When the Virginia men's basketball team travels to Charlotte, N.C., this weekend, they will attempt to achieve a feat that has not been accomplished by a Cavalier squad in nearly seven years: win a post-season game. The last time the Cavaliers won a post-season contest, names like Harold Deane and Junior Burrough reigned, with Virginia beating No. 1 seed Kansas to reach the Elite Eight. That victory came seven years ago this March.
Today, things are quite different, but the Cavaliers would love another trip deep in the NCAA tournament. In order for that to happen, however, Virginia needs to win its ACC tournament opener Friday against N.C. State, a team that swept the Cavaliers in the regular season.
Virginia had its fair share of problems against the Wolfpack this season. The Cavaliers suffered a close 81-74 loss on Jan. 5 and an 85-68 drubbing in Raleigh, N.C., on Feb. 6. The Wolfpack had great success against Virginia's defense in both matchups, shooting high percentages while playing tenacious defense.
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The Cavaliers' defense remains a big question mark as they enter the conference tournament. Teams like Maryland and Duke have dropped big numbers on Virginia in the last few games. In the season finale against Maryland on Sunday, the Terrapins scored at will, piling up 112 points.
With their backs against the wall, however, Virginia will hope to play with a sense of urgency.
"Our players know the situation," coach Pete Gillen said. "We have to play better defense if we hope to win some of these games. We can't keep trying to simply outscore these other teams."
Virginia will have to keep an eye on the Wolfpack's first-team all-ACC member Anthony Grundy if it hopes to come up with the win. Grundy scored 17.4 points a game during the regular season, and totaled 64 steals. One of his biggest steals came in the first N.C. State-Virginia matchup of the year, when he picked Keith Jenifer's pocket with the Cavaliers down only one after a Virginia run. N.C. State grabbed the momentum, held onto the lead, and Virginia could never close in on the Wolfpack.
Grundy's point guard will be Archie Miller, a well-known three-point Wolfpack threat. Miller only has 38 turnovers in 811 minutes of action this season, which is a good ratio for a starting ACC point guard.
N.C. State's frontcourt has provided the biggest problem for the Cavaliers this season, as Marcus Melvin, Josh Powell and Illian Evtimov all have had huge games against the Cavaliers. Melvin has come on strong as a smart defender inside, and he is a tall post player that can step outside and hit a three.
Evtimov came up with a couple huge threes both in Charlottesville and Raleigh, while Collins neutralized Travis Watson down low.
But the player that hurt the Cavaliers the most in N.C. State's upset at Virginia in January was freshman Julius Hodge. Hodge scored a game high 21 points in his first ACC road contest. Hodge has proved himself to be a strong perimeter player that can take opposing players off the dribble and into the paint.
The Cavaliers understand that they have to stop penetration in Friday's game, as opposing clubs have been able to get in the paint for easy buckets in the past few weeks.
"We have to play better defense," junior Roger Mason Jr. said. "If we don't play harder on the defensive end, we can't compete. We can score on offense, but that doesn't matter if you don't play hard on the defensive end."
The Cavaliers must come out with an edge, understanding that Friday is in all probability a "must-win" if they hope to make the NCAA tournament. Make no mistake about it, the current Cavalier squad certainly wants to make the tournament.
"We know where we stand," senior Chris Williams said. "We still have a lot of ball to play, and we want to go out with some wins."
If the Cavaliers come out ahead of the Wolfpack on Friday, they will face No. 1 Maryland in the third round of the tournament Saturday, increasing their chances of being slected for an NCAA bid.
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