On a Saturday filled with top-tier college matchups, the Virginia-North Carolina showdown took the cake as the most anticipated. In a battle of potential NCAA No. 1 seeds, the game pitted the ACC’s top-two teams against each together.
The first half had all the makings of a classic. With ongoing conference expansion, the local crowd showed its pleasure seeing the ACC championship decided in another rendition of the South’s oldest rivalry.
But in the second half, North Carolina’s demolition of Notre Dame the night before might have proved the difference. Virginia, which fought a full 40 minutes against Miami Friday night to advance to the finals, fell victim to a 15-2 Tar Heel run from the 9:39 mark until senior guard Malcolm Brogdon hit a three with 1:39 to play.
The Cavaliers shot a season low 36.5 percent from the field, including a mere 33.3 percent in the second half. Brogdon connected on just 6-of-22 field goals for 15 points, while junior guard London Perrantes managed only a 3-of-14 performance from the floor. The duo went a combined 4-of-17 from deep.
“[It] seems like we were getting good shots,” senior forward Anthony Gill said. “We just didn’t convert on them. A lot of guys had wide open shots that just weren’t falling for us tonight.”
The Cavaliers led to start the second half until North Carolina junior guard Marcus Paige, who finished with 13 points, made his seventh consecutive point for the Tar Heels on a jumper to put North Carolina up, 40-39, with 12:11 remaining.
After Virginia scored the next five points, the 15-2 Tar Heel run began, putting North Carolina up by nine with 1:45 to play.
The Cavaliers had plenty of open looks, especially from deep — normally a good sign for Perrantes and Brogdon, who are 49.3 percent and 41.9 percent three-point shooters, respectively. However, perhaps due to fatigue, Virginia simply could not connect.
“Absolutely fatigue is a part of it for both teams,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “We looked a little tired, but that’s not an excuse. It was just one of those games.”
Still, Virginia held strong through the first half, going toe-to-toe with the Tar Heels to the tune of eight lead changes through the opening 20 minutes.
The Cavaliers stayed competitive by taking advantage of North Carolina’s eight first-half turnovers, while getting contributions from role players such as sophomore guards Devon Hall, who had seven first-half points, and Marial Shayok, who had four, including an electric baseline drive and dunk.
North Carolina senior forward Brice Johnson, who had 12 points and a team-high 9 rebounds, put in a layup with 27 seconds left to even the game at 28 at halftime.
The second half proved the opposite for Virginia, though. Brogdon had just five second half points, while neither Hall nor Shayok added to their point total. The Cavaliers also committed six turnovers to North Carolina’s two.
Gill was the lone bright spot, scoring 11 of his 13 points in the second stanza.
Due to North Carolina’s on-ball pressure that extended well-beyond the three-point arc, Virginia was forced to run different offensive sets than it did against Georgia Tech and Miami, Gill said.
The Cavaliers struggled to find rhythm from the outside, while also getting outscored in the paint, 34-28.
“That’s a team that makes it tough to get inside and get layups,” Brogdon said. “I drive a lot. I get a lot of baskets inside, but they have bigs that challenge shots. You have to pick your shots differently. Today I had a lot of open shots. I just missed a lot of shots.”
Brogdon and Gill earned first-team All-Tournament, while Perrantes nagged a spot on the second team. Paige, Johnson and sophomore guard Joel Berry II, who scored a game-high 19 points Saturday, represented North Carolina on the All-Tournament first team, with Berry taking home MVP honors.
The Cavaliers left disappointed they could not keep up as North Carolina pulled away.
“They definitely played extremely well on both sides of the ball, but we had a lot of open shots we usually make,” Perrantes said. “That’s the most frustrating part about tonight.”
Virginia will await its NCAA tournament seeding Sunday evening. The team will watch the selection show together, senior forward Evan Nolte said. The Cavaliers are projected as a one-seed in ESPN analyst Joe Lunardi’s most recent bracket, although it remains uncertain how Saturday’s loss will play into the committee’s seeding decision.
Gill does not believe Virginia’s ACC title loss should affect the team’s seeding, especially given that the Tar Heels will likely earn one of the tournament’s four No. 1 seeds.
“I think two of the better teams in the nation played tonight,” Gill said.
Added North Carolina coach Roy Williams when asked about the Tar Heels earning a No. 1 seed: “I think Virginia deserves one as well. I really do.”
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