RALEIGH, N.C. — Whatever jitters top-seeded Virginia might have had in the first half against 16th–seed Coastal Carolina on Friday night were replaced by a determined swagger against eighth-seeded Memphis on Sunday night at the PNC Arena.
Looking every bit like a team worthy of its seeding, the ACC champion Cavaliers dismissed the Tigers 78-60 to earn the final berth in the East Regional next weekend at Madison Square Garden. Virginia (30-6) will face Michigan State in the regional semifinal, a game that figures to be one of the marquee matchups of the NCAA Tournament. It will be Virginia's first Sweet 16 appearance since 1995.
The fourth-seed Spartans will have their hands full if the Cavaliers play as well as they did against Memphis (23-10). Joe Harris scored 16 points and Antony Gill added 13 as Virginia shot 60 percent from the field for much of the game en route to dominating the Tigers, who couldn't make a thing. Memphis, harassed by an active Virginia defense, converted just 41 percent of its field goals, including just 3-of-13 from 3-point range.
Virginia trailed Coastal Carolina by five points after the first half, but has played splendid basketball since. The best chance for Memphis to win was to use its speed and transition game to keep the Cavaliers from being able to set up their defense and turn it into a halfcourt game. But the Tigers couldn't force enough missed shots early to create fast-break opportunities.
Virginia made 14-of-25 from the field for 56 percent shooting in the first half as the Cavaliers worked their way to a 35-20 lead at halftime.
The Tigers tried to ignite their transition game in the second half with guard Joe Jackson racing for a couple of quick layups. But Memphis was only effective in spurts. With 6-foot-11 sophomore center Mike Tobey of Monroe, N.Y., ruling the paint, Virginia was able to guard the basket and force the Tigers' game to the perimeter, where their shooting wasn't good enough to close the gap.
The Cavaliers played like a top seed, fluid on offense, tenacious on defense. When sophomore guard Malcolm Brogdon converted a layup with 13:12 to play, Virginia had a 52-31 lead. Memphis never threatened after that.
Tobey (11 points, six rebounds) brought the Virginia fans to their feet by blocking a shot on one end of the court and then making a three from the top of the key to give his team a 73-47 lead with 3:43 remaining. It was his first 3-point field goal of the season.
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