Game 23: UVA vs. Miami (FL)

X (Twitter): @TreyKelleher3 (https://twitter.com/treykelleher3)

That. Was. Awesome.

Saturday night we watched the "Cardiac Cavs" squeak one out against Clemson and two nights later we saw a 40 minute "Cavalanche" come down on Jim Larranaga and his Miami Hurricanes (15-8, 6-6 ACC) as Virginia (18-5, 9-3 ACC) walked out of JPJ with their 23rd straight victory at home by a score of 60-38 (not a typo).

This was a great game for UVA in all ranking systems that people should be paying close attention to no matter what their opinion on them may be. Can the NET be confusing at times? Can KenPom throw your mind in a pretzel? Absolutely they can. The truth is the NET rankings 100% matters on Selection Sunday (not saying they should, just a fact) and the numbers behind KenPom do NOT lie. UVA went from #57 to #47 in KenPom after the win, they moved up to #32 from #42 in the NET and their chances of making the tournament according to TeamRankings.com jumped from 62% to 76%.

Rankings and percentages aside, the biggest victory for UVA was the Eye Test. They got national attention on Monday night because of the slim college basketball slate, and the Hoos put on an absolute show that included the suffocating defense and efficient offense that makes Virginia basketball a thing of beauty.

UVA held Miami to just 38.6% from the field, 10% from behind the arc and forced them into 11 turnovers which not only led to the Hurricanes' lowest point total in their ACC tenure, but also had Jim Larranaga sitting by himself during a timeout, and leaving his postgame presser after just 30 seconds.

When done right, UVA basketball can break a man.

Play of the Game: Easy. Michael Nwoko gets the play of the game and its not even close. He is the reason everyone in JPJ went home with a coupon for a free pack of Smithfield bacon. #ThanksMichael

Player of The Game: Reece Beekman is no stranger to this category this season. 16 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, and yet another masterclass on defense. There were rumored to be 30+ NBA scouts in JPJ on Monday, and every single one of them left the building impressed with #2. Love it!

Next Up: 2/10 @ Florida State. Just Keep. Winning. Go Hoos!