CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Guard Justin Anderson had 20 points, forward Anthony Gill had 16 points and nine rebounds and reserve center Mike Tobey chipped in with 13 points and a career-high 16 rebounds as the No. 8 Virginia Cavaliers blasted the Tennessee State Tigers 79-36 on Tuesday.
The Cavaliers are 5-0 to start the season for the first time since 2007-08 as they won their 15th game in a row at home, with all but one coming by at least 10 points. Virginia outscored Tennessee State 32-0 from late in the first half to early in the second half.
The Cavaliers held foes to 33 percent shooting or less in the first five games as head coach Tony Bennett was able to start clearing his bench midway through the second half. Virginia won each of its first five games by at least 17 points but could be tested on Friday against La Salle in Brooklyn.
Tennessee State (2-3) of the Ohio Valley Conference, coming off a 32-point loss on Sunday at Vanderbilt, was paced by guards Marcus Roper and Xavier Richards with 10 points each.
The Atlantic Coast Conference Cavaliers, one of the top defensive teams in the country, led by 25 at halftime and took their first 30-point lead early in the second half on a basket by Anderson. Virginia led 57-17 after a basket by reserve guard Marial Shayok.
Virginia scored the first 20 points of the second half and thanks to a run at the end of the first half outscored the Tigers 32-0 during a long stretch in the middle of the game. Tennessee State finally got on the board on a basket by Richards with 12:29 left in the game to make the score 62-19.
The teams met for the first time as part of the Barclays Center Classic. Virginia beat Norfolk State on Nov. 16 as part of the classic.
Anderson has led or tied for the lead in scoring in the first five games and he entered play Tuesday with a scoring average of 16 points per contest.
Virginia dominated the boards 27-12 in the first half, with 11 offensive boards.
Virginia jumped out to a 10-2 lead on a 3-pointer and free throw for a rare four-point play by Anderson.
Anderson then hit a traditional 3-pointer to make it 13-2 less than four minutes into the game and Virginia never looked back.
NOTES: Next up for Virginia is a game against La Salle of the Atlantic 10 on Friday at the Barclays Center Classic in Brooklyn. ... Tennessee State also heads north and plays on Friday against St. Peter's in New Jersey ... G Jay Harris led Tennessee State in scoring in the first four games ... Tigers' coach Dana Ford is the youngest Division I coach in the country at 30 ... Virginia began the week ranked second in the nation in field goal percentage defense at 29.4 ... The Cavaliers won each of their first four games by at least 17 points.