UVA Will Face Auburn In Final Four

Virginia is the lone remaining 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and the South Region champion Cavaliers will take on SEC Tournament and Midwest Region champ Auburn Saturday at 6:09 p.m. ET in Minneapolis, the site of this year’s Final Four.

The Wahoos (33-3) got past third-seeded Purdue in overtime in last night’s region title game in Louisville to punch their ticket after wins over No. 16 Gardner-Webb, No. 9 Oklahoma and No. 12 Oregon.

The Tigers (30-9) are arguably the hottest team in the country, winners of a dozen straight games and 14 of their last 15. Auburn, coached by Bruce Pearl, got the 5-seed in the Midwest and escaped with a 1-point, opening-round win over No. 12 New Mexico State before knocking off three of college basketball’s biggest names — No. 4 Kansas, No. 1 North Carolina and No. 2 Kentucky — in a row to advance to Minneapolis.

Auburn, appearing in the program’s first Final Four, did it without the services of sophomore forward Chuma Okeke, who had put up 20 points and 11 rebounds against the Tar Heels before suffering a season-ending torn ACL injury.

Saturday’s second game, which will tip at approximately 8:49 p.m., pits East Region champion Michigan State — which eliminated Zion Williamson and top overall seed Duke Sunday — against West Region champ Texas Tech, with the winners to play for it all on Monday night.

Stick with JerryRatcliffe.Com for coverage every day leading up to Saturday’s game, as we will break down the matchup, recap the memorable win from Louisville and keep you up to date throughout the week.