Virginia is a respectable 21st in AdjO (adjusted offensive points per possession) for Pomeroy in addition to their #1 ranking in AdjD. Souf is right, it's a better scoring team than some of you are giving them credit for.
The more I watch Virginia
- Thread starter KanePA
- Start date
UVA is much better offensively this year. I could see this team cutting down the nets. If I had to bet, I'd take the field, but I wouldn't argue with anyone who said the Wahoos were tourney favorites.
I've watched them. I've seen their personnel. They lack capable length inside and scoring talent across the board. They are in a very tough bracket with a lot of very talented teams. While they are extremely well coached, extremely disciplined, and extremely tough, they just don't have the horses. They will run into a team that guards them harder than they're used to--teams like Kentucky and Arizona typically don't start playing defense until March-- and that has a future NBA lottery pick or two that they have no answer for. There are a few of those teams in their bracket. We see how this plays out every March/April, and as Pitt fans, we should be painfully aware of how it plays out since our best teams were built and coached very similarly to Bennett's UVA teams. People blamed Dixon's coaching for Pitt's failures in March, but he didn't forget how to coach after St. Patrick's day. He just didn't have the players. The NCAA tournament is pretty good at exposing the overachievers.
At the national title level, you're basically right. But there have been a lot of final four runs from teams that have less talent than your Kentuckys and Dukes. Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Butler, and 14 of the 16 teams that were in the old Big East (15 if you include our old timey one.)
I’ve watched uva guarded tough by UNC 3 times and duke.
Who knows in a single elimination...
But having 3 guards who can all handle and shoot treys and drive effectively...
I don’t hold their past teams against them.
Who knows in a single elimination...
But having 3 guards who can all handle and shoot treys and drive effectively...
I don’t hold their past teams against them.
Duke is 102 in scoring D, UNC is 196. Carolina is a lousy defensive team this year, i think below 200 in defensive efficiency. On top of that, many of the more offensively talented teams teams exert a lot more effort defensively in the NCAA tournament than they do during the regular season.
UVA's efficiency stats are slightly better this year than usual. But this year they don't have a Brogdon, or anyone else they can trust in a pinch, to get them points when they absolutely have to have them. I think the UVA guards will find the sledding a lot tougher than they're used to once they past the first 2 rounds.
For the record, I like the Cavs and Bennett a lot, and I liked Bennett a lot before he ever got to UVA, I even remember the days when he was playing for his dad at Wisconsin-Green bay. For the same reasons I liked Howland, Dixon, and Bo Ryan--I think he does it the right way and gets more out of less than just about anybody. But--if you took UVA's current players, took away the pack line D, and just tried play conventional man or zone schemes against any of the top 20 teams or so, UVA would probably get run off the floor most nights. I just believe that when it comes to Final Fours and especially national championships, the teams with the talent and/or the hot scoring hand will usually prevail over the grinders as you get into the Sweet 16 and beyond.
Anyway, we will get to enjoy watching how it all plays out over the next couple of weeks.
Again-
You’re applying aggregate results to a single game.
If you watched duke vs uva- it was a hard played game.
Same with the second and third UNC games .
First one, uva so stifled UNC it wasn’t close
It’s because uva has 3 guards capable of being the hot hand, that I like this team.
They are talented. They are much more versatile offensively.
Yes, he needs to get to a Final Four. They still get a lot of flack locally (well, their home state at least) for their style of play. That's probably never going to change.
