CHICAGO (AP) – Before every game, the door knocker comes out, and each of the Virginia Cavaliers takes a turn. While the swings are different for each player, the message is the same.
Just keep going.
“We don’t want to take steps back,” junior guard London Perrantes said Saturday. “We want to keep on knocking until the door opens for us.”
The next door for the top-seeded Cavaliers (29-7) leads to the Final Four in Houston, but standing in the way is resurgent Syracuse (22-13) after a late slide almost led to another empty March for the Orange. With coach Jim Boeheim deftly pulling the right strings on his tricky, 2-3 matchup zone, 10th-seeded Syracuse is allowing 53.7 points per game in the NCAA Tournament.
The Orange appeared to be in big trouble in the Midwest Regional semifinals against Gonzaga, but used their full-court pressure to rally for a 63-60 victory and an all-ACC rematch with Virginia on Sunday.