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2017 March Madness: Top 8 Performers From East Region in Opening Round

By Nick Ziegler

Mar 16, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; The Villanova Wildcats mascot performs in the second half against the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. Villanova won 76-56. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 16, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; The Villanova Wildcats mascot performs in the second half against the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. Villanova won 76-56. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /
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2017 March Madness
Mar 16, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard London Perrantes (32) brings the ball up the court against the Virginia Cavaliers during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

London Perrantes

The best player in the first game in the East Region was Senior point guard London Perrantes. Virginia really struggled to start the game, but they were able to overcome a slow start to defeat UNC Wilmington.

One of the main reasons for the comeback in the first half was the performance of Perrantes. On a team that generally struggles to score, Virginia was able to score 76 points. Perrantes led the way for Virginia with 24 points on nine-for-14 shooting. As a good three-point shooter, Perrantes went two-for-four from deep.

Perrantes played a lot off of the ball in the game against UNC Wilmington, as he only totaled three assists in the win. With a need for scoring, the decision to play Perrantes off ball helped spark the offense.

Early on in the game, it was clear that Isaiah Wilkins was not feeling well. As a player that averages seven points per game, Perrantes helped make up for that with his great opening round game. Even though the defense wasn’t great for Virginia on Thursday afternoon, they were still able to survive.

If Perrantes is able to efficiently score over 20 points like he did in the opening round, Virginia will be a dangerous team for Florida in the second round.

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