# 2017–18 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team represented the University of Virginia during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Tony Bennett in his ninth year, and played their home games at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
In a year with low expectations from the press, the Cavaliers began unranked but ascended all the way to the No. 1 ranking in the AP Poll for the first time since December 1982. The team then held on to that ranking through the end of the regular season and became the first ACC team to win 17 conference games. The Cavaliers won the ACC tournament by handily defeating Louisville 75–58, Clemson 64–58, and North Carolina 71–63 in the championship game. In the process the team broke the school's single-season win record, which had twice been tied by Bennett-led teams in the past five years.
ACC Sixth Man of the Year De'Andre Hunter broke his wrist in the ACC Tournament victory, and was announced to be out for the NCAA tournament two days before it began. UVA entered as the No. 1 overall seed, placed in the South regional, but suffered an upset in the first round to UMBC and became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985. The first round losses by No. 1 seed Virginia and No. 4 seed Arizona, and second round losses by No. 2 seed Cincinnati and No. 3 seed Tennessee, led to the South Region becoming the first ever to not advance any of its top four seeds to the Sweet Sixteen.
Nevertheless, for taking an unranked team to finish four games above pre-season AP No. 1 ranked Duke and winning the ACC Tournament over North Carolina, Bennett was awarded his third Henry Iba Award for the nation's top coach of the season.

## Previous season

The Cavaliers finished the 2016–17 season 23–11, and 11–7 in ACC play to tie Duke for fifth place. They defeated Pittsburgh in the second round of the ACC tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to Notre Dame. The Wahoos received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 5 seed in the East region. There they defeated No. 12 UNC Wilmington in the First Round before losing in the Second Round to No. 4 Florida.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Marial Shayok | 4 | G | 6'5" | 196 | Junior | Ottawa, ON | Transferred to Iowa State |
| Jeff Jones | 24 | F | 6'6" | 213 | Senior | Charlottesville, VA | Walk-on; graduated |
| Jarred Reuter | 31 | F | 6'7" | 243 | Sophomore | Marion, MA | Transferred to George Mason |
| London Perrantes | 32 | G | 6'2" | 197 | Senior | Los Angeles, CA | Graduated |
| Darius Thompson | 51 | G | 6'4" | 196 | RS Junior | Murfreesboro, TN | Graduate transferred to Western Kentucky |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Nigel Johnson | 23 | G | 6'1" | 190 | RS Senior | Ashburn, VA | Transferred from Rutgers. Will be eligible to play immediately since Johnson graduated from Rutgers. |

### 2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Marco Anthony #44 SG | San Antonio, TX | Holmes High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jul 18, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| Francesco Badocchi SF | Milan, Italy | Bishop Miege (KS) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Apr 30, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Virginia 2017 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2017 Virginia Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2016 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "Virginia 2017 Basketball Commitments". 247sports.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. ||||||

### 2018 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Kody Stattmann SG | Cairns, Queensland, Australia | St. Augustine's College | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | N/A | Aug 28, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| Kihei Clark PG | Woodland Hills, CA | Taft High School | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | N/A | Oct 2, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Virginia 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2018 Virginia Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2016 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. "Virginia 2018 Basketball Commitments". 247sports.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017. |||||||

