Virginia Cavaliers: 21-9, 11-7 in the ACC
Head coach: Tony Bennett (8th season)
Players to watch: London Perrantes (12.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 3.9 APG); Devon Hall (8.7 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.9 APG); Kyle Guy (7.7 PPG, 50.0 3PT%)
Season recap: Virginia started the conference season with a statement win on the road at Louisville and jumped out to a 7-2 record by the end of January. February, however, was not kind to the Cavaliers. After first drubbing Virginia Tech, Virginia went on to lose five of its next six games, including four in a row. Since that four-game skid, the Cavaliers have ended the regular season on a high note by picking up three straight wins, including a home victory against then-No. 4 North Carolina.
As has been typical since head coach Tony Bennett took over the program eight years ago, Virginia’s success in 2016-17 has been the result of its pesky pack-line defense. The Cavaliers feature the top scoring defense in the country, surrendering just 55.3 points per game, eight points better than Miami—their next closest ACC competitor.
Offensively, Virginia relies on a balanced attack, with just one player averaging double figures. Although London Perrantes is the lone senior on the team, redshirt junior Devon Hall and junior Marial Shayok provide additional experience for a well-disciplined unit. Inserting rookie sharpshooters Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome into the starting lineup paid dividends for the Cavaliers late in the season, and Virginia will look to make a run in New York to improve its NCAA tournament seeding prospects.
How they make a run: Perrantes, Guy and Jerome heat up from beyond the arc and the Cavaliers knock off third-seeded Notre Dame for the second time this season to reach the conference semifinals. The vaunted Cavalier defense shuts down more high-powered offenses en route to become the first team ever to win four games in four days to win the conference tournament title.
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