Something happened Monday night.
Virginia played a basketball game. And everybody noticed.
Locally and nationally, this was a thing. Fans flocked to John Paul Jones Arena, most dressed dutifully in white shirts, and big moments triggered waves of punching limbs, like an ocean churned into furious whitewater. But more than that, the national media raved, the casual basketball fans popped open their eyes, and the social media universe stirred.
This was new. This was attention, something absent this season, as Virginia stumbled and floundered and lost visibility.
A few things caused this occurrence.
Start with television and go from there. The game aired in television’s single most prominent college basketball slot: ESPN, 7 p.m. It aired uncontested, its only companions a few games from the MEAC and the Southland.
So college basketball trained its eyes on Charlottesville. And Charlottesville knew it. Expected it.
Prepared for it.
The athletic department marketed the game as a white-out, which drummed up anticipation, even among the students to whom Nijel Pack and Norchad Omier are anonymous. The locals bought in. The coaching staff wore white.
Then Virginia dismantled Miami. The Hoos dominated, plain and simple, leading 29-17 at halftime and winning 60-38.
Pick any statistic. Miami shooting 2-20 on threes, or 14-49 from the field. Virginia making 20 assists to Miami’s 9. Miami recording its lowest scoring output since Dec. 28, 1948, basically biblical times.
In the end, there was Jim Larranaga, in the JPJ press room, sitting down for 21 whole seconds, red-faced and boiling, before standing and exiting, leaving behind only the microphone vibrating lightly on the table.
Virginia has officially emerged from its malaise, has shed the tepid play that sent it skidding. The Hoos have now captured seven wins in a row and climbed up the ACC standings and delivered, cliche as it may sound, a statement.
Hosannas abounded. To historic defense, and to Reece Beekman. To Tony Bennett, who has done it again, silenced the critics, molded a flailing bunch into a quiet contender that seemed broken and has now invaded the ACC’s hilltop fortress.
Now comes the hard part.
Virginia must defend that hilltop, avoid sliding down. The Hoos are 18-5 overall, 9-3 in the ACC. They perch in second place, a game behind North Carolina, after the Tar Heels’ shocking letdown Tuesday against Clemson. Duke lingers a game below Virginia. Then comes a frothing pack of three—NC State, Wake Forest, Florida State—half a game behind Duke.
Things look increasingly positive, but the upcoming schedule still offers pause. It is easy to overlook the danger.
Virginia should win, without too much trouble, at home against Pittsburgh, at Boston College, and at home against Georgia Tech. But at Florida State? The Seminoles have looked threatening, despite some questionable recent play. Wake Forest? The Demon Deacons last time knocked off Virginia’s socks. At Virginia Tech? Never easy. Home against North Carolina? At Duke? Always difficult.
This will not be easy. Virginia could tumble, dropping a couple games and missing its opportunities and slipping along the bubble. The Hoos could also charge on, conquering the conference, escaping the bubble, snaring a respectable seed.
Anything is possible. Virginia, after stacking victories and dismantling Miami, has progressed mightily. People have noticed.
Something happened Monday night. It was beautiful.
Image – Virginia Athletics
1 comment
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