No. 1 Virginia tops UNC in ACC finale
NEW YORK — With no one-and-dones, no sure-fire NBA lottery picks, No. 1 Virginia put together one of the most dominant seasons in the storied history of Atlantic Coast Conference basketball.
Kyle Guy, Devon Hall and the Cavaliers beat No. 12 North Carolina 71-63 in the ACC championship game Saturday night to finish 20-1 against league competition.
Virginia (31-2) set a school record for victories, won the conference tournament for the second time in five seasons under coach Tony Bennett and will most certainly enter the NCAA Tournament as the No.1 overall seed when the field of 68 is announced Sunday.
Not bad for a bunch that started the season unranked and picked to finish sixth in the ACC.
“I think we always knew this could be a special team,” guard Ty Jerome said.
And now that the Cavaliers are favorites, Hall said they try to out-underdog the underdogs.
“You fight like you’re not supposed to win or nobody expects you to win,” he explained.
With plenty of their fans packing Barclays Center in Brooklyn, the top-seeded Cavaliers beat sixth-seeded North Carolina (25-10) for the second time this season and snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Tar Heels in ACC Tournament play.
Guy, the tournament MVP, scored 11 of his 16 points in the second half and Hall added 15 points, five rebounds and four assists. Jerome had 12 points, six assists and six rebounds for Virginia. Contributions from everywhere, a microcosm of this special season.
The Cavaliers dominated the ACC with efficiency, tenacity and teamwork. They went 17-1 in the regular