Painful

Now I've learned two things about DVR: As I said earlier, you should always set the stop time more than two hours from the start time. And it's also a fantastic tool to illustrate exactly how Tyler Hansbrough is able to constantly find himself alone under the basket against Virginia.

Of course, if I told you that he was being "guarded" by Jamil Tucker that would probably answer your question completely enough, but video evidence puts proof in the pudding. Example 1:

Hansbrough starts out at the free throw line. Tucker is under the basket. A Carolina player takes a baseline jumper. Hansbrough, as he's been known to do, beelines for the rim. Tucker, as he's been known to do, stands still and watches the ball float through the air, likely wondering how this can somehow mean he gets to take another 3. As the shot nears the rim, Tucker remembers he was supposed to be doing something - what was it? - oh yeah, where's that big white guy? Tucker looks behind him, but Hansbrough isn't there because he's now between Tucker and the rim. Shot misses, Hansbrough grabs it, puts it in, is fouled, and Tucker claps his hands together in frustration.

If you're Jamil Tucker, how are you ever thinking about anything else but boxing Tyler Hansbrough out? If he's at halfcourt, you're pushing him toward the 3-point line on the other end of the court, right? Yet somehow Dave Leitao has sent him on the court not completely certain that it's critical to account for Tyler Hansbrough around the basket. That's something you'd feel stupid doing, or not doing, at the Y. Yet failing to box out the hustling offensive rebounder happened over and over again on Saturday.

Example 2:

Tucker is again under the defensive basket. Hansbrough is behind him on the block as a Carolina player in front of Tucker drives baseline as if to take another baseline jumper. Mike Scott collapses on defense, forcing the UNC player to pass the ball over to Ed Davis about 15 feet away between the free throw line and the baseline. Tucker immediately begins racing Scott to get to Davis, who then passes the ball to a wide-open Hansbrough under the basket. Tucker turns and futilily hacks Hansbrough as Hansbrough scores and again heads to the line. Scott looks at Tucker with his palms out, asking, basically:

If you're Jamil Tucker, how are you ever thinking it's more important to stop an Ed Davis 15-footer than a Tyler Hansbrough dunk? Again, this would be a stupid defensive play at the Y. In the ACC, it's inexcusable. But unfortunately it's par for the course at Virginia these days.

Obviously, I'm not a basketball coach. There can be no doubt that Dave Leitao knows more basketball in his pinkie that I will ever know. But even if he could counter any criticism I made with a sound Xs-and-Os argument one thing that can't be glossed over is the fact that Virginia is the worst team in the ACC. By that simple measure, something is very wrong in Charlottesville.

I know, I know, I had some happy thoughts after the Virginia Tech game. And I'm not backing away from anything I said, though it was sobering how far optimism in Charlottesville is from the quality of play in Chapel Hill. Sylven Landesberg was humbled by the Tar Heels' team defense and athletes. Sammy Zeglinski was overwhelmed and, apparently, terrified of Ty Lawson. Worse, though, than Carolina's glaring talent advantage was how much more cohesively they played.

The Tar Heels were determined to stop Virginia's best player, and they did. The majority of their baskets came from an assist -which means means that Carolina was running something akin to an offense. If you're Virginia, you can't win this game with what you're sending onto the court. But you can stop Tyler Hansbrough with double teams and box outs. You can run plays to free Mustapha Farrakhan and Jeff Jones for 3-pointers off of screens. You can isolate Mamadi Diane on the wing and let him try to beat his defender off the dribble. You can post Mike Scott and let him try to work inside.

They did none of those things, however. Any particular reason?

I saw maybe two Scott isolations inside. I saw one play where Virginia actually seemed to be setting a screen on purpose for Farrakhan to shoot a 3. The rest of the time, it was ineffective confusion from the Cavaliers. Did anyone understand what he was supposed to be doing? If I'm wrong, somebody please tell me what I'm missing, because to me it was guys catching passes on the perimeter, dribbling around hesitantly, Leitao screaming move, a pass to a different spot on the perimeter, more tentative looking around, culminating with a wild jumper from Farrakhan or Calvin Baker.

Painful.

Other notes:

• Jeff Jones seldom plays, and when he does he sometimes doesn't look all that great. But it took about two trips down the court against Carolina in mop-up time to show once again that he is as talented a player as Virginia has. I'd like to blame the kid, but with Leitao's history either he doesn't have a clue how to develope these guys or he does an awful job analyzing mental makeup before he offers a scholarship. All I kept thinking was, there is no way Jeff Jones goes to Carolina or Duke and doesn't end up contributing to that program. But if he doesn't transfer after this season I'll be stunned.
• Zeglinski has to be more aggressive to play at this level. He's a good ballhandler and sees himself as a point guard, but he must make more happen than dribbling over the halfcourt line and passing. In the ACC, point guards attack the paint. Until he does that, Leitao has little choice but to play Calvin Baker - and that's not exactly a recipe for long-term success.
• Why did Tunji Soroye never get off the bench against the biggest team in the league? He's limited, but he's a senior who has been in your program for five years and logged a lot of minutes. If you can't figure out how to make a contributor out of a kid like that, especially on a last-place team, it says more about you as a coach than it does about that kid.
• Watching Diane explode off the ground around the rim in the second half, taking rebounds away from Danny Green, reinforced what I just said: Getting no production out of the best athlete on your roster in his senior season says more about your coaching than it does about that kid. OK, he's not hitting 3s. But you know what? He's always taken too many of those to begin with. Slashing to the rim is a huge void in Virginia's attack, and Diane clearly can do it at an ACC level. Yet he never does. Why has Leitao not taken him aside and said, Mamadi, this season we need you on the offensive glass. We need you attacking the rim. That's the only way we can win. If Diane refuses to do it but has been asked, why is Jeff Jones or Farrakhan not starting? Nothing in that scenario indicates effective coaching.

I don't want to spend all of my time bashing Leitao, but when I watch Virginia I always end up asking myself over and over again, what are they doing? Still, they're young. The optimist would say that UNC was angry and Virginia is young and learning. Bad combination.

Perhaps things will be different tonight at Maryland. We shall see.