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Virginia (5-3) vs. Hampton (0-3)
December 10, 1999 – 6:00 p.m.
Hampton Convocation Center
Hampton, Va.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia is currently 5-3 on the season and snapped a two-game losingstreak with a 98-67 victory over Loyola at University Hall on Wednesday(Dec. 8). Hampton is 0-3 overall and 0-1 in the Mid-Eastern AthleticConference. The Pirates are coming off a 70-69 home loss to Norfolk Statein their MEAC opener on Wednesday (Dec. 8).

Television: Friday’s game against Hampton is scheduled to be televised byESPN2.

Radio: All UVa games are heard on the Virginia Sports Network originatingat WINA/WQMZ in Charlottesville. Mac McDonald calls the play by play. JimHobgood provides the analysis.

The Series vs. Hampton
Virginia leads the series with Hampton 1-0, having defeated thePirates 116-66 in the initial meeting last season (Nov. 25) at UniversityHall. Guard Adam Hall led five UVa players in double figures with acareer-high 27 points. Forward Chris Williams added 21 for the Cavaliers,who shot 54.7 percent (35-64) from the floor.

Virginia’s 116 points are the fifth-highest total in a game inschool history and the most since scoring a school record 128 againstGeorge Mason (1/28/95).

Virginia vs. the MEAC
The Cavaliers are 5-0 all-time against teams from the Mid-EasternAthletic Conference (MEAC). Friday’s contest is the first time thatVirginia will play a MEAC team away from University Hall.

In addition to the 116-66 win over Hampton last season, Virginia’sother victories over MEAC schools came against North Carolina A&T (94-50)and Bethune-Cookman (109-49) during the 1994-95 season, Coppin State(63-61) in 1993-94, and Howard (100-64) in 1992-93.

UVa’s average margin of victory over MEAC teams is 38.4 points pergame. If you take out the two point win over Coppin State, the averagemargin of victory jumps to 47.5 points per game.

Virginia vs. In-State Teams
This is the Cavaliers’ second of four games this season against anin-state opponent. In the first in-state matchup, Virginia defeated VMI98-57 (Nov. 21) at University Hall. In the last 21 seasons, the Cavaliersare 89-14 (.864) against in-state opponents.

Last season, the Cavaliers’ were 5-0 against in-state opponentsdefeating Hampton, Liberty, Virginia Commonwealth, VMI and Virginia Tech.

In the 1997-98 season, the Cavaliers were 5-2 against in-statefoes. The two losses were the most against state teams since the 1987-88season when the Cavaliers were 1-3 vs. state teams. Pete Gillen is 7-2 against Virginia schools as a collegiate head coach. He is2-0 vs. VMI, 1-0 vs. Hampton and Liberty, 2-1 vs. Virginia Tech, and 1-1vs. VCU.

Gillen’s Xavier team defeated Virginia Tech 85-52 in 1993-94, whilehis 1994-95 Providence team lost to the Hokies 91-78 in the NIT. In the1993-94 season, Gillen’s Xavier team lost to VCU 79-76.

Changes in Virginia’s Starting Lineup
Virginia head coach Pete Gillen has used seven different startinglineups and has had a total of 10 different players start in the firsteight games of the Cavaliers’ 1999-2000 season. Virginia is 5-2 ingames this season with new starting lineups. Only one player, sophomoreAdam Hall, has started all eight games.

The Cavaliers opened the season with junior Stephane Dondon andsophomore Chris Williams at forward, and junior Colin Ducharme at center.Junior Donald Hand and Hall started in the backcourt. In the second game, a98-57 triumph over VMI, Gillen started freshman Travis Watson at centerinstead of Ducharme. With the same starting lineup in the third game of theseason against South Carolina, the Cavaliers suffered a 73-71 setback.

