In a significant NCAA Tournament game, Colorado State secured an impressive victory over Virginia with a final score of 67-42. This game was notable for several reasons, including Virginia being a 2.5-point underdog and the game taking place at the First Four in Dayton. Coach Tony Bennett of Virginia, known for his previous 0-4 record coaching as an underdog in the NCAA Tournament, saw his team fall to 0-5 under his tenure in such situations. Bennett's record now stands at 7-15 ATS in the NCAA Tournament since 2010, making him the 2nd-worst of 290 head coaches in this metric. The loss also highlighted Virginia's recent struggles, having lost 5 of its last 9 games before this tournament and failing to score 50 points in 4 of its last 8 games. Critics had questioned Virginia's inclusion in the tournament, given their performance and a KenPom ranking significantly lower than other at-large teams. Colorado State's victory was led by standout performances from Scott, who achieved a double-double with a career-best 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Clifford, who also secured a double-double. The win advances Colorado State in the bracket, while Virginia faces scrutiny over its tournament selection and recent performance.
Final CSU 67 | UVA 42 Rams advance in the bracket with an impressive win over Virginia. Double-doubles for both Scott and Clifford.
Final: Colorado State absolutely murders Virginia 67-42. to advance on to Charlotte.
Fortunately most people stopped watching long before the airball free throw. #wahoowa
Virginia basketball is Iowa football 😂 https://t.co/E3hxPiEEVp
Aside from that 2019 run, Virginia has been terrible in March. 2018 - First round loss to UMBC 2021 - First round loss to Ohio 2022 - NIT 2023 - First round loss to Furman 2024 - First four loss to Colorado St Yet, no one talks about Tony Bennett 😅
2:31 second CSU 64 | UVA 38 A Clifford drive and bucket makes it the largest lead of the night. See ya in Charlotte
Tony Bennett now falls to 7-15 ATS in the NCAA Tournament since 2010, 2nd-worst of 290 head coaches. He is 0-5 SU in the tournament as an underdog w/ Virginia and Washington State https://t.co/fqV132X2O3
A Virginia team that had lost 5 of its previous 9 games, was unable to score 50 points in 4 of its previous 8 games and is 18 spots worse at KenPom than the next lowest at-large team looked like it didn’t belong in this NCAA Tournament. A lot of us said this two days ago.
Some great ball movement leads to a 3️⃣ for @CSUMBasketball https://t.co/dWZquJAC9W
UVA men's basketball was one of the most interesting programs in a long time, but I feel society has progressed beyond the need for it
Lots of people have argued CSU is under-seeded. Looks like it! And can imagine several fan bases fuming that their teams could’ve put in a better effort than this mess from UVA. https://t.co/OO5r1xCc5m
5:34 second CSU 55 | UVA 35 Scott wins the race to the double-double with a CSU career-best 21 points and 11 rebounds. Clifford has 15 points and 9 boards. The team has never had two double-doubles in a game
It turns out it was UVa who gamed the system all along
My thoughts on UVA 🏀 #MarchMadness https://t.co/EPB5Q43Dom
Tony Bennett should get coach of the year for getting 23 victories out of this Virginia team. Offensive talent level abysmally bad.
Should Virginia have been in the NCAA tourney? https://t.co/Ni7Qf5wUIK
11:14 second CSU 44 | UVA 25 Scott has 15 and seven boards. Clifford has 13 and nine. He's one rebound away from the eighth tourney double-double for CSU. He's also one assist away (he has 5) from tying the team tourney record
It’s generally unfair to judge the Committee or a team on a single game after the fact, but UVa was a poor choice then and now. I would have taken Indiana State or one of the Big East bubble teams. Right or wrong, Pitt never had a shot with that schedule. https://t.co/dpC4ukOglk
Virginia basketball: https://t.co/7MVUgag2cE
Virginia basketball https://t.co/cHeT9gqpQ8
Watching Virginia play basketball https://t.co/2sgAKwNi3h
Welcome to Virginia basketball https://t.co/j1hgo6fY0S
Virginia basketball: https://t.co/D7LCj892vG
Tony Bennett is 0-4 SU coaching as an underdog in the NCAA Tournament 😳 Virginia is +2.5 vs. Colorado State 👀 (via @EvanHAbrams) https://t.co/stK8lyGk9z
Tony Bennett is 0-4 SU coaching as an underdog in the NCAA Tournament 😳 Virginia is +2.5 vs. Colorado State tonight 👀 https://t.co/vvfizAGlZe
#UVA vs. Colorado State coming up in about an hour here at the First Four in Dayton On Dick Bennett’s influence: https://t.co/A6n7pnRHUN Teel & Barber pod: https://t.co/7i9I9X5cxb On Tony Bennett admitting error: https://t.co/d6MCXvxMtK On Hoos getting in: https://t.co/rLSPWwFcbu
Virginia is a 2.5-pt underdog vs. Colorado State tonight -- Tony Bennett is looking for his first NCAAT win as a dog, currently 0-4 SU ⤵️ https://t.co/0GtVfg2ycO