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) /

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LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MARCH 30: Guy of the Cavaliers celebrates. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

1. Kyle Guy is BACK.

Welcome back, Kyle Guy. One of the best shooters in all of America, Guy struggled tremendously in the first three games of the NCAA Tournament for Virginia. In fact, he was just 3-for-26 from beyond the arc and was suffering through an unexpected slump. And then that slump just continued as he started 0-for-3 from distance against Purdue before injuring his ankle near the end of the first half. That, though, is when it all started to change for the junior guard.

Guy came out of the locker room firing.

He hit first three just 26 seconds into the second half. And then another less than two minutes later. He then proceeded to hit three more trifectas as he shot 5-for-8 from distance in the second half alone to help carry the Cavaliers. While Edwards was making ridiculous shot after ridiculous shot on the other end, it was Guy who went toe-to-toe with him for a long stretch.

The hot shooting of Guy was incredible to see given his recent struggles. He is one of the best scorers in the country and it would have been a shame to see him go down without setting the nets on fire at least a time or two. Now, anyone who didn’t watch UVA basketball in the regular season understands that he is definitely one of the players to watch moving forward. The Cavaliers are a darn good basketball team but they are even more difficult to stop when Guy starts to get it going from distance.

So, I will say it again: Welcome back, Kyle Guy.

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