Mailbag: UVA hoops fan writes to state preference for more simplistic analysis

I love the way that every time UVAloses, person’s come out of the woodwork to “dissect” the game. Everyone said that Tony Bennett‘s UVA team would not be very good at start of season, and 19 and 6 seems to not have changed that opinion. Facts is, college basketball in these times is a 3 pt shooting league. At least 3 guys outside the arc, screen and shoot the 3, drive and score, drive and kick out 3. Doesn’t matter what the defense, you could run the elephant trunk mafia defense and it would be the same result. If the other team hits 5 more 3s than the other team they are 90 percentile going to win the game. Pitt was hot, they won the game. For 30+ minutes that was a terrific game to watch and I’m a UVA fan, then Beekman rested and Pitt responded. That’s how contested games go. No deep down conspiracy, no dragged out useless analogy, just one team wins. I’m just going to enjoy the 19 wins. You can dig into the deep hidden worthless reasons for each of the 6 losses. I’m not qualified to give TB advice, I don’t have his record and a national championship. How many do YOU have?

– KO

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I love it when a fanboy like this KO fellow sends an email like this.

Because I’m supposed to feel insulted, right?

Some guy is telling me that I’m one of the “person’s” out of the woodwork “not qualified to give TB advice.”

How will I ever be able to pick up the pieces and move on from here?

Whatever.

I’ve only been doing whatever it is that I do here for 29 years.

Tony was still in the NBA when I got my first UVA hoops byline; there were Jeff Jones years, Pete Gillen years and Dave Leitao years to endure before we’d get to the good years with Tony.

Does 29 years of writing about basketball qualify me to give anybody advice?

God, no.

Thing is, my job isn’t to give anybody advice.

I’m not Dear Abby.

My job is to explain what happened.

Now, you don’t have to like my explanation of what happened.

Based on the fact that I’ve been doing this for 29 years, I’d venture to guess that enough people do for me to continue making a good living.

I used to say, if you don’t like the analytical pieces on UVA Athletics, hey, there are plenty of other places for you to go to get the fanboy fluff that won’t hurt your precious fee-fees, but actually, most of those other places are gone now.

The media marketplace is getting ever smaller in terms of choices.

Plenty of empty seats on press row, is what I’m getting at there.

Bad news for the KO types out there: I ain’t going anywhere.

I still can say, if you don’t like what I write, you can just change the channel.

Nobody is making you read it.

I’m not going to test you on the material at the end of the semester.

But if I did, and your answer on the essay question about why Pitt won the other night was, “Pitt was hot, they won the game,” I don’t know, I don’t want to have to fail anybody, but …

– Chris