Virginia edges Texas Tech in overtime thriller for NCAA title

Cork Gaines

April 9, 2019 4:59 AM

Virginia defeated Texas Tech, 85-77 in overtime, to win the men's basketball championship.

Kyle Guy

The Cavaliers got the benefit of a controversial replay review in overtime.
UVA completed a "worst-to-first" run after becoming the first one-seed in tournament history to lose to a 16-seed a year ago.
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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Now that, Virginia, is the way to close out a season.

Led by De'Andre Hunter and his NBA-ready game, the Cavaliers turned themselves into national champions Monday night, holding off tenacious, ferocious Texas Tech for an 85-77 overtime win a scintillating victory that came 388 days after a crushing setback that might have sunk a lesser team for years.

But Virginia was better than that.

A season after becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 16 the one thing that had never happened in a tournament where anything can the Cavaliers watched a 10-point lead turn into a 3-point deficit before Hunter came to the rescue. The sophomore made the game-tying 3 with 12.1 seconds left in regulation, then made another 3 with 2:07 left in the extra period to give the Cavs the lead for good.

After going scoreless for the first 18 1/2 minutes, Hunter finished with a career-high 27 points, and if he leaves as a lottery pick well, what a way to go out.

He helped the Cavs bring home the first NCAA title for a program with a colorful, star-crossed and, now, very winning history.

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