RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:
March Madness came to a close last night, and it's hard to imagine a more dramatic redemption story.
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JIM NANTZ: Rebound into the hands of Hunter. And Virginia with the all-time turnaround title.
MARTIN: That is the sound of Virginia beating Texas Tech, 85 to 77, in overtime. For the first time, the Cavaliers are the Division I men's college basketball champions.
DAVID GREENE, HOST:
Yeah, and look back to just a year ago - UVA was the laughingstock of the tournament.
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NANTZ: Twenty-point lead and the greatest upset in the history of this tournament is going to happen - devastating.
GREENE: Yeah, really devastating. Last year, Virginia was at the top of its bracket, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County was at the bottom, and somehow, the UMBC Retrievers buried UVA. Virginia became the first No. 1 seed ever to lose to a No. 16 seed in the men's tournament. This year, though, a total 180 for UVA.
MARTIN: But most of last night's game was close. In the second half, Virginia pulled ahead by 10 points; that lead trickled away. They were behind by three late in the game, when UVA's De'Andre Hunter took aim.
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NANTZ: Far side - Hunter...
BILL RAFTERY: Wow.
NANTZ: ...Hits a 3 to tie it.
RAFTERY: Woo. Onions.
MARTIN: That shot sent the game into overtime, where the Cavaliers pulled ahead for good.
GREENE: And they won. UVA's Ty Jerome reacted to the championship.
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TY JEROME: Unbelievable, man. I mean, this is the first time I just look around, take all this in. This is what you dream of.
GREENE: Later on, Jerome was talking to reporters, and he reflected on the team's turnaround.
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JEROME: Last year, it drew us even closer together. So it wasn't like a rush to get to this championship game and then win it so we could prove all you guys wrong; it was more just, you know, we grew even more united.
GREENE: In his words, quote, "we came together when everyone counted us out."
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