Charlottesville, Va. ? With all the hoopla surrounding the opening of Virginia’s glistening $130 million John Paul Jones Arena, the last thing the Cavaliers wanted was to send a sellout crowd of 15,219 home with a loss.

They didn’t, rallying from a slow start to open their new home in stirring fashion Sunday night with a 93-90 victory against No. 10 Arizona.

The game even lived up to the pregame ceremony, which featured Michael Buffer introducing the Cavaliers starting lineup and delivering his trademark “Let’s get ready to rumble,” the Virginia mascot rappelling from the ceiling with the game ball and a light show.

It was so much, Sean Singletary said, that it was nearly too much.

“It was hard,” he said after scoring 24 points. “We struggled in the first half. We didn’t have the energy. We didn’t have the focus we needed. But definitely in the second half, coach got on us like he usually does and we turned it around.”

Mamadi Diane scored a career-best 25 points, including a banked-in three-pointer that put Virginia up 80-79 for its first lead since early in the game. The shot became part of a 14-5 run to an 86-82 lead, and the Cavaliers held on – barely – at the free throw line.

Virginia made seven of 10 free throws in the final 2:56, and its victory wasn’t safe until J.P. Prince’s three-point try from the right wing rimmed out at the buzzer.

The Cavaliers also intensified on defense, which has fast become a strength under second-year coach Dave Leitao. In the second half, they outscored the Wildcats 57-41, limited them to 43 percent shooting and outrebounded them 18-15 despite foul trouble.

Virginia basketball coach Dave Leitao waves to the crowd after his team's 93-90 win over Arizona. The Cavs stunned the 10th-ranked Wildcats Sunday at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va.

No. 4 Pittsburgh 86, Western Michigan 67

West Point, N.Y. – Aaron Gray had 10 points and 13 rebounds to lead Pittsburgh in the inaugural Maggie Dixon Classic.

No. 7 Ohio State 81, Kent State 59

Columbus, Ohio – Ron Lewis scored 18 points to lead Ohio State past Kent State in the BCA Classic championship game.

No. 9 Wisconsin 72, Mercer 48

Madison, Wis. – Kammron Taylor scored 22 points, and Alando Tucker added 21 to help Wisconsin beat Mercer in the season opener for both teams. Hrvoje Pervan scored 10 points for Mercer.

No. 12 Duke 86, Columbia 43

Durham, N.C. – Freshman Brian Zoubek scored 18 points to lead a balanced effort for Duke in the first round of the CBE Classic.

No. 17 Washington 99, Pepperdine 91

Seattle – Jon Brockman had 25 points and 12 rebounds in his first game as Washington’s new leader to send the Huskies to victory in the Basketball Travelers Classic.

No. 20 Syracuse 83, UTEP 69

Syracuse, N.Y. – Eric Devendorf had 19 points and a career-high seven rebounds, and Matt Gorman had 12 points for the second straight game for Syracuse. It was the third straight win for Syracuse at the start of the season and the 729th victory for coach Jim Boeheim.