Head Coach: Pete Gillen: @ Virginia: 86-65, 6th season; Overall: 350-193, 19th year. National Championships: 0; Final Four appearances: 0
2002-03 Record: 16-16 overall; 6-10 in the ACC (7th)
Players to watch: Devin Smith and Majestic Mapp are the keys to Virginia's '03-'04 campaign. Smith is one of the Cavaliers' leading returning scorers, and Mapp--who has been hampered by injuries--is due for a good season.
After a disappointing 16-16 record in the 2002-03 season, which ended in the first round of the NIT, the off-season was even worse for the Virginia Cavaliers. Thomas Jefferson's school lost last year's star center Travis Watson to graduation, and guards Keith Jennifer and center Nick Vander Laan transferred to other schools.
Cavaliers head coach Pete Gillen is still optimistic about his team's chances for the 2003-04 season.
Virginia will be led this season by Watson's tag-team partner Elton Brown. The beefy 6-foot-9 center averaged 9.6 points per game last season, and those numbers should only increase now that he has free reign in the post. The Newport News, Va., native was criticized for shooting too many perimeter shots, but this season Brown says he will be focused on playing in the paint.
"This year, we need a low-post presence, and I just want to stay there most of the time," Brown said. "If you see me outside shooting the three, it's not going to be five times down the court shooting 3s. Maybe if I'm trailing or wide open, but other than that, I'm just going to get set down low where all the banging is."
Gillen has also pointed out that 6-foot-8, 240 pound freshman Donte Minter could see substantial time in the post.
The Cavaliers are deepest at the small forward position, returning Devin Smith, Derrick Byars and Jason Clark. Smith had knee surgery before the 2002-03 season, and took substancial time to play himself into shape. The sweet shooting forward should be at full strength at the beginning of the season, allowing for important development and team cohesion that was absent a season ago.
Byers' talent was obvious enough last season that he was asked to try-out for the USA basketball national team, and Gillen said that Clark is the team's most talented player.
Senior Todd Billet is Virginia's leading returning scorer, as he averaged 13.5 points per game while leading the ACC in three-point shooting percentage. Senior Majestic Mapp joins Billet in the backcourt, hoping to have the first healthy season of his college career. Mapp returned after 34 months of rehabilitation and four knee surgeries in the middle of the 2003 campaign, but was significantly slower than before the injuries. Another summer of rehab could lead to substancial improvements in his lateral movement.
Gillen just hopes his players gel enough to turn the under-achievements of 2003 into over-achievements in 2004.
"We're trying to define roles better, and we're getting more positive leadership from Todd Billet, Devin Smith, Elton a little bit, Majestic Mapp a little bit," Gillen said. "Our attitude has been great, the leadership has been great, the work ethic has been excellent, so I feel good about our team. A lot of people don't think we'll be very good, but I feel good about them and we'll see what happens."
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