Virginia Basketball: Cavaliers go from UMBC disaster to Final Four glory

The Virginia Basketball team defied the odds after a historic upset a year ago, taking punch after punch from Purdue and Oregon, but never folding.

I’m a proud Syracuse alum and a fanatical supporter of that university’s hoops program, however, on this occasion, I’m fervently rooting for a Virginia Basketball squad that dons a different shade of orange. Some people prefer to vehemently cheer against their favorite school’s arch-rivals and league foes. That’s not me. I don’t hate on Georgetown, dating back to Syracuse’s old Big East Conference days. I don’t wish for Atlantic Coast Conference members like Duke, North Carolina and those Cavaliers to lose, except of course when they’re competing versus my alma mater.

Naturally, when my Orange got bounced in the round of 64 in the 2019 Big Dance, it stung. But I then immediately turned my attention and energy to the Blue Devils, the Tar Heels, UVA, and other ACC crews. In all honesty, though, what mattered to me most is for the Cavaliers to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

Now, they have, and it’s truly glorious. Virginia, as is well documented, became the first No. 1 seed to ever experience defeat at the hands of a No. 16 seed, when UMBC shocked the world in the 2018 Big Dance. Not only did the Cavaliers fall, but they also got absolutely blown out. A tremendously humbling circumstance for the entire Charlottesville, Va., community.

Here’s the spectacular thing. UVA’s players and their classy head coach, Tony Bennett, handled their unfortunate situation with nothing but grace. They bestowed all the credit to the Retrievers. They owned up to their monumental setback. And they used it as motivation to rewrite the script 12 months later.

It’s brutal to make history in this manner. Syracuse, for instance, has the distinction of becoming the initial No. 2 seed to get beat by a No. 15 seed, when Richmond knocked off the Orange in 1991. That notorious deed doesn’t fully go away, but it does fade, especially as others accomplish the same task. It may take a while before another No. 16 seed stuns a top seed, or perhaps it won’t occur again.

For me, how Bennett and his roster have carried themselves, fueled by determination and instilled with integrity, I will push that UMBC debacle to the side and focus on the fact that the Cavaliers have reached the national semi-finals for the inaugural time since 1984. Virginia had to fight off monster efforts from Oregon in the Sweet 16 and Purdue in the Elite Eight to get to Minneapolis. The Cavaliers, a laughingstock to many folks a stanza ago, are in the Final Four. And, without hesitation, I’m hoping that they capture two more triumphs and joyously cut down the nets next Monday.