## Roster
### Depth chart

| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 |
| C | Jack Salt | | Jay Huff |
| PF | Isaiah Wilkins | Mamadi Diakite | Austin Katstra |
| SF | Devon Hall | De'Andre Hunter | Justice Bartley |
| SG | Kyle Guy | | Marco Anthony |
| PG | Ty Jerome | Nigel Johnson | Trevon Gross Jr. |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| Nov 10, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | | UNC Greensboro | W 60–48 | 1–0 | 16 – Guy | 8 – Wilkins | 3 – Guy | John Paul Jones Arena (13,855) Charlottesville, VA |
| Nov 13, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | | Austin Peay NIT Season Tip-Off Campus-Site Game | W 93–49 | 2–0 | 19 – Hall | 8 – Wilkins | 4 – Anthony | John Paul Jones Arena (12,995) Charlottesville, VA |
| Nov 17, 2017* 4:00 pm, CBSSN | | at VCU | W 76–67 | 3–0 | 29 – Guy | 8 – Wilkins | 7 – Jerome | Siegel Center (7,637) Richmond, VA |
| Nov 19, 2017* 1:00 pm, RSN | | Monmouth NIT Season Tip-Off Campus-Site Game | W 73–53 | 4–0 | 23 – Hunter | 8 – Hunter | 3 – Tied | John Paul Jones Arena (13,472) Charlottesville, VA |
| Nov 23, 2017* 4:00 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Vanderbilt NIT Season Tip-Off Semifinals | W 68–42 | 5–0 | 18 – Guy | 5 – Diakite | 4 – 3 Tied | Barclays Center Brooklyn, NY |
| Nov 24, 2017* 7:30 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Rhode Island NIT Season Tip-Off Championship | W 70–55 | 6–0 | 19 – Wilkins | 8 – Salt | 3 – Tied | Barclays Center Brooklyn, NY |
| Nov 27, 2017* 9:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 18 | Wisconsin ACC–Big Ten Challenge | W 49–37 | 7–0 | 17 – Guy | 10 – Wilkins | 2 – Tied | John Paul Jones Arena (13,911) Charlottesville, VA |
| Dec 2, 2017* 12:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 18 | Lehigh | W 75–54 | 8–0 | 21 – Guy | 6 – Wilkins | 8 – Johnson | John Paul Jones Arena (13,594) Charlottesville, VA |
| Dec 5, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 15 | at No. 18 West Virginia | L 61–68 | 8–1 | 19 – Hall | 5 – Wilkins | 6 – Hall | WVU Coliseum (12,816) Morgantown, WV |
| Dec 16, 2017* 2:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 16 | Davidson | W 80–60 | 9–1 | 22 – Johnson | 8 – Wilkins | 5 – Hall | John Paul Jones Arena (13,910) Charlottesville, VA |
| Dec 19, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 13 | Savannah State | W 78–47 | 10–1 | 17 – Jerome | 7 – Wilkins | 5 – Johnson | John Paul Jones Arena (13,597) Charlottesville, VA |
| Dec 22, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 13 | Hampton | W 82–48 | 11–1 | 15 – Guy | 9 – Wilkins | 4 – Johnson | John Paul Jones Arena (13,328) Charlottesville, VA |
| ACC Regular Season |||||||||
| Dec 30, 2017 2:00 pm, RSN | No. 9 | Boston College | W 59–58 | 12–1 (1–0) | 31 – Jerome | 14 – Wilkins | 3 – Hall | John Paul Jones Arena (14,538) Charlottesville, VA |
| Jan 3, 2018 9:00 pm, ACCN | No. 8 | at Virginia Tech Commonwealth Clash | W 78–52 | 13–1 (2–0) | 14 – Hunter | 7 – Tied | 5 – Jerome | Cassell Coliseum (5,945) Blacksburg, VA |
| Jan 6, 2018 1:00 pm, ESPN | No. 8 | No. 12 North Carolina | W 61–49 | 14–1 (3–0) | 16 – Hall | 7 – Hunter | 7 – Hall | John Paul Jones Arena (14,401) Charlottesville, VA |
| Jan 9, 2018 8:00 pm, ACCN | No. 3 | Syracuse | W 68–61 | 15–1 (4–0) | 22 – Guy | 9 – Wilkins | 8 – Hall | John Paul Jones Arena (13,625) Charlottesville, VA |
| Jan 14, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 3 | NC State | W 68–51 | 16–1 (5–0) | 25 – Hall | 6 – Wilkins | 6 – Jerome | John Paul Jones Arena (14,317) Charlottesville, VA |
| Jan 18, 2018 8:00 pm, ACCN | No. 2 | at Georgia Tech | W 64–48 | 17–1 (6–0) | 17 – Hunter | 7 – Hunter | 5 – Jerome | McCamish Pavilion (8,600) Atlanta, GA |
