After what happened last year, more eyes than usual fell on the Virginia Cavaliers when they kicked off their matchup against 16th-seeded Gardner-Webb on Friday. And once again, the Cavaliers did not look ready to play.
The Cavaliers fell early and were still 10 points behind Gardner-Webb with four and a half minutes left in the first half. At one point, they trailed by as much as 14 — and Twitter noticed immediately.
Uh, Virginia…
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) March 22, 2019
I’m not worried about Virginia’s offense. They’re going to get the shots they want for the most part. But they aren’t getting stops.
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) March 22, 2019
It’s a terrible idea to overreact to one basketball game but if Virginia loses to a No. 16 seed again they should shut down the program, close the campus and lose statehood.
— Steve Politi (@StevePoliti) March 22, 2019
Nantz just said it's been almost 40 mins of gametime — between this game, and the UMBC one — since Virginia held a lead against a 16 seed.
— Chris Herring (@Herring_NBA) March 22, 2019
If Virginia loses to a 16 seed again they should be put on tournament probation for five years
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) March 22, 2019
Perhaps the best reaction came from UMBC’s Twitter account, the 16-seed that knocked off Virginia last year.
Why are our notifications blowing up—-oh pic.twitter.com/t8KIq5Iapc
— UMBC Athletics (@UMBCAthletics) March 22, 2019
It’s very early, but it’s not too early to dream. What will Tony Bennett say this time? How would Virginia ever recover from this happening two years in a row? They still have 25 minutes to render these questions moot, but the pressure will only increase the longer Gardner-Webb stay close or in front.
