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A year after seeing his team suffer the most humiliating defeat in the history of college basketball, De'Andre Hunter shot a shot that kept the hopes of the 2019 Virginia championship alive.
Cavaliers goaltender Ty Jerome headed for the edge, leading the Texas Tech defense around him. As three red Raiders collapsed the paint to challenge an overlay, Jerome turned around and threw the ball around the corner, where Hunter picked it up, stood up and shot. It was the biggest blow of his career, from the moment he left his hand. It's also a hit that Virginia fans will thrill for generations when it explains how the school won its first national basketball title.
In overtime, Hunter lost 3 more points at about the same spot, giving Virginia a 75-73 lead she would not give up. When the final horn sounded, his advantage went to 85-77 and the Hoos invaded the court as champions. The eight-point margin of victory was Virginia's largest since the opening weekend. It was a reason for equal celebration and relief, because the program's legacy was finally – thankfully finally – rewritten.
This NCAA tournament has never been easy for Virginia. This is quite predictable, given the recent history of the program. In ten seasons under head coach Tony Bennett, the Cavaliers have at least four times equaled the regular season title of ACC and competed in the NCAA Tournament as # 1. 1 or not 2 seeds five times. Before 2018-2019, however, they had never exceeded the eight elite. In 2014, they were beaten by Michigan, seeded fourth, 61-59; in 2015, they were again upset by the Spartans, 60-54; in 2016, they fell to Syracuse, 10th seed, 68-62; and last season they became the first no. A seed in the history of college basketball loses its first match against a 16th ranked opponent. The University of Maryland – Baltimore County not only beat the Cavaliers, it demolished them 74-54, which apparently invalidated the entire Bennett system.
As usual, the Hoos were led by 14 in the first half of their first-round match against Gardner-Webb a few weeks ago. They entered the 36-30 split, and discussions began to spread that Virginia could be destined to repeat its biggest failure. But then, Hunter found his shot and the Cavs got 15 points. They won more comfortably against Oklahoma (63-51) in the second round, but still looked like a ghost of the team that had come in 29-3 in the tournament. And then they figured out how to take their smothering reputation and reverse it completely.
The Hoos were tied with Oregon, seeded 12, with just under six minutes to play in their Sweet 16 game, and nearly gave up the game in the final minutes. Yet Hunter scored four points in the last 30 seconds and Virginia won 53-49. Then, it took miracles to get Purdue and Auburn in the Elite Eight and the Final Four, respectively. I watched the clip below about 700 times. I still can not believe that it happened.
Twice in the last two weeks, Virginia went to the free throw line with just over a second to play and her season was in the balance. Twice in the last two weeks, he survived. Monday, despite a lead of 59-51 while it remained less than six minutes to play in the regulation, the Cavs have again won the victory. Part of the credit is due to a call outside the limits reversed at a critical time; This is largely because Virginia is finally playing as the best team in the sport, not only in the regular season, but when it counts.
Hunter, Jerome and Kyle Guy combined 67 points against Texas Tech, including 11 of 17 points scored by Virginia. Whenever the Hoos faced a deficit, one of the three was present with a dagger, an essential pass to keep the team close at hand, or disguised shots for the light bettors. And although Tech has had sporadic successes from potential NBA lottery contender, Jarrett Culver, guards Matt Mooney and Davide Moretti, and impact bench players Brandone Francis and Kyler Edwards, his production has not was enough to get away from the Hoos. It was just Virginia's time.
Monday night's game was the most significant national game since Michigan State, which defeated Florida in 2000. It is surprising to see that Texas Tech entered the competition not only with the best defense in the country, but without doubt the best in the history of college basketball. Since 2002 – the first season for which KenPom data is available – no team had a higher adjusted defensive return than these Red Raiders. Virginia, with her sadly slow system, played almost as effectively at this end of the ground as she had done for years. Except that the most talented team Bennett has ever coached could do more than defend. Behind Guy, Jerome and Hunter, the Hoos set Kenpom's second-best offensive season in college basketball and featured shooters in almost every position.
Virginia assured her redemption in the same way that she had failed before: through the skin of her teeth. But a year after becoming a striking line, Tony Bennett and Co. have outsmarted their demons to carry the coup de grace.
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