RALEIGH, N.C. — Now the Cavaliers can relax and play ball. There were a few moments during Friday night’s game against Coastal Carolina that Virginia had to keep from thinking the unthinkable.
The top-seed Cavaliers were down five after halftime to the Chanticleers, causing all kinds of tension considering a No. 1 seed has never lost to a 16th seed. But Virginia rallied in the second half for a 70-59 victory that sends it into Sunday’s game against eighth-seeded Memphis with a berth in the Sweet 16 on the line.
“Someone asked me on the bench, ‘Did you ever think we could lose this game?’ ” sophomore forward Evan Nolte said. “I said, ‘If you’re sitting on the bench and you’re thinking about your team could lose the game, you shouldn’t be on the team because the goal is to win the game.’ ”
Virginia doesn’t have to worry about going from ACC champions to laughingstock. Now they can focus on Memphis, which defeated George Washington, 71-66. Virginia coach Tony Bennett said his squad can’t afford another poor first half.
“That won’t cut it when we play Memphis,” he said. “You can’t spot a team like that. They probably have a little more explosive scoring ability. We’re going to have to be sounder. We’re going to have to be more ready.”
Virginia (29-6) is looking for it first Sweet 16 appearance since 1994-95. Memphis (24-9) last reached the Sweet 16 in 2009. It will be the first meeting between the two schools.
A good omen for the Tigers might be senior guard Michael Dixon beating former Pacers-great-turned-broadcaster Reggie Miller in an “Around The World Contest” shooting contest on Saturday.
“I challenged him and he went out there and made every shot and got to the top of the key on the way back and missed,” Dixon said. “I went around and made every shot.”
Don’t be surprised if Mercer guard Kevin Canevari gets invited to Dancing with the Stars. His version of the Nae Nae dance after beating Duke went viral.
“My phone’s been blowing up over it,” Canevari said. “It’s been kind of crazy, but it’s just some fun to get everybody going and I think it really just shows our excitement to be here.”
Just two the 17 previous 14th seeds to beat a No. 3 seed have advanced to the Sweet Sixteen (Cleveland State in 1986 and Chattanooga in 1997).
The Volunteers will be playing their third game in five days when they face Mercer Sunday.
Tennessee defeated Iowa in the play-in game Wednesday before beating UMass on Friday. Fatigue isn’t an issue. They’re riding the momentum of having won seven of their last eight games. The only loss was to Florida in the SEC Tournament.
“We’re just relying on each other and trusting each other,” senior guard Antonio Barton said. “That’s what we tell each other before every game. We’re going to go out there and die for each other.”