Virginia living on the edge, but just one step away from national title

MINNEAPOLIS – Kyle Guy admits it. As he stood at the line, waiting to get the ball and shoot the free throws Saturday night, he was “terrified.” But clarification is necessary.

“It was a good terrified, though,” the Virginia junior said, “a good nervousness in my stomach like, ‘This is my chance.’”

We all saw what happened next – from terrifying to terrific in the space of a few pressure-packed seconds. Guy hit all three shots. Virginia escaped Auburn 63-62.

And coupled with that improbable sequence a week earlier to force overtime against Purdue, it’s twice in two games now that Virginia has gone all Houdini to advance in the NCAA tournament. As a result, the Cavaliers will play Texas Tech for a national championship.

And to hear them tell it, they’ve simply made the most of their chances, no matter how slim they seemed at the time.

“You’ve got to be a little fortunate in March,” junior guard Ty Jerome said. “You watch March Madness for however long, you’ve seen how the ball bounces different ways. You can call it luck, you can call it whatever you want. We’re thankful to still be playing, absolutely.”

Jerome factored into both finishes. Down three against Purdue with 5.9 seconds left in regulation of the South Region final, he hit the first of two free throws, then missed – it was not intentional, he later said – setting up a wild few seconds.

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Mamadi Diakite tapped the missed free throw all the way into the backcourt, where freshman guard Kihei Clark tracked it down and passed back to Diakite, who hit a jump shot to send the game into overtime. Virginia won 80-75 to reach the Final Four for the first time since 1984.

Yeah.

Exhale.

And then in a national semifinal, it happened again.

“These last two games,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said “—oh my, how they end it. … Survive and advance, I guess that’s taking on a new meaning.”

Jerome rejected a questioner’s premise that the moments were “stressful,” saying, “as long as you can feel a fighting chance, you can still lock into the game.” But truth be told, Guy said he “doubted a little bit” in those final seconds of regulation against Purdue.

“It starts to creep in,” he said. “(But) you can tell yourself, ‘It doesn’t end like this.’ And then everything happens, and now we’re here.”

And now they’re headed into the national championship game. By contrast, Guy said he never believed the Cavaliers would lose to Auburn, even after blowing a 10-point lead and trailing by four points with 17 seconds left.

“The doubt never crept in,” he said. “‘It doesn’t end like this. We’re gonna find a way. Stay positive.’”

With 7 seconds left, Guy drilled a three-pointer off a set play, curling from the baseline to the corner, to pull within one point. And then down by two with 0.6 seconds left, in front of 72,000 fans at U.S. Bank Stadium and millions more watching on TV, he swished those free throws like he was alone in an empty gym.

“For me and probably every basketball player, everyone’s envisioned themselves winning a game on this stage,” Guy said. “… I knew that my teammates had confidence in me, and that gives me more confidence than I’ll ever be able to give myself.”

Given the situation even before those final free throws – Auburn with fouls to give, the clock draining away – very serious concern would have been understandable. Guy’s free throws probably wouldn’t have happened if not for an uncalled double-dribble by Jerome in those final seconds, part of a chaotic charge up the court as Auburn’s Bryce Brown was attempting to foul him.

Jerome suggested the mistake went uncalled in part because the officials hadn’t called a foul on Brown, who grabbed his jersey in the instant before Jerome turned to retrieve the ball after it had bounced off his foot.

“It’s hard to be a ref,” he said. “They miss a lot. So you’ve got to play on.”

A split second later, Brown did foul. And Jerome’s inbounds pass found Guy, who missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Auburn fans began to celebrate, unaware Tigers guard Samir Doughty had been whistled for a foul.

Yet even when they realized they still had a chance, it was a terrifying time for the Cavs. If Guy didn’t doubt, Clark did.

“I was in disbelief that we won that game,” Clark said. “The Purdue game, I was a little more calm. I don’t know why, but I was just in shock against Auburn.”

Clark and Jerome said the Cavaliers feel prepared for anything, in part because they routinely work on scenarios – down six with the ball, 90 seconds left, or down four in the final seconds.

“We definitely take pride in trying to overprepare,” Guy said. “… We did a great job during those last 10 seconds and making something happen.”

But Clark added:

“Sometimes you do need a little luck, I guess.”