Barber: Anatomy of an upset. How did 16th-seeded UMBC defeat No. 1 UVA?

Many in the national media pointed to the Cavaliers’ latest March flameout as proof that coach Tony Bennett’s defense-first approach to the game has a ceiling that falls well short of a championship level. And, undeniably, the UMBC loss added fuel to that fire.

Detractors say Bennett’s system isn’t well-suited for the tournament format, that he doesn’t recruit high enough caliber talent and that the book is out on how to play against his teams.

Of course, U.Va. has won two ACC tournament titles in the past five seasons. And in 2016, the Cavaliers did reach the Elite Eight, where they held a double-digit lead midway through the second half before collapsing against Syracuse.

Friday night’s shocking upset came in the Cavaliers’ first game in the tournament, so the “format” argument doesn’t really come into play.

Critics say Bennett hasn’t recruited enough top-flight talent to U.Va. And it’s true, the Cavaliers don’t land the five-star, one-and-done type players that are fueling the runs of Kentucky and Duke. But with players like Kyle Guy and De’Andre Hunter, the talent level in the Virginia program is on the rise.

Plus, there was no disputing that Virginia had the talent edge in its matchup with UMBC.

Finally, one media outlet suggested that opposing coaches know the “secret” to defeating Bennett’s Pack-Line defense, a baffling assertion considering the Cavaliers went 31-2 before the NCAA loss to the Retrievers.

There is a strategy for attacking any defense, and there is one for playing against Bennett. But as U.Va.’s three ACC regular-season titles in the past five years proves, it’s anything but foolproof.

So if you discount the theory that Virginia’s program is somehow fatally flawed, how did the shocker occur?

U.Va. gave UMBC early hope

The Cavaliers didn’t start well. A common ingredient in the recipe for an upset, Virginia’s slow start energized the Retrievers and their fans. UMBC led 9-7 and the game was tied 21-21 at the half, a huge emotional victory for the underdogs and a potential point of panic for the favorites.

“We knew we could play with them before the game,” star guard Jairus Lyles said. “Tying up with them at halftime definitely gave us more confidence.”

The upstart team was already riding high after beating favorite Vermont in the America East final. Now, it had reason to believe that it could pull off one of the biggest upsets in college basketball history.

That also gave the Retrievers added confidence in the coaching staff’s stellar game plan.

Odom’s plan put UMBC in position to shock the top seed

No, there’s no strategy that’s guaranteed to beat U.Va, no kryptonite to the Pack-Line defense Bennett’s team plays. But there is an approach that has had more success than others. And it starts with playing a similar style and pace to what Virginia employs.

UMBC pressured the Cavaliers’ guards, trapped the team’s big men in the paint and jammed the lane. To Virginia’s players, it looked very similar to the defense-oriented approach Virginia Tech used in pulling an upset in Charlottesville last month.

“We felt like our only chance was to pressure their guards. We had to outplay their guards in order to have a chance, and we had to hold our own inside,” coach Ryan Odom said. “And it put us in position.”

And Virginia didn’t respond well. Normally, when the Cavaliers are struggling to hit outside shots, they can get their offense on track driving to the rim off high ball screens or by getting a spark off the bench from Hunter, the ACC sixth man of the year. But the Retrievers’ guards were quick enough to keep the Cavs’ guards in front of them and tough enough to fight through screens. And Hunter was out with a fractured left wrist. So Virginia found itself settling for hurried 3-point attempts.

“They kind of did what Virginia Tech did,” Guy said. “They just flooded really, really hard. We were trying to make home run plays, and we weren’t really seeing all the open guys. We were just forcing things, myself included.”

UMBC executed as well as it has all season

Confidence, momentum and a solid game plan are worthless without execution, and on the biggest stage, the lightly regarded Retrievers did that exceptionally well. They shot 54.2 percent from the floor, assisted on 16 of their 26 baskets and went 12 for 24 from 3-point range.

They hit enough 3s early to loosen up Virginia’s defense, then drove to the rim seemingly at will in the second half. Guy, who suffered a sprained knee in the regular-season finale against Notre Dame, looked a step slow.

“I think it started on the defensive end for us,” Lyles said. “We pressured their guards a lot. Didn’t give them any open looks. We made their bigs work, and they got frustrated, and it helped us on our offensive end because they kind of got distracted, got inside them so they’re not hitting shots and running their offense like they usually do. They had defensive breakdowns, and we kind of took advantage of that.”

UMBC scored 53 points in the second half. In 15 outings this season, the Cavaliers didn’t allow an opponent to score that much in a full game — which leads into the final — and central — factor in how Friday’s upset came to be.

Virginia didn’t play well

U.Va. didn’t perform up to its standards — on either end of the floor. Its defense looked slow to extend to 3-point shooters, slow on its feet against UMBC’s guards and slow to help. The Retrievers put up 74 points, the most Virginia allowed all season.

U.Va. didn’t share the ball well. It had five assists on its 23 baskets, none of which came in the first half. It didn’t shoot well, hitting 41.2 percent of its shots, going just 4 for 22 from 3-point range.

“They spread the floor; they made shots. I don’t think we defended well,” sophomore guard Ty Jerome said. “We didn’t pass the ball well. We didn’t come off screens well. We didn’t do anything well tonight, to be honest. And give credit to them, too, because they played well. They’re a good team, but we didn’t do anything well.”

And when UMBC started pulling away late, instead of the poised and confident team that stormed back to beat Louisville on the road late in the regular season, the Cavaliers looked rattled.

“Before the game, I said that pressure is a figment of your imagination,” Guy said. “And I was definitely imagining pressure.”

Losing in the NCAA tournament always stings. Losing as a No. 1 seed — as Virginia has three times — hurts even more. Bennett is just 7-6 in NCAA tournament games at U.Va.

Becoming the first top seed to ever lose to a No. 16, and doing it by 20 points, is a pain no program has ever endured.

But it’s not a sign Virginia’s program is flawed or that Bennett’s approach can’t bring a team to the Final Four.

It means U.Va. stained a great season with one very bad night of basketball.

And that’s bad enough.