Gillen changed his starting lineup for the third time againstProvidence and it resulted in an 80-64 victory. Hall, Williams and Watsonremained in the starting lineup, but junior guard Keith Friel and freshmanguard Majestic Mapp started in place of Hand and Dondon. The Cavaliers usedtheir fourth different starting combination against Arizona State (Hall,Williams, Watson, Mapp and Hand) and came away with a 70-64 victory.

In a 74-62 loss at Minnesota in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge onNovember 30, Virginia started senior Willie Dersch, Ducharme, Hall, Handand Watson. UVa started its sixth different lineup against St. John’s lastSaturday (Dec. 4) when freshman Roger Mason, Hall, Hand, Watson andWilliams were in the Cavaliers’ starting lineup.

Gillen used his seventh different starting lineup in a 98-67 winover Loyola on Wednesday (Dec. 8). Dersch and Williams started at forwardwith Watson at center. At the two guard positions, Hand and Hall receivedthe starting nod.

Hall Breaks Out of Scoring Slump
Sophomore guard Adam Hall broke out of his scoring slump bytallying all of his team-high 18 points in the first half of Virginia’s98-67 victory over Loyola at University Hall on Wednesday (Dec. 8). Hall,who had not scored in double figures in four consecutive games, made eightof 10 attempts from the floor, including two of three three-pointers in thegame. He also added five rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes ofaction.

11 and 7
In its 98-67 win over Loyola on Wednesday, Virginia made aseason-high 11 three-point field goals with seven different playersaccounting for the threes. The 11 three-pointers are the 11th highesttotal in school history. (The Cavaliers made 11 three-pointers in a gameeight other times.)

UVa tied the school record of 15 threes in a game against Hampton(Nov. 25) last season. In that game, seven different Cavaliers also madethree-pointers.

Donald Hand and Travis Watson Lead the Way
Junior guard Donald Hand led the Cavaliers in scoring last season(17.1 ppg.) and is leading the team in scoring through the first eightgames of the 1999-2000 season (15.0 ppg.). Hand has led the team inscoring in three games. Freshman forward/center Travis Watson is second onthe team in scoring (12.6 ppg.) and is the team’s leading rebounder (9.1rpg.). Watson has led the team in scoring twice and in rebounding sixtimes, including the last three contests. He has two double-doubles inpoints and rebounds.

Freshmen Making Significant Contribution
Three freshmen are playing significant minutes for Virginia in theearly part of the 1999-2000 season. Forward/center Travis Watson, andguards Majestic Mapp and Roger Mason have each seen action in all eight ofVirginia’s games.

Watson has started seven games for the Cavaliers and is the team’sleading rebounder (9.1 rpg.) and second leading scorer (12.6 ppg.). He alsoleads the team in field goal percentage (60.3 percent, 38-63) and blockedshots (seven), and is second on the team in steals (14). Watson isaveraging 26.1 minutes of playing time a game. Watson is third among allACC players in rebounding with his averge of 9.1 rebounds per game.

Mapp is averaging 6.8 points and 0.9 rebound a game while playing19.2 minutes per game. He has started two games and is shooting ateam-high 52.9 percent (9-17) from three-point range. Mapp has 21 assistsand 17 turnovers.

Mason is averaging 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds a game. He isaveraging 16.4 minutes of playing time a game and has nine steals and nineassists.

Nine Different Double Figure Scorers
In the first eight games of the 1999-2000 season, the Cavaliershave had nine different players score in double figures in a game.Virginia had only seven players reach double figures in scoring lastseason. Senior forward Willie Dersch became the ninth Cavalier to score indouble figures in the 1999-2000 season when he tallied 10 points againstArizona State in the Puerto Rico Shootout on November 27. The other doublefigure scorers this season are: (only first double digit performance islisted) sophomore guard Adam Hall (12 vs. VMI), junior guard Donald Hand(18 vs. Elon), freshman guard Majestic Mapp (10 vs. Elon), freshman guardRoger Mason (10 vs. Elon), freshman forward/center Travis Watson (15 vs.Elon), sophomore forward Chris Williams (16 vs. Elon), junior guard KeithFriel (14 vs. South Carolina), and junior center Colin Ducharme (10 vs.South Carolina).

