The University of Virginia, who climbed to No. 3 in the AP poll, has not been to a Final Four since 1984.
But that could change in this unpredictable season where any one of 15 teams could win the national championship.
The Cavs (16-1, 6-0), not traditional powers Duke or North Carolina, are playing like the most efficient offensive team and most suffocating defensive team in the ACC. Redshirt Senior guard Devon Hall scored a career high 25 points Sunday as Virginia put away NC State, 68-51, Sunday at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville. Hall made 7 of 9 shots from the floor and was 4 of 5 from beyond the arc and sank all seven of his free throws. “You talk about efficient,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said.
This was the sixth straight time the Cavs (16-1, 6-0) have beaten the Wolfpack in conference play. Virginia’s Pack Line defense cut the heart out State by constantly frustrating the Wolfpack with their consistency, eventually leading to forced shots late in the shot clock. They limited the Pack to just 23 of 56 shooting (41.1) against the nation’s best field goal percentage defense, which has held 14 opponents to 60 or fewer points and 17 opponents to under than 50 percent shooting.
Virginia held State to a season low 20 first-half points. The previous low was 23 against Tennessee. The Cavs have held opponents to 20 or fewer first half points in all but one game and 20 or fewer four times. Virginia held State scoreless for the first 3:11 of the second half and limited the Wolfpack to one field goal for the first 6:30 of the second half.
NC State (12-6, 2-3) came into the game averaging 83.1 points per game and had five players averaging at least 10.2 points apiece. Torin Dunn scored 16 points and Lavar Batts Jr. added 12 against the Cavs, but no other NC State player had more than nine points.
“I know every talks about the Pack Line,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said, “but they have at least three or four guys who are very good individual defenders They do a good job of sitting down on defense, they can keep you in front, and then obviously once you get by those guys, they do a tremendous job as a team.”
The Cavs did a particularly good job against State’s 7-0, 245- pound sophomore center Omer Yertseven, who scored 16 points against Duke and 29 against Clemson. Virginia’s 6-7 forward Isaiah Wilkins helped limited Yertseven to six points and no three point field goals. “I’m smaller than he is, obviously,” Wilkins said,” so I tried to fight that post-up and make his catches tough and make him put it on the floor.”
