs. Rutgers).

North Carolina State made only 31 percent (9-for-29) in the opening half.

Virginia sputtered on offense, so when North Carolina State claimed a 10-4 lead, Cavaliers coach Tony Bennett used a timeout at the 14:08 mark.

The Cavaliers committed two turnovers in the first four minutes, matching their total giveaways from Saturday’s victory against Louisville.

NOTES: Virginia junior F Evan Nolte made his first start of the season in place of injured G Justin Anderson, who had surgery on a finger Sunday. … Virginia’s most-recent visits to PNC Arena came last March, when the Cavaliers defeated Coastal Carolina and Memphis on the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. … The Cavaliers entered the game with a seven-game winning streak in regular-season games in the series with North Carolina State, including a 61-51 victory last month in Charlottesville, Va. … Virginia plays the first of two games against Wake Forest in a 12-day period Saturday at home. That begins a three-game homestand. … North Carolina State goes to Louisville on Saturday before another weeklong layoff.