Ryan Dunn’s spark off the bench helps No. 7 Virginia hold their ground from Boston College to a sixth straight win

Dunn turned an action-packed five-minute stint off the bench in the first half, with two dunks, a steal and a block as No. 7 UVa converted a four-point deficit into a 76-57 win.

On a day when the Cavaliers struggled with their outside shooting, forward Jayden Gardner led an attack in the paint. Gardner and guard Armaan Franklin each had 18 points and Dunn added six points, four rebounds, two steals and a block in 16 minutes as Virginia won its sixth straight game.

Dunn’s instant bounce off the bench helped swing things in UVa’s favor on Saturday afternoon at the sold-out John Paul Jones Arena.

Dunn scored five of the most exciting minutes possible in the first half, checking in off the bench 11:38 before the break. Just over a minute later, Dunn scored from a missed shot by Isaac McKneely to make it 21-21.

With 8:08 to go, Reece Beekman found him for a thunderous allyoop dunk that got the crowd on their feet as Dunn swung off the rim. Virginia (16-3, 8-2 ACC) led 26-21.

Then, after committing a turnover on the offensive end, Dunn got the ball back with a steal. He wasn’t done yet. Before going on the bench at 6:12 at halftime, Dunn ran down Boston College’s TJ Bickerstaff and blocked Bickerstaff’s fastbreak layup attempt from behind.

Going just 2 for 13 from 3-point range early in the game, UVa found other ways to score the basketball, and Gardner — especially in the second half — led that attack.

Gardner scored eight of his 18 points in four minutes early in the second half as Virginia rose to 15 after two free throws with 17:38 left.

The Eagles (10-12, 4-7), who had won consecutive games, got off to a strong start.

Forward Quentin Post, who missed most of the first half of the season with a foot injury, played with a protective face mask after breaking his nose in a clash in BC’s last game, a win over Louisville.

After UVa sent doubles his way, Post turned the ball around on three of BC’s first four possessions before warming up. He scored 14 points in a span of just over three minutes.

Post, who hit a pair of 3-pointers in that stretch, scored 14 of the Eagles’ first 16 points and finished the game with 24 points and six rebounds.

The Cavaliers, who had hit 41.9% of their 3-point attempts in their last five games, found just two of their first 11 attempts from beyond the arc on Saturday.

Still, a 9-0 run towards the end of the half helped UVa build a 35-25 lead with 2:20 to go before the break. Franklin scored five of those points.

BC was trailing 35-27 at half time.

That would be as close as the visitors would come. Virginia found his 3-point shot in the second half, going 76-49 at 3:26 to play on a 3-point shot by Franklin.

The Cavaliers are now facing a quick turnaround and play Syracuse on Monday night.