Virginia turns to Ryan Odom to guide Cavaliers into post-Tony Bennett era
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Virginia (15-17, 8-12 ACC)
The Cavaliers got a jolt shortly before last season with the sudden retirement of longtime coach Tony Bennett. Assistant Ron Sanchez was the interim coach as the Cavs posted their first losing record since Bennett’s debut season (2009-10).
The school hired Ryan Odom, who had grown up in Charlottesville while his father was an assistant coach in the 1980s. Odom — who coached UMBC to the first 16-vs-1 March Madness upset of Bennett’s Cavaliers in 2018 — has seven transfers, three freshmen and two international players. Virginia is picked fifth in the 18-team ACC race.
Players to watch
Malik Thomas (graduate, G, 6-5, 215, 19.9 ppg). He ranked No. 22 nationally in scoring last year at San Francisco. He shot 39.7% from 3-point range in the past two seasons with the Dons.
Dallin Hall (graduate, PG, 6-4, 197, 6.8 ppg). Hall could be a key playmaker after starting 61 games and averaging 4.1 assists through three seasons at BYU.
Thijs De Ridder (freshman, F, 6-9, 238). The NBA prospect from Belgium had played the past two seasons in Spain’s top pro league. He turns 23 in January.
Departures and arrivals
With five starters gone, opportunities abound for the new arrivals.
The Cavaliers added multiple transfers who were double-digit scorers in their previous stops: graduate guard Jacari White from North Dakota State (17.1), junior forward Sam Lewis from Toledo (16.2) and graduate forward Devin Tillis from UC Irvine (13.7).
Odom added another international NBA prospect in 7-footer Johann Grünloh, who played in Germany’s top pro league. And there was a key freshman addition in point guard Chance Mallory, a four-star prospect who committed under Bennett, de-committed, then re-upped with the Cavs.
Top games
The Cavaliers open at home against Rider on Nov. 3 in a nonconference schedule that includes a Dec. 3 trip to Texas as well as neutral-site games against Dayton (Dec. 6) and Ohio State (Feb. 14), and visit from Maryland (Dec. 20). Virginia opens ACC play at instate rival Virginia Tech on Dec. 31. The league slate includes trips to No. 11 Louisville (Jan. 13) and No. 6 Duke (Feb. 28), along with visit from No. 25 North Carolina (Jan. 24).
Facts and figures
Virginia had four 30-win seasons under Bennett, a former Associated Press men’s national coach of the year who won the 2019 NCAA title. … The Cavaliers haven’t won a March Madness game since that run, losing in the first round in 2021 and 2023 as well as the First Four in 2024. … Odom arrives after three seasons at VCU, which followed stops at Utah State, UMBC and Charlotte.
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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball