A quick look at Virginia-UNC Wilmington in the NCAA tourney

March 15, 2017

Associated Press,

ORLANDO, FL (AP) – No. 5 seed Virginia (22-10) vs. No. 12 seed UNC Wilmington (29-5)

First round, East region; Orlando, Florida; 12:40 p.m. EDT.; Live coverage on truTV

BOTTOM LINE: This should be a contrast of styles, with Virginia’s pack-line defense wanting to slow the game down and UNC Wilmington’s high-scoring offense wanting to get up and down early and often. Whichever team controls the tempo probably will win.

STAR WATCH: UNCW sophomore C.J. Bryce has reached double figures in 32 of 34 games this season, including 11 consecutive games with 20 or more points. He leads the team in scoring, averaging 17.6 points a game.

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DOMINANT DEFENSE: Virginia’s defense can give opponents fits. Just ask North Carolina, Notre Dame and Louisville (twice) – Atlantic Coast Conference teams that averaged 51 points in four losses to the Cavaliers. Virginia leads the nation in scoring defense, giving up 55.6 points a game, and forced a dozen scoring droughts that totaled more than 5 minutes.

DID YOU KNOW: UNCW has one win in six NCAA Tournament games, but proved to be a handful for Duke in the opening round last year. The Seahawks led the Blue Devils at halftime before losing 93-85.