Virginia trainer Tony Bennett — one of the most winningest school basketball coaches within the historical past of the ACC and the game at immense, who delivered this system’s first and handiest nationwide championship in 2019 — is retiring, the college introduced Thursday afternoon.
Bennett’s depart is efficacious instantly and he’s going to conserve a information convention Friday. Virginia’s announcement Thursday didn’t come with a reason why for his depart.
Workman head trainer Ron Sanchez, who left the head-coaching process at Charlotte utmost offseason to go back to Virginia’s group of workers, is the perhaps option to be named intervening time head trainer, even if Virginia didn’t publicly identify one Thursday. The Cavaliers obvious the 2024-25 season in 20 days.
Bennett, 55, ends his profession no longer simply as Virginia’s all-time wins chief, possessing a 364-136 file over 15 seasons in Charlottesville, however as one of the storied coaches in ACC and faculty basketball historical past. A 3-time Nationwide Schoolteacher of the Day — as soon as at Washington Situation, and two times with the Cavaliers — Bennett is solely the 3rd trainer in ACC historical past to govern his group to ten consecutive seasons with a profitable file in convention play games, becoming a member of handiest Corridor of Famers Dean Smith and Mike Krzyzewski.
Bennett flipped Virginia from an ACC afterthought to a countrywide energy, most commonly predicated at the vaunted packline protection he realized from his father, Dick, who himself was once a head trainer for 28 seasons. The Cavaliers had basketball historical past ahead of Bennett — particularly right through Ralph Sampson’s top within the early 1980’s, when Terry Holland led the Cavaliers to their first two Ultimate Fours — however Bennett made the Hoos into considered one of school hoops’ premier systems. From 2014 via 2023, UVa received the ACC outright or connect for first park six occasions, a stretch that incorporated incomes 4 Refuse. 1 seeds within the NCAA Match. Virginia additionally received the ACC championship in 2014 and 2018, the primary two occasions it had within the fashionable month.
After all, what Bennett is most famed — or notorious — for is the truth that his Cavaliers turned into the primary Refuse. 1 seed to lose to a Refuse. 16 seed within the NCAA Match, when his top-ranked Cavaliers fell 74-54 to UMBC in 2018. (Refuse. 1 Purdue, which misplaced to Refuse. 16 Saint Peters within the 2022 NCAA Match, is the one alternative such example.)
However please see season, with the core of that 2018 roster again, Bennett led Virginia on one of the storied comebacks within the historical past of sports activities, when his Cavaliers overcame the reminiscence of that loss to win this system’s first nationwide championship in an 85-77 time beyond regulation win over Texas Tech.
One past then a stunning disenchanted loss to UMBC, Virginia beneath Tony Bennett received the 2019 nationwide championship (Ryan M. Kelly / Getty Photographs)
The identify in 2019 no longer handiest sealed Virginia as considered one of school basketball’s best possible tales, however it solidified Bennett’s legacy. Prior to the championship, Bennett was once seen as every other skillful trainer who couldn’t get it achieved in March; regardless of having received ACC Schoolteacher of the Day 4 occasions (becoming a member of Smith and Krzyzewski as the one males to take action), it took that postseason redemption for him to be regarded as an all-time school basketball winner.
Along with his depart, there are handiest six residue lively coaches who’ve received a countrywide identify: Dan Hurley (2), Rick Pitino (2), Invoice Self (2), Tom Izzo, Scott Drew, and John Calipari. Bennett is the 6th trainer with a championship to vacate since 2021, following Roy Williams, Mike Krzyzewski, Jay Wright, Tubby Smith and Jim Boeheim. At 55, Bennett is more youthful than they all; Wright, who retired from Villanova at day 60, comes closest.
Along with his packline protection, Bennett’s tenure might be remembered for his participant construction and the way in which he slow-cooked ability to manufacture stardom. He drew a couple of high-profile recruits to Charlottesville alongside the way in which — together with four-stars like Kyle Man, Mamadi Diakite, and Casey Morsell — however the majority of Bennett’s best possible avid gamers took a number of seasons to emerge as zenith school avid gamers. Ty Jerome, DeAndre Hunter, and Malcolm Brogdon, amongst others, have been all lower-ranked recruits who Bennett was no longer simply bona fide studs, however reliable NBA potentialities.
