The season is upon us. The Hoos are in Bubbleville, Connecticut for their first two games. We’ve looked at the opposition and the players, made our predictions and shared our keys. Some of us have even subscribed to FloSports. Now we all bid aloha to this Preview, as we bid aloha to the season:

Kendall

It was a good season in 19-20, and I was excited to see what this team could do in March… but #42 in KenPom was really weird to me, and everything just seemed so friggin difficult. I’m really going to enjoy seeing the Hoos get back to making our brand of basketball look easy again while terrorizing the improved ACC in 20-21. I think we have the talent, depth, and diversity of skill to make a deep run in March, and part of me is kinda sorta expecting a Frank Kaminsky type of star turn for Jay Huff. We’ll see. One thing I do know: I would never ever bet against Tony Bennett or Kihei Clark. Indianapolis, here we come.

Hooamp

There were so many bumps in the road for the 2019-20 Cavaliers as they dealt with the loss of three all-ACC talents who ended up being selected in the NBA draft. Purdue gave them sweet payback, something I was expecting, though I did not foresee getting crushed that badly. The offense struggled to reach the 60-point threshold time and again and sometimes, even 50 was asking a lot. The offense bottomed out in losses to Boston College and Syracuse. The team was close to toppling Florida State in Tallahassee, where the Seminoles were unbeatable, but it was not to be. For fans, frustration mounted. There was even a time when I wasn’t certain UVa would make the NCAA tournament. Something I’ve almost begun to take as a given each season I was no longer sure about.

But the team started to turn things around. It barely won at terrible Wake Forest, but a victory over the Seminoles followed, and then the team played Louisville very tough on the road. It was clear the ‘Hoos were turning a corner. But even after the wins started to come more regularly during ACC play, rating systems continued to hold down Virginia, making it seem like we might not ever enter the good graces of the selection committee.

But on March 7, I was at John Paul Jones Arena as Virginia avenged its earlier loss at the KFC Yum! Center by beating the Cardinals 57-54. It was a tight, white-knuckle game, as so many were down the stretch for the Wahoos last season. But we were finally starting to see the blossoming of that version of the Cavaliers. Maybe it took a little bit longer than we were used to, but it was happening. As the regular season wrapped up, Virginia had won eight games in a row and 11 of 12, including top-notch victories over FSU, Duke, and Louisville. The defense was maybe the best it had ever been under Tony Bennett, and the offense, though far, far from perfect or its usual efficient self, was doing just enough to get the job done. Mamadi Diakite and Braxton Key were leading the team, Jay Huff was becoming a monster right before our very eyes, and Kihei Clark was developing a killer instinct and shot.

I wasn’t expecting another championship or even another Final Four trip, but I knew no one — and I mean not one team in any corner of the nation — was wanting to see the ‘Hoos as a No. 7 or 8 seed in their region. I knew the guys would fight and give it all they had, and maybe that was going to be good enough to win two to three games in the Big Dance, maybe not. But we were going to be proud of the development of this team.

And then, just over the course of a few days, all of that excitement and anticipation was taken away as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the U.S. In an instant, one of the rites of March and probably my favorite sporting event of the year was canceled.

Virginia never got a chance to defend its title. I was so curious to see how that team was going to perform in the tournament. Now, and even more so because of that sudden stop to last season, I am so pumped up for this long-awaited return of the ‘Hoos to the hardwood. On paper, this team has maybe the most talent of any team in UVa history. If Bennett figured out how to win with last season’s offensively challenged group, it only makes sense why fans are salivating over this squad’s potential. As Bart Scott said, can’t wait.

Karl Hess (Not the Real Ref)

Sports, for the most part, serve as a distraction from the real world for fans. As we are about to embark on a new hoops season among a pandemic, post presidential election shitshow, and a continued quest for real racial equality, I approach the season both with a sense of excitement and a real bittersweet feeling. This season, more than others, it’s impossible to compartmentalize the sports world from the real world.

And that’s okay.

