“The conversation starts and ends today with Harrison Didawick,” Pollard said. “He’s the heart and soul of this group. He’s unbelievably tough. He played great defense and came up with clutch hits.”
From the rawest of materials, Odom indeed built a tournament team in his first season as a Power Four head coach. The season proved that Odom is made to win in the new era of college basketball, one defined by budgets and teambuilding above nearly all else.
After filing a lawsuit against the NCAA in February, Morris testified Thursday in an effort to earn a preliminary injunction against the NCAA’s decision.
“We are thrilled to add Adrian Autry to our coaching staff at Virginia,” Odom said in a Virginia Athletics press release. “His integrity, extensive experience, commitment to player development and knowledge of the game make him an invaluable addition to our program."
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“I think when you get to this level, you get to this tournament, all these teams belong here,” Odom said. “Certainly, there were tense moments back and forth, but really proud of the way the guys stood up on the defensive end.”
“Duke made the plays that they needed to make down the stretch to finish it out,” Odom said. “I thought we had a good opportunity there when it was tied, but it just didn't go our way today.”
“They're really tough to deal with,” Odom said in February. “And they're even better in person than when you watch them on film.”
“They chose Virginia for all the right reasons,” Odom said postgame. “A lot to be proud of, and it wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for those five guys that made the choice … They all, in their own way, have impacted this place and made the most of their time here.”
Coach Chris Pollard noted the importance of applying constant pressure to DeCaro, sitting on the fastball and forcing him to rely on his offspeed pitches — resulting in an inflated pitch count that forced North Carolina to rely on its bullpen early in the series.
