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UVA Basketball: Takeaways from thrilling Elite Eight win over Purdue

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - MARCH 30: Ty Jerome #11 of the Virginia Cavaliers reacts after they defeated the Purdue Boilermakers 80-75 to advance to the Final Four in overtime of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regional at KFC YUM! Center on March 30, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - MARCH 30: Ty Jerome #11 of the Virginia Cavaliers reacts after they defeated the Purdue Boilermakers 80-75 to advance to the Final Four in overtime of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regional at KFC YUM! Center on March 30, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MARCH 30: Virginia Cavaliers celebrate. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MARCH 30: Virginia Cavaliers celebrate. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

UVA Basketball is in the Final Four! After losing in the first round last year in stunning fashion, the Cavaliers are now two wins away from winning it all.

It was never easy. It was also never going to be easy. But after becoming the first No. 1 seed to ever lose in the first round just one year ago, UVA basketball is now in the Final Four. Behind a heroic second half from Kyle Guy, a great performance by Ty Jerome, and an enormously clutch shot by Mamadi Diakite, the Cavaliers are now just 80 minutes away from winning the national title. Head coach Tony Bennett has long been criticized for his inability to make a deep run in the tournament but that storyline can now be squashed.

Even as a No. 1 seed, UVA basketball has had to overcome doubters all season long and they just continue to do so. With that said, though, let’s not just say they rolled through Purdue in the Elite Eight. In fact, that was arguably the best game of the entire tournament. With Carsen Edwards posting one of the best performances we have seen in some time, the Boilermakers were right on the edge of victory until…well…March happened:

Diakite’s shot happened (and can we talk about that pass from Kihei Clark?).

This forced the game into overtime, where the Cavaliers managed to win the back-and-forth affair. De’Andre Hunter, who had struggled all night long, was the one who stepped in the extra period with the go-ahead bucket in the final 30 seconds. Now that UVA basketball is Final Four-bound, though, let’s take a quick look back (and forward) at three of the biggest takeaways from the victory.