WASHINGTON — Any self-respecting college basketball fan saw Kentucky’s public shaming of UCLA on Saturday, as the Wildcats scored the game’s first 24 points en route to an 83-44 drubbing. But a result from Sunday was just as impressive, when the Virginia Cavaliers commanded the respect of anyone paying attention by manhandling Harvard, 76-27.
It’s not just that the Hoos are 11-0, and that they beat a Crimson squad that began the season ranked and entered Sunday’s contest at 7-1. It was their complete domination on both ends of the floor that was so impressive. Virginia scored 30 of the game’s first 35 points, holding Harvard to a single field goal in the first half, tying an NCAA record. Everyone knew coming in that Tony Bennett’s squad can play some defense. This weekend, the Cavaliers showed that they might just be the one team good enough to beat Kentucky come March.
Seven teams in the country rank in the top 20 in both adjusted offensive efficiency and adjusted defensive efficiency, which rate points scored and allowed, respectively, per 100 possessions. That list includes a number of usual suspects — Duke, Wisconsin, Villanova, Arizona and Kansas. But only two teams rank in the top six in each category: Kentucky (4/1) and Virginia (6/3).
Lest you think the pre-conference slate — which included wins over George Washington (59-42), 21st-ranked Maryland (76-65), VCU (74-57) and Harvard — wasn’t strong enough, the Cavaliers will have ample opportunity to prove themselves on Tobacco Road and around the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Of the currently ranked teams in the ACC, Virginia draws all of them on the road, save for a Jan. 31 home date with number-2 Duke. The Hoos open the conference slate at Miami Jan. 3, then travel to South Bend a week later to face number-16 Notre Dame. They go to Chapel Hill just 48 hours after the Duke game to face the 20th-ranked Tar Heels and host number-4 Louisville just five days after that, before finishing the regular season against the Cardinals on the road March 7.
Any of the meetings between Virginia and Duke or Louisville could be battles of two top-five teams. The Cavaliers also have to travel to the notorious Carrier Dome to face a Syracuse team that could well be in the top 25 again by the time the two meet in early March.
The key to Virginia’s success may be the continued development of 6-foot, 11-inch junior Mike Tobey, who showed flashes of what he might be able to provide on Sunday. In just 22 minutes, he poured in 15 points and collected 10 rebounds, shooting 6 for 7 from the field and 3 for 3 from the line. Tobey flashed his low post game, finishing with a variety of moves in the paint, and stretched the floor with an 18-foot jump shot that could be deadly if he can take the extra half-step beyond the three-point line.
Sunday was just Tobey’s fifth game in double figures, but he has shot 57 percent from the floor, scoring nearly 9 points to go along with 7 rebounds despite averaging less than 20 minutes per contest. When the Cavaliers face their tougher tests, they’ll need the best of — and more of — Tobey.
This is not to discount the rest of the squad: The Hoos have a trio of double-digit scorers in Justin Anderson, Malcolm Brogdon and Anthony Gill, each of whom haul in at least 3.5 rebounds and shoot over 72 percent from the line (they’re also each between 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-8). Virginia is also shooting an eye-popping 39.2 percent from three-point range as a team (tied for 41st in the country), but they don’t rely on the long ball. Their 56 makes rank 47th among the 50 top three-point shooting teams in the country.
Virginia gets it done at the other end of the floor, forcing opponents out of their comfort zone with their length and stifling defense. Opponents are shooting just 31.3 percent against Virginia, the second-lowest mark in the country (behind only Kentucky). Opponents have made just 15.6 shots from the floor against the Cavaliers, the lowest mark in the land. And the Hoos are the only team holding opponents under 40 percent on non-blocked two-point shots.
In so many ways, Virginia is the anti-Kentucky. The Wildcats have seven players currently on the nbadraft.net 2015 draft board. Virginia has one — Anderson, slotted late in the first round. And yet, their differences are what make the two an intriguing potential matchup for the ages come March.
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