No. 4 Virginia finishes off the regular season at home Saturday night when they face No. 11 Louisville at John Paul Jones Arena.
The game versus the Cardinals (23-7, 12-5 ACC) has big implications for the Cavaliers (23-6, 12-5 ACC). With a win, Virginia has a shot to capture its third-straight ACC regular-season title.
However, the Cavaliers would have to share it — with either North Carolina or Louisville, or, in a three-way tie, with both Miami and North Carolina. If either the Hurricanes or Tar Heels were to win out, Virginia would not be able to take the crown. In one of the most competitive ACC seasons in recent years, there are five teams within two games of first place.
With a win, the Cavaliers also greatly improve their chances of earning a No. 1 seed when the NCAA Tournament rolls around in a little under two weeks. Right now, ESPN’s Bracketology guru Joe Lunardi predicts Virginia to be a No. 1 seed in the South Regional.
The Cavaliers take on a Louisville team that has seemingly little to play for. Just a couple weeks ago, the Cardinals self-imposed a postseason ban stemming from allegations of an escort service provided to players and recruits by a staff member. The Cardinals will not participate in this year’s ACC or NCAA tournaments. Thus, Saturday night marks the final game of the season for Louisville.
Saturday’s matchup will also be the final college game for two Louisville players — senior graduate transfers Damion Lee and Trey Lewis. They are the two leading scorers for the Cardinals this season. Both players transferred to the Cardinals last year for the sole reason of getting a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament — something neither player has been able to do in their career. Now, because of the ban, neither Lee nor Lewis will ever have an opportunity to shine on the big stage.
The Cavaliers, however, will certainly have a chance to shine under the bright lights of this year’s March Madness. Virginia will look to senior guard Malcolm Brogdon — the unquestioned leader of this team — to carry them into the postseason. Recently, he has been playing some stellar ball. He leads the team with 18.5 points per game while shooting just under 48 percent from the field, leading teammates and coaches alike to ask Brogdon to be more aggressive with the ball.
“I am always telling him to be aggressive because it makes our team that much better,”
sophomore forward Isaiah Wilkins said. “After a while he draws two or three defenders. He is a willing passer and he sets other people up.”
Even Brogdon knows he has to be aggressive if this team wants any hope of making a deep postseason run.
“I just try to come on and be aggressive,” Brogdon said. “I’m one of the better scorers on the team. If I’m not aggressive I feel like I’m doing a disservice to the team.”
Brogdon isn’t being arrogant when he talks about his own skill set. In fact, he’s being downright honest about the reality of the situation. Without him, this group is not a top-10 team.
Even with little to play for, Louisville is still a very strong team that the Cavaliers cannot take lightly. The Cardinals are currently ranked No. 11 nationally — their highest ranking all year. The Cardinals have one of the most formidable defenses in the country, not too far from the level of Virginia’s acclaimed defense. The Cavaliers give up a mere 60.1 points per game, which is good for third best in the country. Louisville is right behind them at 60.9 points per game — the sixth-best mark in the nation.
Virginia cannot overlook Louisville, but at the same time, it has to start getting ready for postseason play. The Cavaliers are hoping for a much better outing after last year’s early exit from the NCAA Tournament as a two seed. This year, however, players and coaches alike think that the team has learned a lot from the failure to live up to expectations in last year’s postseason.
“I definitely think we are more equipped,” Brogdon said. “I think we are a more experienced team that has evolved and learned from past experiences of having a great regular season and then relaxing in the postseason.”
Coach Tony Bennett had some similar things to say about the value of learning from mistakes.
“One thing I do know is that last year, we lived off our success,” he said. “Not in a bad way, but we were 16-1. We always won. When you lose and you struggle, then you learn.
“We realized how fine of a line it is with this year having lost and struggled in some tough conference games as of late. I think when you’re aware of that, it makes you understand how on point you have to be in all those areas that are important to us.”
Virginia hopes to have a similar result against Louisville as in the first meeting of the season between the two teams. The Cavaliers won easily on the road 63-47. If they win Saturday, Virginia will get its 13th ACC victory of the year. The Cavaliers already have 12 ACC victories for the third-straight year in a row. It is the first time they’ve done that since 1981-83.
Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m.
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