No. 1 Virginia’s difficult road ahead in the NCAA Tournament just got that much more challenging, as they’ll have to vie for the national championship without redshirt freshman guard De’Andre Hunter.
On Tuesday, Coach Tony Bennett announced that Hunter broke his left wrist and has to undergo a surgery that will sideline him for 10 to 12 weeks.
Hunter had a phenomenal first season with the Cavaliers, averaging 9.2. points and 3.5 rebounds on the season. His athleticism and versatility made him a great asset for Virginia and earned him recognition from the conference both as the ACC Sixth Man of the Year and as a member on the All-ACC Freshman team. Among the many highlights of his rookie season are a 22-point performance against Miami on the road and scoring the game-winning three at the buzzer in Virginia’s game at Louisville.
In a phone interview with ESPN on Selection Sunday, Bennett cited Hunter as a key factor in Virginia’s successful season thus far.
“De’Andre Hunter has emerged for us,” Bennett said. “We haven’t had a guy that can play the three or the four quite as versatile as him and that makes us a little more diverse.”
The Cavaliers will now have to turn to their bench and find someone else to step up and fill in for Hunter, who was averaging the fifth-most minutes on the team.
The first test for Virginia will be a matchup against No. 16 seed UMBC on Friday, March 16 in Charlotte, N.C. Tip-off is scheduled for approximately 9:20 p.m.
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