After coming back from an awful performance to still win over California, Virginia may have shown that this is the best team Tony Bennett has had.
Had Justin Anderson not gotten hurt, disrupting the flow of the lineup and the assignments of the players, we may be talking about a team coming off of a Final Four appearance. Instead, doubt was cast upon the Virginia Cavaliers after a second-round exit against Michigan State in the NCAA tournament.
Had Justin Anderson stayed for his senior year, taking away its top threat on both ends of the court who was still getting better and one of the best overall players in the country, we may be talking about a team that was ranked first in the nation before the season. Instead, Tony Bennett‘s team was stuck behind a fellow ACC team and a few others led by teenagers.
That was then and this is now. Then it looked like Virginia may have some adjusting to do.
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Now it looks like the rest of the nation has some adjusting to do.
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After suffering that early-season loss at George Washington, there was some questions about the Cavaliers. Were they still relying too much on defense? Did they have somebody to call on on offense when they needed it the most? Are the new pieces enough to keep them in the national conversation?
That loss wasn’t all that surprising, though. A bit of a rivalry game on the opponent’s home court early in the season while you’re still figuring things out leads to some wonky results. Though George Washington has proven that game wasn’t a fluke on their end, Virginia has proven it was a bit of a fluke on theirs.
Since that game, there have been few teams in the country better than Virginia. The Cavaliers have won nine straight games and each of the last three wins have against teams either currently ranked in the top 15 or was ranked there in the preseason.
Try to find three more impressive wins for one team than Virginia’s 70-54 neutral-court win over West Virginia, their 86-75 home win over Villanova and their 63-62 come-from-behind home win over California. You simply can’t, because the Cavaliers have bothered to challenge themselves in the non-conference and its paying off.
While fellow ACC member Duke is completely content settling for neutral court games against their top opponents and filling their home schedule with cupcakes, Virginia has entered a number of home-and-home deals with quality, consistent opponents.
This guarantees at least one game against a good opponent. Sure, Villanova and California were at home, but they won’t always play them at home. They’re testing their limits and willing to put their home record on the line, unlike some teams.
But this isn’t about who schedules what games. It’s about the Cavaliers and their impressive display this season.
That offense that sputtered when Anderson went down last season? It’s even better this year without him and the defense hasn’t slipped much.
According to Kenpom, Virginia ranks second in offensive efficiency and 14th in defensive efficiency, just one of four teams to rank in the top 15 in both categories (Michigan State, Kansas and the team they beat on Saturday, Villanova). Compare these numbers to 2015, when they finished 24th in offense and first in defensive efficiency.
These numbers have helped the Cavaliers gain ground on their opponents no matter the circumstances and their record is near the top of the national standings because of it.
Except it’s not just that they’re winning games, it’s how they’re winning them and that was highlighted against California.
Ranked 14th in the preseason poll, many thought the Golden Bears would be the team to challenge Arizona in the Pac-12 thanks to their high-profile freshman Ivan Rabb and Jaylen Brown. After their two losses early in the season to San Diego State and Richmond, nobody was talking about Cal anymore.
Cal needed this game. They had gotten much better since those two losses but to prove they could be that conference threat, a win on the road on the opposite coast the week of Christmas would’ve been huge for them. And they played like it.
Virginia was caught off guard and played poorly throughout the entire game. Their new found offensive success wasn’t connecting and Cal had the lead throughout the game. Luckily, their defense was still good enough to keep them in it throughout and all they needed was to be within striking distance.
Cal scored two points in the final 7:38 of regulation because of that Cavaliers defense. That drought opened the door for Virginia to take its first lead of the game with less than a minute left. Cal scored again and they went to overtime, but by then the Cavaliers had their control.
After some back and forth in the overtime period, London Perrantes rose up and nailed a three with 13 seconds left to give Virginia the 63-62 win, a closer win than some expected, but a good win nonetheless.
With Malcolm Brogdon taking on much of the scoring load (team-leading 16.5 points per game), Anthony Gill stepping into a more prominent role (14.5 points, team-leading 6.5 rebounds) and London Perrantes continuing to be one of the better pure point guards int he nation, this edition of the Cavaliers may just be the best team Tony Bennett has had at Virginia.
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Scary to think what they could’ve been with Anderson, right? They don’t need him.
They may actually be better off without him.