Virginia

The Cavaliers finished near the bottom of the ACC standings last year, and despite seven new recruits, this season hasn’t brought much more optimism—at least in the rankings. For the second straight year, the Cavaliers begin as No. 11 in the ACC preseason poll.

Youth is the theme for Virginia this season. Seven out of the 13 players on the roster are freshmen, hand-picked by head coach Tony Bennett for his first recruiting class. However, Virginia lost key players Sylven Landesburg and Jeff Jones from last year’s team. Landesburg led the Cavaliers in scoring with 17.3 points per game before he was suspended from the squad in March.

“That’s the way it goes in college basketball,” Bennett said. “You lose players whether they decide to go to the pros, or transfer, or by graduation. That’s part of a program evolving.”

The Cavaliers’ key returning players include Sammy Zeglinski, Mustapha Farrakhan, Assane Sene and last season’s top rebounder Mike Scott. However, Zeglinski—who started 29 of 31 games last season—underwent knee surgery Oct. 19 and is expected to be out for eight weeks. Depending on how quickly the freshmen adapt to the college game, Zeglinski’s absence could hurt Virginia early in the season.

Fortunately, the Cavaliers’ recruiting class received high praise, led by James Johnson and KT Harrell—both top 100 recruits according to Scout.com.

“If I were giving them a grade, I would give them an ‘A,’ and I’m a hard grader,” said Clark Francis, editor and publisher of the Hoop Scoop. “Virginia landed guys that fit their system, guys that are going to step in and make an immediate impact, good kids that are going to also fit academically.”