Looking for one of the subtler developments in the first half of the regular season?

Try this one: Virginia is exactly the sort of explosive late-game team it figured it would eventually be when it hired Lars Tiffany after the 2016 season.

The Cavaliers (5-2) have ripped off four consecutive victories by a combined five goals. That’s living dangerously, and it is part of why Virginia remains outside the top 10 (reconciling how to put the Hoos ahead of a one-loss High Point team they lost to at home is another reason).

But take a look at Virginia’s last four games:

• Trailing 9-7 at Princeton, the Cavaliers finished on a 5-2 run over the last 16:06 to win in overtime.

• Trailing 13-9 at Syracuse, Virginia closed on a 6-1 run over the last 11:29 to win in overtime.

• Trailing 12-8 to Brown, the Cavaliers went on a 6-1 run over the last 14:09 to win in overtime.

• Trailing 10-5 to Notre Dame, Virginia outscored the Irish 8-1 over the last 22:27 to win in regulation.

This isn’t to suggest Virginia is once again a serious national title contender. But it has evolved. While anyone stuck in so many close games is playing with fire, the Cavaliers’ performance toward the end of games is an encouraging sign for a program hoping this year is a chance to take a step forward.

Virginia remains ranked No. 12 in this week’s Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Men’s Top 20. Top-ranked Yale solidifed its position with a convincing victory over Cornell. Duke and Maryland are back in the top five and are joined in that group by Ohio State, the lone remaining undefeated team in the country.

Nike/US Lacrosse
Division I Men’s Top 20

Also considered (alphabetical order): Boston University (5-2), Brown (3-2), Colgate (3-3), Delaware (6-2), Hobart (5-1), Marquette (4-3), Penn (3-3), Richmond (5-3)

HOT

Duke (+4)

The Blue Devils took care of Towson 12-10 and have now won seven in a row as they head into four weeks of ACC play. Teams Duke has toppled during its run? Towson, Loyola and Denver. That’s a pretty good start to the resume of a top-four seed come May.

It was difficult to make sense out of the clump of one-loss teams Duke was a part of coming into last week. Cornell, Notre Dame and Towson all picked up second losses, and as a result it’s easier to sort out the top five than just a few days ago.

Maryland (+3)

The Terrapins became the second Big Ten team to drub Villanova, delivering a 17-7 pounding on Saturday. (The Wildcats opened the season with a blowout loss to Penn State). It was Maryland’s most lopsided victory since a 19-5 rout of High Point on Feb. 18, 2017.

Maryland’s only loss was an overtime defeat at Notre Dame, which places it in good company. Yale (against Villanova) and Penn State (against Yale) also suffered their only losses to date by a goal.

NOT

Rutgers (-5)

It was a tough week for the Scarlet Knights, who took a Tuesday loss to Lehigh and then allowed a couple four-goal leads to drift away in an 18-14 loss to Syracuse on Saturday.

That was Rutgers’ last chance in nonconference play to establish something of value for the postseason. The victory over Princeton, while riveting, doesn’t look like it will help much. Neither will defeats of Fairfield, Lafayette and St. John’s.

While the Scarlet Knights own no inexplicable losses (Army, Lehigh, Loyola and Syracuse), they have plenty of work in front of them to lock down an elusive NCAA tournament berth.

Cornell (-3), Notre Dame (-3) and Towson (-3)

That collection of one-loss teams that was difficult to sort out? Well, now it’s a group of two-loss teams that extends from No. 6 to No. 14 (with one-loss High Point slipped in there as well).

None of these teams absorbed the sort of setback over the weekend that will look bad at the end of the season. Cornell fell to Yale. Notre Dame dropped a two-goal decision at Virginia. Towson tripped up at Duke.

Throw in the likes of Loyola, Denver, Virginia, Syracuse and North Carolina, and it’s a challenge to sort out the middle 10 spots in the top 20.

IN

UMass

It was easy to lose track of the Minutemen after their 1-3 start. But even then, UMass was competitive, taking both Army and Yale to overtime before succumbing. Sunday’s 16-2 defeat of Utah was the fourth consecutive victory for the Minutemen (5-3), who nose back into the rankings for the first time in more than a month.

Unsurprisingly, Greg Cannella’s team is getting it done on the defensive end. Thanks in part to ace defenseman Isaac Paparo and goalie Sean Sconone, Massachusetts has allowed just 5.3 goals per game during its winning streak, a figure that will get tested in its nonconference finale Saturday against Brown.

OUT

Colgate (was No. 19)

It’s a make-or-miss game sometimes. Such was the case Saturday, when Canisius shot 8 of 21 against the Raiders, who were just 6 of 43 themselves.

The next three games will be telling for Colgate (3-3). After a midweek encounter with Hobart, the Raiders visit Army and Loyola on consecutive Saturdays. Colgate’s place in the Patriot League will become more clear by the end of the month.