Has anybody bothered to notice that our in-state rival (in hoops) is now 17-0 (5-0 ACC), ranked #2 in the country (with a few 1st place votes)? That, my friends, is a problem. Now I've tempered my expectations for men's hoops this season and have come to terms that most likely will not pull a W against them (would be awesome though). Question for the hoops gurus on here: is there any team in division 1 hoops that can not only play toe-to-toe, but straight up dominate them and punish them back to earth? Are they going to win the ACC? Even worse, are they going to the National Champs and win (ok, a couple questions)? I strongly believe that it would be a travesty and blight on not only our state, but NCAA men's hoops if such a tragedy occurs. I don't even want to imagine the level of smug and arrogance steaming from C'ville (remember, I unfortunately live here).
Slightly OT: We've Got a Problem
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they will lose...I have faith
They are very good, that is for sure. But they aren't Kentucky good. Probably not even Duke good. They didn't play a particularly difficult out of conference schedule and their initial ACC schedule hasn't been that tough either. (But, as it always seems, the good teams only play bad teams and the bad teams like VT only play good teams.)
They will be a contender for the ACC and NCAA title, no doubt. But they also look like the Syracuse team we saw last year go undefeated into February that just peaked too early. My guess is they lose 3 or 4 in the regular season and go into the NCAA tourney as a 2 or 3 seed, which is a notch down from last year when they were a #1 seed.
Still, helluva team and as stable of a program as their is in the NCAA. Don't expect Bennett to be leaving anytime soon either. He likes it in Cville and has everything he needs. It would actually be more challenging to run his system at a school like Kansas or Kentucky or UNC with a higher profile recruit, especially 1/dones. He's found a sweet spot, he can recruit his type of kids and they won't be leaving early either.
I keep hearing that Bennett loves Cville and won't ever leave but I have a hard time seeing him not having at least some interest in taking the Wisconsin job once Bo Ryan retires speaking to the fact that he is from up there and all.
3 or 4 loss teams usually get a 1 seed. They'll be 2 or 3 overall but probably 2 behind UK because of ACC SOS compared to Gonzaga's conference SOS. I don't think they're Kentucky good offensively, but they are bullying teams defensively. I think Gonzaga could bring them down but they have to be the ACC favorites over Duke at this point.
My friend who is an overall hoops guru and a diehard 'Hoo fan recently told me that they are not as good as their ranking and likely won't win the ACC. He said they are very good but not top-5. He is a straight-shooter and I consider him an authority on college hoops, so hopefully that makes you feel better. Still, anything can happen in the ACC or NCAA tourneys so let's hope they fizzle out ala Syracuse from last year.
This is still the ACC. There will be games against some very good programs and a tough tourney. CBB is as unpredictable as they come, everyone had Mercer upsetting Duke in the tourney last year or Dayton in the Final 4 right? The only team I would put money on right now to win the Natty Champ is Kentucky, and I would root against my bet the entire remainder of the season. uva building up a program will only make our eventual takeover of the state that much sweeter.
I don't think they have the size to ultimately beat a team like Kentucky. When Duke is shooting well they are going to be very difficult to beat in the ACC for the Hoos.
Still very good team, but not sure if they are at the point where they join the elite level right now.
It will take a team like Wisconsin that plays at the same pace to beat UVA. Either that or Kentucky, because Kentucky is never going to lose.
Unfortunately i think they are very good and likely to be a #1 or #2 seed in the tourney this year. I think they will rattle/frustrate Duke and take advantage of their youth. I am thinking if anything they might drop one to UofL (they play them twice) or Syracuse. Anything can happen of course, but it wouldn't shock me so much if they go into the ACCT without a loss.
I think we'll sweep them this year
I'll have what the gentleman on the floor is having.
They will lose...haha but I live in cville too and I actually kind of like their hoops squad. They play the right way and it is fun to watch. UVA hoops has had a proud tradition and I am glad to see them make it back. That being said buck loluva
As a current UVA graduate student (I know, I know) I have made it to a couple of games this season and I have to disagree that their basketball is fun to watch. The games I have been to have been unbelievably boring. Their defense is pretty solid (though the teams I've seen have been lacking true, skilled, big men in the paint) but their offense is mostly luck. They find a way to put up points while you don't really notice that they are scoring. For example, the Clemson game never felt like a blowout but you would look at the scoreboard and realize that they were winning by almost double.
