De'Andre Hunter has Virginia thinking big following March Madness collapse

De'Andre Hunter exhales a deep breath and leans into a locker, enjoying one more moment of celebratory relief before the questions are hurled his way.

It's a typically productive night at Maryland on Nov. 28, (15 points, five rebounds, four assists) for the lanky Virginia forward. Still, the redshirt sophomore is quick to deflect credit. Five players scored in double figures, he points out, and center Jack Salt scored a career-high 12 points. It was Salt, not Hunter, who was the catalyst tonight. So says the player who will ultimately decide Virginia’s season.

"The whole team really locked down," says Hunter. "Jack got the game ball. Kylw (Guy) and Ty (Jerome) were knocking down shots. We didn’t let up."

Not letting up is a necessary theme for these Virginia Cavaliers after last season’s debacle.

"We know how good we can be," says Hunter, who currently leads the team in scoring at 14.8 points per game. "We just need to stay consistent and play great defense like always. We’ve got a bunch of guys who can score on any night."

Hunter is not wrong in saying the right things. The 76-71 win over rival Maryland that late November evening, in which Virginia led for 35 of 40 minutes, was a dominant team effort. And yes, with a combined 35 points, junior guards Guy and Jerome did lead the scoring. But much like every other game in which Hunter has donned a Cavs jersey, Virginia’s evolving future NBA lottery pick was the X-factor.

Whether anchoring a suffocating defense, dropping high-low dimes, blocking shots, or opening the floor with slashes to the rim, Hunter’s combination of size and skills make him unlike any other player in Charlottesville. It’s what earned him ACC Sixth Man of the Year honors as a freshman last season. It’s why Virginia, even after last year’s epic collapse, still has a chance to fend off Duke for another ACC title. And, of course, it’s why NBA scouts salivate over the defensive-minded 6-foot-7 wing with a 7-foot-2 wingspan. Hunter, for now, pays them no mind. He’s got unfinished business.

"(Hunter) is so versatile, he’s still figuring out how good he is," says Jerome, who sits second on No. 4 Virginia in scoring (14.2 ppg) behind Hunter and is generating some NBA draft buzz of his own. "We’re focused on this season, not looking back at last year, but it definitely hurt when he went down. And I know he wanted to be out there."

What did happen last year?

After a dominant season that saw the Cavaliers win both the ACC regular season and the ACC Tournament, Virginia entered March Madness the top overall seed with a 31-2 record. The rest, as they say, is history. Or, in this case, infamy. The Cavs were blown out by No.16 seed UMBC in the Round of 64, becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose in the first round. As UMBC took the internet by storm, Virginia was suddenly the butt of every joke. After entering halftime tied at 21, its notorious defense vanished. By the time the merciful buzzer sounded, the scoreboard read 74-54. Suddenly, Virginia’s critics were vindicated.

The Cavs went 17-1 in conference play last season, dominating a loaded ACC that featured future lottery picks Marvin Bagley III (Duke), Wendell Carter Jr. (Duke) and Jerome Robinson (Boston College). Yet, analysts and fans alike questioned whether the success would last. Could a low-scoring Tony Bennett-coached team reliant on defense and guard play really break through? In the modern basketball world where tempo and pace are all the rage, Bennett’s teams are typically the opposite.

After taking over a middling program in 2009, Bennett was tasked with building a contender sans five-star recruits. He landed Indiana’s Mr. Basketball, Guy, in 2014, but that’s been it. Even Hunter and Malcolm Brogdon - now with the Milwaukee Bucks - were three- and four-star recruits, respectively, before realizing their potential. So, rather than beating Mike Krzyzewski in recruiting, Bennett employs a boa constrictor style of ball that drains his opposition’s will to compete.

With stifling defense and a plodding, almost too efficient four-guard offense that emphasizes ball movement, his teams wear down opponents and the clock. Bennett’s three ACC titles and a 143-30 record since the 2013-2014 season prove that it almost always works. Until it doesn’t. In 12 seasons as a Division I head coach, Bennett has only made it past the Sweet 16 once - in 2016, when No. 1 seed Virginia lost to 10th-seeded Syracuse in the Elite Eight.

"A week ago we were cutting down the nets at the ACC Tournament," Bennett said after losing to UMBC. "They had a historic season. Then, we had a historic loss … That's life. In the end, it was a remarkable season but we got thoroughly outplayed and that's the reality of it."

Yet, if Hunter never falls on his wrist in the ACC Tournament, it’s easy to imagine an alternate reality in which Virginia outlasts UMBC before making a deep run in March Madness. Hunter played through the pain in the ACC Championship, scoring 10 points and dribbling out the clock as Virginia ousted Duke. But when he saw an orthopedic surgeon at UVA’s Hand Center a day later, the diagnosis was clear: done for the season. "Obviously, we were playing really well," Hunter said in hindsight. "It was tough (sitting out), but I knew there was something seriously wrong."

"But I was coming back (to Virginia) either way."

With Hunter, Guy, and Jerome - not to mention Salt and junior forward Mamadi Diakite - back on campus, Virginia’s national title dreams are real. Yet, in the court of public opinion, that UMBC loss weighs heavy. Until we see them make a Final Four, most casual fans will pencil the Cavs in for another early March Madness exit. It doesn’t help that three one-and-done lottery picks - Duke’s Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett, and Cam Reddish - have set the college hoops world ablaze down in Durham.

"They just don’t typically play an exciting brand of basketball," Turner Sports analyst Reggie Miller says about Virginia. "You have to really love the intricacies of college basketball to appreciate Virginia. In today’s game, fans want the run-and-gun threes and highlight-reel dunks."

The team’s defensive floor general, Hunter seems quicker to share the ball than shoot. Much like Jerome - who’s methodical command of the offense and ball-hawk defense make him the most prototypical Virginia player since Brogdon - he fits perfectly in Bennett’s "boring" system. Only he’s not boring. The 6'7, 225-pound forward could start on any lineup in the country. He averaged 9.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per game in just under 20 minutes last season, but his size and athleticism were enough for NBA scouts to predict a clear first-round grade. Had he gone to any other school, it’s likely Hunter would have been another premature one-and-done sensation.

Instead, a one sentence tweet in April said it all.

"I didn't want to make it a big thing, because honestly, it wasn't," he said in a July press release. "Honestly, I don't think I was good enough to play in the NBA. I feel like I'm a good player, but I could take another year and get a lot better here and make a real impact in my rookie season (in the NBA)."

This year, Hunter’s up to 14.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 28 minutes per game while often deferring to Jerome and Guy. Clearly, he’s still grasping just how good he can be. For now, Hunter’s overall offensive talents remain underutilized in Virginia’s equal-opportunity offensive, but Bennett’s system is conducive to growth. It’s the rare team in which every player appears to buy in; where unheralded recruits become fundamentally sound college stars. Then, the ones with the chops blossom in the NBA.

With Hunter in the starting lineup, Virginia once again has No. 1-seed potential. By most accounts, the loss to UMBC was a fluke. But that doesn’t mean the Cavs weren’t exposed. Beating No. 2 Duke out for a second straight ACC title might alleviate the haunting. In Hunter, Virginia has a star who may actually be able to offset Williamson. Hunter won’t win a dunk contest between the two, but his ability to guard Williamson for 90 feet, plus the matchup headaches that he presents on offense, could give Duke fits.

Virginia travels to Duke on Jan. 19. Let's just hope that by then, Hunter realizes he can do it.