Virginia coach Tony Bennett's mantra that “every game matters” takes on a different meaning this week.
The Cavaliers (21-9, 12-7) will play Georgia Tech (14-16, 7-12) in their final regular-season game Saturday night at John Paul Jones Arena. ), and the stakes couldn't be higher.
If it's true that every game matters, then maybe this game deserves a red exclamation point like the urgent emails that fill your work inbox. If we don't act quickly, we will face dire consequences.
In this case, the Cavaliers' lack of response, and more specifically, their lack of bounce back after Saturday night's crushing 73-48 loss to No. 9 Duke, could send their season into a trash can spiral. There is.
UVA, which has lost four of its past six games, is squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble and narrowly holds the No. 3 seed for next week's ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C.
“We're fighting like crazy to get as high as we can in our conference, get the best seed we can and earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament,” Bennett said after the loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Ta. “All of those things are important, so even though it feels like shit right now, we’re still playing a meaningful game.”
The Cavaliers can be satisfied with what they've accomplished so far in an eventful campaign, winning at least 21 games for the 12th time in the past 13 years and winning at least 12 games in the ACC for the seventh consecutive year, but Bennett seems to want that. The players “keep trying to build it up. I, and they, are going to keep swinging until the last tick of the clock. We have to.”
Virginia, which will honor point guard Reece Beekman and forwards Jordan Miner, Jake Groves and Virginia Beach native Tristan Howe during Saturday's pregame Senior Night ceremony, will earn at least a No. 4 seed in next week's ACC Tournament. Obtained.
However, the Cavaliers have work to do if they are to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.
ESPN currently has UVA as one of the final four teams to compete in the Big Dance. It's very fragile.
After Wednesday's game, the Cavaliers were ranked No. 50 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings, the system the NCAA uses to evaluate teams. Georgia Tech, Virginia's opponent Saturday night, is ranked 124th. The Yellow Jackets are considered a “Quadrant 3” opponent. UVA is 7-0 against Quad 3 opponents this season.
Virginia defeated Georgia Tech 75-66 on January 20, one of many early-season ACC losses for the Yellow Jackets. But after some growing pains, Georgia Tech is playing its best ball this season. They beat Wake Forest 70-69 in the last minute on Tuesday, winning their third straight game and winning four of their last five games.
“I think the guys are getting more comfortable with each other. … We're starting to see the buy-in pick up a little bit more and we're seeing the players connect a little bit more,” Yellow Jackets coach Damon said. Stoudamire said.
UVA will face a team that has lost by at least 25 points for the second time in its last four games, including a blowout loss by 34 points to Virginia Tech on Feb. 19. UVA has lost seven games on the road this season by 16 points or more. , but with each of those setbacks, it did an admirable job of responding.
The Cavaliers, who had two days off after Saturday's loss to Durham, have only lost back-to-back games twice this season.
“At the end of the day, it's only one game. We understand that,” UVA sophomore forward Ryan Dunn said. “Watch film, take these two days off, come back to practice and say, 'Oh, I'm done.' There's nothing you can do about it. Let's get ready for Georgia Tech. ACC. Get ready for the tournament.”
Virginia's offensive struggles have been well-documented, but their recent struggles are due to the strengths of their opponents as much as Virginia's own shortcomings. UVA has been held to fewer than 50 points in four of its past five games, two of which were against No. 7 UNC and No. 9 Duke.
“We just went into one of the toughest settings against one of the best teams, and that's the way it is,” Bennett said. “Now let's deal with (what went wrong) and prepare as best we can. Some teams have a smaller margin of error than others and it's a fine line. We know if it’s there, so we’ll deal with it, attack it as hard as we can, and be ready.”
The Cavaliers are heading into the final game of the regular season with a tense attitude. They know what's at stake.
“We've got to find something, especially before this Georgia Tech game,” UVA sophomore guard Isaac McKneely said. “We have to win. We're still fighting for a postseason spot, so we'd like to win and get into the ACC tournament and see where we are.”
