Last season, UMBC became the talk of the country when they made Virginia the first No. 1 seed to fall victim to a 16 seed. This year, the coach of that team is hoping the foe he vanquished goes on to win it all.
UMBC coach Ryan Odom admitted he didn’t want to see the Cavaliers fall to a second consecutive 16 seed, and is rooting for them to overcome their tournament struggles and win it all.
“The joy that we experienced from that win, you can’t put a price tag on that. And for somebody else to experience that, I would be totally fine with that,” Odom told Glenn Clark Radio this week, via Jacob Weinberger of PressBox. “This particular year I would not have wanted it to be Virginia. They have been through so much.
“I’m hoping they can go on and win the whole thing. What a story that would be.”
Odom has some connections to Virginia beyond the upset, so he has reasons to root for the school. UMBC fell a game short of the NCAA Tournament this year, falling in the America East final, so he may as well root for the redemption story that his team may well have set the stage for.
