Virginia’s inclusion into the NCAA Tournament was controversial when it was announced on Selection Sunday. After the Cavaliers fell 67-42 to Colorado State in Tuesday’s First Four matchup, the criticism only got louder.
Shortly after Virginia’s loss, Wally Szczerbiak of CBS Sports blasted the selection committee for including the Cavaliers.
Szczerbiak briefly detailed that the Mountain West “has been completely under-seeded” before shifting to Virginia, saying “The way you perform in this tournament, it puts the committee on notice.”
“They made a mistake putting Virginia into the NCAA Tournament. Every bracketologist was saying it. They go out and play like this. It’s unwatchable basketball the way they played today on national TV.”
"It's unwatchable basketball the way they played today on national TV."
– Wally Szczerbiak unloads on the NCAA Tournament committee.pic.twitter.com/z96Au0sbAq
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 20, 2024
After identifying St. John’s, Seton Hall and Pittsburgh as teams who belonged in the NCAA Tournament, Szczerbiak again focused his attention on Virginia.
“The committee made a big mistake by putting this team in the NCAA Tournament this year. And it’s nothing against Tony Bennett. He’s a great, national championship-winning coach. But his team did not belong on this floor with Colorado State.”
Szczerbiak was not alone in that sentiment.
The Cavaliers struggles on Tuesday were particularly bad on the offensive end. Virginia finished the first half with only 14 points scored and went more than 12 minutes of game-time without scoring a single point.
During that run, Spero Dedes, who was calling the game for TruTV, noted the criticism that the committee took for including Virginia and pointed out that, barring a turnaround, the criticism would increase.
"The committee took a considerable amount of flak for putting Virginia in at the expense of some of the other teams. And based on what we've seen, that conversation is going to linger — unless Tony Bennett's team can turn this around quickly."
Spero Dedes on a rough showing for… pic.twitter.com/4Mzln5fFbX
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 20, 2024
Virginia has had a mixed bag of results in the NCAA Tournament in recent seasons. Of course, the Cavaliers won the championship in 2019. But that came one year after becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed. Since that 2019 championship, the Cavaliers have failed to win a single NCAA Tournament Game, losing to No. 13 seeds Ohio and Furman in 2021 and 2023, respectively.
A Virginia win, or even a more competitive loss, might have spared the committee some criticism. But when a questionable decision immediately backfires, the critics are only emboldened.
[Photo Credit: CBS Sports Network]