That said, I am interested to see how they fare against some of the top tier ACC programs this season. Maybe they are deceptively good and just playing down with their opponents (I've only seen some non-conference games + Clemson in person). I think they make the tournament but will finish 2nd or 3rd in the ACC.
Agreed that fun may be too strong of a word, but they are enjoyable to watch if you are a basketball purist because they play a team brand of basketball on both sides of the ball. I won't compare them to the Spurs, but would call out the Spurs as another example of a team that many people have found boring to watch over the years who plays very sound basketball.
It's fundamentally sound basketball, I will agree. They just don't really ever make highlight plays so you never really experience the ups-downs of a typical basketball game that get you excited.
We are talking as if UVA success is a new thing. Don't forget they won ACC season and tournament last year. What are the differences in this year's team?
I don't remember UVa having much success for the past 11 seasons. I mean their coaching has been in disarray and they are lucky to get 6 wins a seas... what? you say there is a sport played with a round ball and small metal ring? AND we have this in Blacksburg too?!?
j/k I was basketball season ticket holder for all 4 seasons, I am just in denial that UVa can have any success at anything
I believe the the term you're looking for is shootyhoops
I may be a delusional VT fan, but I think we'll beat them in Cassell on Sunday.
Truly, I admire your optimism. But I can't share it.
What I was thinking about a week ago, was that we'll actually be lucky if we win again this year. I don't mean that to be TOO pessimistic, but we kinda stumbled through the OOC schedule. (Losing to Radford? Always bad, no matter what the season outlook is.) After we got close, but ultimately fell to SU at home, and losing the FSU, I really couldn't, and still can't, see a game left on the schedule that we can win. We may well be done for the season.
Am I wrong? What am I missing, or what team is left? Pitt, maybe?
We should definitely win at least one more game this season. We still get FSU, BC, GT, and as you said Pitt at home. We also play Wake and Clemson on the road which we could possibly win one or both of those two. I don't think we win a ton but it's crazy to think that we can't win at least one more game.
Crazy's a bit harsh; call it more like "I hadn't looked at the standings to know who's good and who's not." But looking at some of the losses, and barely-won games, in the OOC portion, I still feel like even a terrible ACC opponent is better than who we played before Xmas, so they look like losses to me.
On the other hand, I don't follow college BB any way remotely like I used to. I'm hoping we get a win or two somewhere, don't get me wrong. As long as we avoid finding unusual and creative ways to lose, I guess there's always a chance.
Georgia Tech might actually be worse than us. I think we should expect to win or be very close in that one.
I am not in the least a UVA sympathizer, but after having read an article on their coach, I have the utmost respect. Bennett advocates and teaches everything I admire; playing with emotion, he preaches humility, team above self...and he's a devote christian. Don't get me wrong; I hope we beat them like a drum. But, when they're not playing us, this is one coach--and the one UVA squad that I can root for.
I just think of their fanbase, and that makes it easy to pull against them. Do like Bennett though.
Obviously you never know in sports, especially with college kids, but it's not likely. Their team is predicated on suffocating defense with the pack line, which will and has kept in them in nearly every game since Bennett's arrival (much like Greenberg's teams could compete with far more talented teams due to his defensive approach). However, their offense appears to have more talent than they ever have under Bennett and he seems to know how to utilize it a better than Greenberg ever did.
They got a big ACC win @Notre Dame already, but the ACC regular season should become more clear during their 3 game stretch v. Duke, @UNC, v. Louisville coming up. I seriously doubt they go undefeated in ACC play, but there is an excellent chance that they win the ACC regular season and they are probably favorites to win the ACC tourney at this point. Which brings me to the NCAA Tournament question... any 1 and done tournament is a bit of a crap shoot. However, one has to think that since they are a fairly complete team predicated on great defense, they'll stand a pretty good chance.