| Jan 21, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 2 | at Wake Forest | W 59–49 | 18–1 (7–0) | 17 – Guy | 7 – Hall | 4 – Guy | LJVM Coliseum (10,014) Winston-Salem, NC |
| Jan 23, 2018 7:00 pm, RSN | No. 2 | No. 18 Clemson | W 61–36 | 19–1 (8–0) | 14 – Hall | 5 – Tied | 3 – Jerome | John Paul Jones Arena (14,149) Charlottesville, VA |
| Jan 27, 2018 2:00 pm, CBS | No. 2 | at No. 4 Duke | W 65–63 | 20–1 (9–0) | 17 – Guy | 8 – Hall | 7 – Jerome | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Jan 31, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 2 | Louisville | W 74–64 | 21–1 (10–0) | 22 – Guy | 10 – Wilkins | 9 – Jerome | John Paul Jones Arena (14,310) Charlottesville, VA |
| Feb 3, 2018 4:00 pm, ACCN | No. 2 | at Syracuse | W 59–44 | 22–1 (11–0) | 15 – Hunter | 6 – Wilkins | 6 – Jerome | Carrier Dome (27,083) Syracuse, NY |
| Feb 7, 2018 7:00 pm, RSN | No. 2 | at Florida State | W 59–55 | 23–1 (12–0) | 17 – Hall | 6 – Diakite | 3 – Hall | Donald L. Tucker Civic Center (10,657) Tallahassee, FL |
| Feb 10, 2018 6:15 pm, ESPN | No. 2 | Virginia Tech Commonwealth Clash/College Gameday | L 60–61 $^{OT}$ | 23–2 (12–1) | 16 – Hall | 8 – Jerome | 4 – Jerome | John Paul Jones Arena (14,593) Charlottesville, VA |
| Feb 13, 2018 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | at Miami (FL) | W 59–50 | 24–2 (13–1) | 22 – Hunter | 7 – Salt | 7 – Jerome | Watsco Center (7,333) Coral Gables, FL |
| Feb 21, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | Georgia Tech | W 65–54 | 25–2 (14–1) | 18 – Jerome | 6 – Salt | 5 – Jerome | John Paul Jones Arena (13,873) Charlottesville, VA |
| Feb 24, 2018 4:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 1 | at Pittsburgh | W 66–37 | 26–2 (15–1) | 14 – Hunter | 10 – Hunter | 4 – Hall | Peterson Events Center (6,534) Pittsburgh, PA |
| Mar 1, 2018 8:00 pm, ACCN | No. 1 | at Louisville | W 67–66 | 27–2 (16–1) | 21 – Jerome | 9 – Hall | 4 – Hall | KFC Yum! Center (19,413) Louisville, KY |
| Mar 3, 2018 4:00 pm, ACCN | No. 1 | Notre Dame | W 62–57 | 28–2 (17–1) | 17 – Hall | 6 – Tied | 6 – Hall | John Paul Jones Arena (14,205) Charlottesville, VA |
| ACC Tournament |||||||||
| Mar 8, 2018 12:00 pm, ESPN/ACCN | (1) No. 1 | vs. (9) Louisville Quarterfinals | W 75–58 | 29–2 | 19 – Guy | 7 – Guy | 5 – Hall | Barclays Center (17,732) Brooklyn, NY |
| Mar 9, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN/ACCN | (1) No. 1 | vs. (4) No. 19 Clemson Semifinals | W 64–58 | 30–2 | 15 – Guy | 8 – Salt | 10 – Jerome | Barclays Center (18,157) Brooklyn, NY |
| Mar 10, 2018 8:30 pm, ESPN/ACCN | (1) No. 1 | vs. (6) No. 12 North Carolina Championship | W 71–63 | 31–2 | 16 – Guy | 6 – Jerome | 6 – Jerome | Barclays Center (18,157) Brooklyn, NY |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| Mar 16, 2018* 9:20 pm, TNT | (1 S) No. 1 | vs. (16 S) UMBC First Round | L 54–74 | 31–3 | 15 – Tied | 5 – Wilkins | 2 – Jerome | Spectrum Center (17,943) Charlotte, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. S=South region. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking RV = Received votes ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | RV | 18 | 15 | 16 | 13 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 2 (17) | 2 (16) | 1 (42) | 1 (48) | 1 (65) | 1 (65) | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV^ | 25 | 15 | 12 | 16 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 (8) | 2 (8) | 3 (5) | 2 (3) | 1 (17) | 1 (32) | 1 (32) | 5 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings. Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll at the same time the AP did.