CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Chance Mallory and Ugo Onyenso came off the bench to lead No. 15 Virginia to a 70-66 win over Ohio State on Saturday night in Nashville, Tenn., the Cavaliers’ sixth straight victory.

UVA outscored the Buckeyes 16-7 over the final 9:46 of play. But the Cavaliers also missed three free throws in the last 1:44 to keep things interesting.

Mallory scored 12 and Onyenso added 8 points. 10 rebounds and 4 blocks, including a key one in the final 15 seconds, as Virginia’s bench outscored the Buckeyes’ reserves 27-4.

Malik Thomas led the Cavaliers with 13 points and Sam Lewis scored 12.

Bruce Thornton led Ohio State with 28 points, and Amare Bynum added 12 points and 5 rebounds.

Virginia fell behind by 11 points in the first six minutes of play Saturday, but – sparked by Mallory – fought back to go to the locker room tied 37-37 at halftime.

UVA went ahead 61-59 on a layup by Onyenso with 6:09 to play. Onyenso then blocked shots on Ohio State’s next two possessions before Thornton tied the game 61-61, sending the night toward its dramatic conclusion.

Virginia led 63-61 with 1:44 to play and Mallory had a chance to potentially seal the win at the line. But he missed the front end of a one-and-one.

40 seconds later, Dallin Hall’s fast-break layup off a turnover gave UVA a two-shot edge.

Playing their final non-conference game of the regular season, the Cavaliers were facing their third Big Ten opponent of the season, having previously dispatched of both Northwestern and Maryland. But both of those teams sit near the bottom of their league’s standings. The Buckeyes are a middle-of-the-pack club with eyes on an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.