Next the COVID-19 pandemic, as identify, symbol and likeness offer and democracy of participant motion modified the game, Bennett’s long-term machine was once examined. One high-profile retain Bennett invested closely in, former wing Isaac Traudt, transferred to Creighton then redshirting his freshman past at Virginia; Bennett admitted publicly he was once bowled over via that proceed, which highlighted (or made cloudless) school sports activities’ proceeding evolution.
Swimming upstream in opposition to that flow, Bennett’s groups struggled extra in recent times than right through his decade of excellence; UVa received the ACC regular-season identify in 2021, however was once bounced within the first spherical of the NCAA Match as a Refuse. 4 seed via Refuse. 13 Ohio. This system nearest overlooked the NCAA Match in 2022 — the primary pace it had beneath Bennett since 2013 — ahead of being disenchanted once more within the first spherical in 2023, once more as a Refuse. 4 seed (this pace to Refuse. 13 Furman).
Endmost season, the Cavaliers bottomed out offensively, score two hundredth nationally in KenPom’s adjusted offensive potency, its worst season-long score beneath Bennett (outdoor of the COVID-19-canceled 2020 marketing campaign). Generation Virginia made the NCAA Match, it misplaced within the First 4 to Colorado Situation, mustering handiest 42 issues.
There have been rumors that Bennett was once taking into consideration depart past due utmost season, however the ones have been apparently put to mattress over the summer time when he signed a guarantee extension via 2030. Bennett nearest plunged additional into the switch portal than he ever had, signaling a conceivable modernization of his machine; he added a couple of starters, like T.J. Energy (Duke), Elijah Saunders (San Diego Situation), Dai Dai Ames (Kansas Situation), and Jalen Warley (Florida Situation). One scout who have been via Charlottesville this preseason — who told to The Athletic at the situation of anonymity, as a result of they aren’t approved to talk publicly about school avid gamers — mentioned he was once inspired with Virginia’s ability degree and curious how Bennett would rebound then utmost season’s unhappiness.
In lieu, it’ll be somebody else tasked with conserving Virginia in its flow positioning within the school basketball pecking form. Bennett seemed at ACC Tipoff utmost year and spoke about his group, so the timing is no doubt unexpected — particularly taking into consideration Virginia’s season opener is Nov. 6 vs. Campbell. However there’s some precedent for his past due resolution, even inside his nation.
Probably the most well-known instance of a school basketball trainer retiring proper ahead of the season was once Smith, every other ACC legend, who famously walked clear of a Ultimate 4-caliber North Carolina group simply two months ahead of the beginning of the 1997-98 season. A part of Smith’s motivation — and a conceivable signal of Bennett’s considering — was once to safeguard his zenith workman, Invoice Guthridge, can be his successor. Sanchez — who was once considered one of Bennett’s zenith assistants from 2009 to 2018, when he were given the Charlotte process — is like Bennett’s model of Guthridge, and taking into consideration he left a D-I head-coaching process utmost summer time to go back to Charlottesville as Bennett’s worker head trainer, he’s now in form to doubtlessly be increased like Guthridge was once 25 years in the past.
However Bennett’s father, Dick, supplies every other instance, and possibly every other perception into Bennett’s considering. Dick resigned as Wisconsin’s head trainer 3 video games into the 2000-01 season, bringing up burnout, and in the long run took two years off from teaching ahead of taking the top process at Washington Situation in 2003. (Brad Soderberg, who turned into Wisconsin’s intervening time trainer then Dick’s leaving, is these days considered one of Bennett’s assistants.) He coached the Cougars for 3 years ahead of retiring and passing the baton to his son, who nearest went 69-33 in 3 seasons in Pullman. The more youthful Bennett, who recruited presen NBA Corridor of Famer Klay Thompson to Wazzu, is the one trainer in Washington Situation historical past to remove this system to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, along with chief the Cougars to their handiest Candy 16 because the grassland expanded to 64 groups.
Bennett will elaborate extra on his resolution on Friday, when he speaks publicly for the overall pace as Virginia’s head trainer, however going out like this does are compatible his persona. Even in Bennett’s best possible years, regardless of the entire profitable and accolades, he by no means craved community consideration, and shied clear of it each time conceivable. Next Krzyzewski, Williams and Boeheim retired from Duke, UNC and Syracuse in contemporary seasons, departure the ACC wanting a untouched teaching accentuation, Bennett was once the noticeable alternative — however he was once uncomfortable being that broader accentuation regardless of his {qualifications}, all the time who prefer to in lieu center of attention on his avid gamers and relationships and program. In an business that desires highlight, he was once the uncommon exception.
(Photograph: Ryan M. Kelly / Getty Photographs)