The players and coaches we cheer and adore, or vilify and root against, are the same as fans with real needs, desires, and worthy thoughts and opinions.

I’m expecting a fun season for the Hoos, in whatever form and timeline it comes. But I also want to keep at the forefront of my thoughts the sacrifices being made to give us this college basketball season. It goes beyond just the players, coaches, and their families. Let us all be thankful for, and aware of, the unseen workers and volunteers that will make this season possible around the country. They’re making very real sacrifices, and taking risks in many cases, just so we can enjoy games of basketball on television or our devices.

StLouHoo

As I said in closing up our football season preview a few months ago, take a deep breath and be patient. This is going to be a bumpy season, and not just in the usual “lose some close ones, deal with some injuries” sorts of ways, but in the “not knowing who we’re playing, or even if we’re playing, in any given week” way.

It’s going to suck at times, no way around it. But no use getting bummed out about it. Acknowledge it for what it is, accept the hurdles that are there and beyond our control, and be appreciative for the basketball season we do get.

Best case scenario, it’ll look like football has looked, uneven at times, results maybe deserving of the occasional asterisk, but at the end of it all the games are still mostly being played. As I write this we’re 2+ months into the football season without any major front page incidents related to the pandemic. A few guys have opted out, a not-inconsequential number of games have been shifted around but not so many that the integrity of the season was compromised, no/limited fans in the stands but we’re still able to watch from him. All in all, it could be much, much worse. And let’s hope that that level of uneven, irregular, but ultimately meaningful basketball is played over the next ~4 months.

Find things to look forward to. One last year of Jay Huff. One shining year of Sam Hauser. The introduction of bright new faces wearing the UVA uniform. The occasional brilliant buzzer-beating finish. Some statement wins over our rivals.

And, as always, be appreciative of the sterling coach we have at the helm in Tony Bennett and the cast of incredible assistants and bright student-athletes he’s assembled in the program. Maybe we’ll make another Final Four run, maybe the season won’t go quite as planned due to injuries or the pandemic or whatever. But at the end of it all that 2019 banner is still hanging in JPJ, and the program is still on a great track not just to weather the weird, wild 2020-21 storm but to pick right up where the left off whenever things get “back to normal” next year.

Whatever the year brings, we’ll be wearing our V-Sabres proudly and cheering as loudly on our couches as we would’ve in JPJ.

Eugene Mulero

If Virginia men’s basketball squad stays healthy and sticks to a multi-player offensive dynamic, they are bound to make a formidable run in the ACC and NCAA tournaments.

This year the team has a deep bench, and two leaders in Jay Huff (on defense) and Sam Hauser (on offense). The duo will be expected to establish a rhythm during games, with Hauser undoubtedly setting the tempo as the team’s first option. After last season’s low productivity on offense, a spike in scoring this year will be highly appreciated at UVA. In Hauser, a transfer from Marquette, UVA has a true triple threat—he can shoot the jumper, find the open man, and drive to the rim. Hauser’s mid-range jumper will help spread the floor to create opportunities for his teammates, especially the backcourt. A fierce defensive presence from Huff also could lead to easy buckets for the Cavs.

Overall, Virginia has the tools and the coaching staff to win big in the ACC. They also are good enough to make a decent run in the tournament. Several basketball observers, including this writer, can actually see UVA reach the Final Four.
In a year marked by the coronavirus pandemic, it’s safe to say the college basketball world is hopeful for a full, uninterrupted season.

Seattle Hoo

If reading this preview was for you like producing it was for me, you are excited for this season and raring to go. You want to see the team take the floor with an anticipation and a hope you haven’t felt in months. Amidst all the pain and uncertainty of our lives, we have Virginia Men’s Basketball.

That’s it. I’ve got nothing else. I’m ready for this season to start, and I’m excited to watch it all play out. As always, we have a great group of young men to root for, and I know that while I might come away from a game disappointed in how well they played, I will never leave it disappointed in how faithfully they played. I can always look back on a UVA game and say, “That’s what it’s supposed to be about.”

Wahoowa.