For the fourth time in the past six seasons, the University of Virginia men’s basketball team has earned a no. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. UVA is the top seed in the 2019 NCAA Tournament South region, where the Hoos, led by All-ACC first-team selections Kyle Guy and De’Andre Hunter and All-ACC second-team pick Ty Jerome, will face the No. 16 seed Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs.
Virginia boasts a 29-3 record that includes a share of the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season title. The ACC scored three of the four no. 1 seeds, with Duke and North Carolina joining the Cavaliers. The ACC Tournament champion Blue Devils earned the tournament’s top overall seed and will play in the East, while the Tar Heels are the top seed in the Midwest region. Gonzaga rounds out the list of top seeds, netting the West’s top spot.
Gardner-Webb (23-11) defeated High Point and scored upsets of Campbell and Radford to win the Big South Tournament and stamp its 2019 NCAA Tourney bid. The Runnin’ Bulldogs defeated ACC foes Wake Forest and Georgia Tech during the regular season, with both victories coming on the road, but lost at Virginia Tech by 28 in its second game of the season.
Virginia, which is the only ACC team in this region, and Gardner-Webb are set to meet on Friday, March 22, at 3:10 p.m. in Columbia, South Carolina. The winner will face the winner of the No. 8/No. 9 contest between Mississippi and Oklahoma. The top four seeds in the South region are Virginia, Tennessee, Purdue, and Kansas State. The Sweet 16 and Elite 8 contests will be played in Louisville, Kentucky. The Final Four and Championship game will take place in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The entire South region bracket is below. Click here to view a complete printable bracket, courtesy of NCAA.com.
No. 1 Virginia vs. No. 16 Gardner-Webb
No. 8 Ole Miss vs. No. 9 Oklahoma
No. 5 Wisconsin vs. No. 12 Oregon
No. 4 Kansas State vs. No. 13 UC Irvine
No. 6 Villanova vs. No. 11 St. Mary’s
No. 3 Purdue vs. No. 14 Old Dominion
No. 7 Cincinnati vs. No. 10 Iowa
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 15 Colgate
Stay tuned to TheSabre.com for reaction and more to Virginia’s NCAA Tournament destination
