Daniss Jenkins, Josh Hart torch Virginia, March Madness selection committee amid sloppy loss

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Daniss Jenkins, Josh Hart torch Virginia, March Madness selection committee amid sloppy loss

If the NCAA Tournament selection committee was hoping to move past the criticism of who did and didn’t make this year’s tourney, Virginia didn’t help.

nypost.com

If the NCAA Tournament selection committee was hoping to move past the criticism of who did and didn’t make this year’s tourney, Virginia did little to help its cause — and there were more than a few people ready to throw shade.

The selection committee came under fire from Big East teams like St. John’s, Providence and Seton Hall not making the tournament while a team like Virginia did.

Well, it only looked worse when Virginia scored 14 points in the first half against Colorado State in its First Four matchup and went nearly an hour before scoring another basket in a 67-42 rout.

It was Colorado State advancing to face Texas in the Midwest Regional at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina on Thursday.

It left Big East basketball fans feeling a certain way, even prompting Villanova alumnus and Knicks star Josh Hart to comment.

“They really picked this Virginia team over the Big East teams,” wrote Hart, who helped the Wildcats win a national championship in 2016.

St. John’s shooting guard Daniss Jenkins purportedly weighed in during the course of the night with his own post on X and a repost of Hart’s remark.

“Really crazy!!!!!” Jenkins wrote, adding two hand smacking face emojis.

The exclusion of so many Big East teams had many basketball fans up in arms, and committee chair Charles McClelland’s reasoning for leaving several out only enraged fans further.

“When you start talking about St. John’s, they were 4-10 in Quad 1,” McClelland explained on Mad Dog Radio on Sunday. “They had seven opportunities at the Top 3 teams from the Big East and went just 1-6 with a home win over Creighton and not a non-conference win of real note.”

The last four teams in this year were Virginia, Colorado State, Boise State and Colorado.





Seton Hall had been one of the first four teams out.

St. John’s had hoped to get into the Tournament for the first time since 2019 and grab a win for the first time since 2000, but instead was on the outside looking in.

 

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UVA loss does reflect poorly on committee.

 

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Even CBS announcers incensed by ‘unwatchable’ Virginia in March Madness: ‘Big mistake’​

By Matt Ehalt

Even CBS announcers incensed by ‘unwatchable’ Virginia in March Madness: ‘Big mistake’

“The committee made a big mistake by putting this team in this tournament this year.”

nypost.com

The general public knew better than the selection committee.

And everyone suffered.

Virginia validated all the criticism levied against the selection committee for its tournament inclusion with its pathetic, embarrassing, humiliating — pretty much any negative adjective applies here — performance in a 67-42 loss to Colorado State in the First Four on Tuesday night.

The Cavaliers produced such a horrendous product Tuesday night that even CBS’ Wally Szczerbiak — who works for the network airing the tournament — ripped the committee.

“This performance matters by Virginia. Mountain West completely blew them off the floor. Mountain West, we’ve been saying, has been completely under-seeded, and the way you perform in this tournament, it puts the committee on notice,” Szczerbiak said. “They made a mistake putting Virginia into the NCAA Tournament. Every bracketologist was saying it, they go out and perform like this.

“It’s unwatchable basketball, the way they played today, on national TV.”




This year’s selection committee has routinely been criticized by fans and pundits alike for this year’s bracket which featured some questionable selections.

The ‘Hoos had poor metrics — they now rank 73rd on KenPom — and lacked notable wins, but they still landed a No.10 seed, while other teams such as Indiana State, Pitt, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Providence missed the cut.

Many fans focused on Virginia to highlight their problems with this bracket, and Tuesday provided a chance for the Cavaliers to show they belong.

Instead, they scored 14 points in the first half.

Yes, 14 points. Against the team that finished tied for sixth in the Mountain West.

Szczerbiak said the spurned Big East teams should be incensed after watching Virginia, and it seemed they were with St. John’s guard Daniss Jenkins tweeting it was “really crazy” in response to Knicks wing Josh Hart commenting on how Virginia earned a bid over the Big East teams.

“St. John’s is sitting there like, ‘We won six of seven, we’re scoring 90 points per game, playing great basketball down the stretch in the Big East. Seton Hall beat Marquette and UConn,” Szczerbiak said after Colorado State advanced to face Texas. “They’re sitting at home or in the NIT. They should be in this NCAA Tournament. (Pittsburgh) should be in this NCAA Tournament.

“The committee made a big mistake by putting this team in this tournament this year, and it’s nothing against Tony Bennett, he’s a national championship-winning coach, but his team did not belong on this floor with Colorado State.”