Virginia Men’s Basketball 2019 NCAA Tournament Capsule

March 8, 2019 · CSM Staff
 

Virginia Cavaliers

ACC (29-3, 16-2)

 
The last time we saw Virginia in the NCAA Tournament they were making history for all the wrong reasons. But after another superb regular season, the Cavaliers will again be among the favorites to reach the Final Four. The important part for this group will be getting a couple wins under their belt. If they can make it to the Sweet 16, they can win it all.
 
Big Wins: 11/28 at Maryland (76-71), 2/11 at North Carolina (69-61), 2/18 at Virginia Tech (64-58)
Bad Losses: 1/19 at Duke (70-72), 2/9 Duke (71-81), 3/15 vs Florida State (59-69)
Coach: Tony Bennett
 
Why They Can Surprise:
As always, Virginia plays great defense. The opposition shoots just 37.4 percent from the floor against the Cavaliers. That ranks third in the nation. It gets even better beyond the arc where UVA holds their opponents to just nation leading 27.3 percent shooting. With defense like that, this is a team that can beat anybody. It does not take much offense for Virginia to win games, but they can get more than enough from Kyle Guy, De’Andre Hunter and Ty Jerome. That backcourt trio will do much of the scoring for this team. Guy and Jerome are prolific outside shooters, while Hunter is the most effective attacking the basket.
 
Why They Can Disappoint:
After losing to a 16th seeded UMBC in the first round last year, there are plenty of reasons why this group can disappoint. The biggest reason for another early exit could come in the turnover battle. Virginia does not commit too many turnovers and the numbers are very good, but they have had some stretches of games where they were committing around a dozen turnovers each game. That is way too many for a team that slows the game down and does not have that many possessions. Virginia cannot afford to have that many possessions without a shot and expect to reach the Final Four.
 
Probable Starters:
Kihei Clark, Freshman, Guard, 4.2 ppg, 2.3 apg
Kyle Guy, Junior, Guard, 15.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.2 apg
Ty Jerome, Junior, Guard, 13.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 5.4 apg
De’Andre Hunter, Sophomore, Guard, 15.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg
Jack Salt, Senior, Center, 4.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg
 
Key Role Players:
Braxton Key, Junior, Guard, 6.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg
Mamadi Diakite, Junior, Forward, 6.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.5 bpg
 
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 72.1 (189th in nation, 7th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 54.6 (1, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.9 (28, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.4 (3, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.5 (89, 4)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 41.4 (3, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 74.6 (38, 3)
Rebound Margin: 5.6 (24, 3)
Assists Per Game: 14.6 (89, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 9.1 (2, 1)
 
Recent Postseason Appearances:
 
2018 NCAA Round of 64 loss to UMBC
2017 NCAA Round of 64 win over UNC Wilmington
2017 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Florida
2016 NCAA Round of 64 win over Hampton
2016 NCAA Round of 32 win over Butler
2016 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Iowa State
2016 NCAA Regional Final loss to Syracuse
2015 NCAA Round of 64 win over Belmont
2015 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Michigan State
2014 NCAA Round of 64 win over Coastal Carolina
2014 NCAA Round of 32 win over Memphis
2014 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Michigan State
2013 NIT First Round win over Norfolk State
2013 NIT Second Round win over St. John’s
2013 NIT Quarterfinal loss to Iowa
2012 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Florida
2008 CBI First Round win over Richmond
2008 CBI Second Round win over Old Dominion
2008 CBI Semifinal loss to Bradley
2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Albany
2007 NCAA Round of 32 loss Tennessee
2006 NIT First Round loss to Stanford
2004 NIT First Round win over George Washington
2004 NIT Second Round loss to Villanova
2003 NIT First Round win over Brown
2003 NIT Second Round loss to St. Johns
 
*all team stats through 3/10