# 1997–98 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team

The 1997–98 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team represented the University of Virginia during the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by eighth-year head coach Jeff Jones, and played their home games at University Hall in Charlottesville, Virginia as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. At the end of the season, Jones resigned as head coach; he would be replaced by Providence Friars head coach Pete Gillen.

## Last season

The Cavaliers had a record of 18–13, with a conference record of 7–9. They reached the first round of the 1997 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament as a #9 seed, where they lost to #8 seed Iowa.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Opponent | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition game |||||
| Nov. 5* 7:30 pm | Court Authority | W 74–72 | | University Hall Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Nov. 9* 2:00 pm | Australia | L 59–70 | | University Hall (1,899) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Regular season |||||
| Nov. 16* 7:00 pm | at Richmond NationsBank Virginia Challenge | L 79–83 $^{2OT}$ | 0–1 | Robins Center (8,463) Richmond, Virginia |
| Nov. 19* 7:30 pm | William & Mary | W 59–45 | 1–1 | University Hall (5,864) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Nov. 22* 1:00 pm | George Mason | W 60–45 | 2–1 | University Hall (2,163) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Nov. 25* 7:30 pm | at Delaware | W 64–57 | 3–1 | Bob Carpenter Center (4,353) Newark, Delaware |
| Dec. 2* 7:30 pm | Appalachian State | W 62–54 | 4–1 | University Hall (5,677) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Dec. 6 2:00 pm | at No. 1 Duke | L 59–103 | 4–2 (0–1) | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, North Carolina |
| Dec. 10* 7:30 pm | No. 13 Connecticut | L 63–74 | 4–3 (0–1) | University Hall (6,841) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Dec. 13* 7:30 pm | vs. VCU NationsBank Virginia Challenge | W 73–67 | 5–3 (0–1) | Robins Center (7,700) Richmond, Virginia |
| Dec. 22* 7:30 pm | VMI | W 92–55 | 6–3 (0–1) | University Hall (4,108) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Dec. 27* 10:30 pm | vs. Nebraska Rainbow Classic | L 65–80 | 6–4 (0–1) | Special Events Arena Honolulu, HI |
| Dec. 29* 4:00 pm | vs. BYU Rainbow Classic | W 72–54 | 7–4 (0–1) | Special Events Arena Honolulu, HI |
| Dec. 30* 6:30 pm | vs. New Mexico State Rainbow Classic | L 82–87 $^{OT}$ | 7–5 (0–1) | Special Events Arena Honolulu, HI |
| Jan. 4 1:00 pm | vs. Wake Forest NationsBank Virginia Challenge | W 73–64 $^{OT}$ | 8–5 (1–1) | Robins Center (7,556) Richmond, Virginia |
| Jan. 7* 7:30 pm | Liberty | L 64–69 | 8–6 (1–1) | University Hall (3,405) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Jan. 10 1:30 pm | at No. 1 North Carolina | L 73–81 | 8–7 (1–2) | Dean Smith Center (21,572) Chapel Hill, North Carolina |
| Jan. 12* 7:00 pm | vs. Virginia Tech | W 69–55 | 9–7 (1–2) | Roanoke Civic Center (6,454) Roanoke, Virginia |
| Jan. 15 8:00 pm | Georgia Tech | L 65–83 | 9–8 (1–3) | University Hall (8,337) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Jan. 18 1:30 pm | NC State | W 59–56 | 10–8 (2–3) | University Hall (7,596) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Jan. 20 8:00 pm | at No. 25 Clemson | L 52–69 | 10–9 (2–4) | Littlejohn Coliseum (11,020) Clemson, South Carolina |
| Jan. 24 Noon | No. 1 Duke | L 65–72 | 10–10 (2–5) | University Hall (8,019) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Jan. 27 8:00 pm | at Wake Forest | L 55–62 | 10–11 (2–6) | Joel Coliseum (13,505) Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
| Feb. 1 4:00 pm | at No. 25 Maryland | L 70–77 | 10–12 (2–7) | Cole Field House (14,500) College Park, Maryland |
| Feb. 4 7:30 pm | Florida State | L 63–71 | 10–13 (2–8) | University Hall (6,250) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Feb. 11 9:00 pm | No. 1 North Carolina | L 45–60 | 10–14 (2–9) | University Hall (8,047) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Feb. 14 Noon | at Georgia Tech | L 86–105 | 10–15 (2–10) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum (7,826) Atlanta |
| Feb. 18 7:00 pm | at NC State | L 55–74 | 10–16 (2–11) | Reynolds Coliseum (11,710) Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb. 21 1:30 pm | Clemson | W 78–74 $^{OT}$ | 11–16 (3–11) | University Hall (7,707) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Feb. 24 9:00 pm | Maryland | L 66–74 | 11–17 (3–12) | University Hall (7,515) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Feb. 28 12:00 am | at Florida State | L 63–88 | 11–18 (3–13) | Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center (6,657) Tallahassee, Florida |
| ACC Tournament |||||
| Mar. 5 | vs. No. 1 Duke ACC Tournament first round | L 41–63 | 11–19 | Greensboro Coliseum (23,733) Greensboro, North Carolina |
| *Non-conference game. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||