Selection Sunday 2018: Projected No. 1 seeds for March Madness

Virginia Cavaliers (29-2)

The Virginia Cavaliers have been the best team in the NCAA this season. Tony Bennett’s “Packline” defense is still an unsolvable mystery for the rest of the country. The Cavaliers’ defense-first approach doesn’t win them many fans in terms of entertainment value, but it does help them pile up wins. Virginia knows what type of team it is and the type of players it has, and they do not deviate from their plan in the slightest.

As suffocating as they can be defensively, the difference with this year’s team is they have firepower on offense to match — even if they don’t always showcase it. Kyle Guy, the former McDonald’s All-American, has become the ACC’s version of Pistons-era Rip Hamiliton with how well he navigates and scores off pin down screens. If Guy gets even the slightest sliver of space, he is going to make opponents pay.

Making sure Guy is well-fed is lead guard Ty Jerome. Jerome is no slouch from the perimeter himself, as he has shown accuracy and range on his 3-point shot this year. Devon Hall is another 3-point threat, but is just as likely to slash through defenders for points as well. Finally, there’s freshmen and ACC Sixth Man of the Year De’Andre Hunter who might end up being the best player on the team.

Defense travels in basketball and it is the Cavaliers’ hope that it will take them all the way to the Peach state of Georgia for a regional final and then on to San Antonio to capture the program’s first Final Four appearance since 1984.

Even though they haven’t gotten praise heaped upon them like other teams, Virginia is the surest bet to cut down the nets at this juncture. The ACC isn’t as strong from top to bottom as other conferences this year, but going 17-1 in conference play is nothing to scoff at. It is going to take an “A+” effort to knock off the Cavaliers. Their two losses this season have come by a combined nine points.