Three Opponents Shoot 50 Percent
Prior to Virginia’s 98-67 win over Loyola on Wednesday (Dec. 8),Virginia’s last three opponents shot 50 percent or better. (Loyola shot47.1 percent , 24-51.) Arizona State shot exactly 50 percent (28-56) onNovember 27, Minnesota connected on 55.1 percent (27-49) from the floor,and St. John’s converted a UVa opponent-best 55.4 percent (31-56) from thefield.

Last year, Virginia did not have opponents shoot 50 percent orbetter in three-straight contests, however, on two occasions the oppositionshot better than 50 percent in back-to back games.

Duke (1/10) shot 60.5 percent (46-76) followed by a 58.0 percent(29-50) outing by N.C. State (1/14) for the first back-to-back 50 percentshooting performance. In the second instance, Maryland (2/6) shot 54.2percent (32-59) followed by a 58.7 percent (37-63) effort by Duke (2/11).

Head Coach Pete Gillen
Pete Gillen is in his 15th season as a collegiate head coach andsports a 293-147 record for a .666 winning percentage. Gillen is in hissecond year as head coach at Virginia. His two Virginia teams have compiledan overall record of 19-19. Gillen has led his teams to postseason play 11times (eight NCAA, three NIT). He has been selected as the conferenceCoach of the Year five times – all while coaching Xavier (MidwesternCollegiate Conference).

He successfully began his coaching career at Virginia with an 86-70win over Virginia Commonwealth on November 13, 1998.

Not so “Free” Throws
After leading the ACC in free throw percentage (.734) for the firsttime since 1979 last season, the Cavaliers have struggled from the freethrow line in the early portion of the 1999-2000 campaign.

Through the first eight games of the season, UVa has shot 65.3percent (143-219) from the free throw line. The Cavaliers have shot over65 percent from the charity stripe only three times this season.

Virginia’s best performance from the free throw line was a perfecteight for eight outing against Minnesota on November 30. The effort tiedfor the sixth best performance in school history. UVa made all eightattempts from the line vs. Wake Forest (1/26/85) and Houston (12/10/89).Prior to the Minnesota game, the last time the Cavaliers were perfect fromthe free throw line was a six for six effort against Georgia Tech onFebruary 22, 1990.

Spreading the Minutes Around
True to his word, head coach Pete Gillen is going deep into hisbench in 1999-2000. After the first eight games of the season, Virginiahas nine players averaging double figures in minutes. No player isaveraging 30 minutes of playing time per game.

Only four players, sophomore forward Chris Williams (29.6), juniorguard Donald Hand (28.1), freshman forward/center Travis Watson (26.1) andsophomore guard Adam Hall (24.2), are averaging more than 20 minutes percontest. The other players averaging double figure minutes are: freshmanguard Majestic Mapp (19.2), freshman guard Roger Mason (16.4), seniorforward Willie Dersch (13.9), junior guard Keith Friel (12.5), and juniorforward Stephane Dondon (10.8). Junior center Colin Ducharme is averaging9.5 minutes per game.

Virginia Defeats Loyola
The Cavaliers halted their two-game losing streak with a 98-67 winover Loyola on Wednesday at University Hall. UVa shot a season-high 53.7percent (36-67) from the floor and also registered another season best with11 three-pointers. Sophomore Adam Hall led five Virginia players in doublefigure scoring with a season-high 18 points, all of which came in the firsthalf. Hall was eight of 10 from the field. Freshman Travis Watson added14 points and a game-high eight rebounds, while junior Donald Hand tossedin 13 points. Watson recorded four steals and Hand dished out eightassists. Freshman Roger Mason and senior Willie Dersch rounded out thedouble figure scorers for the Cavaliers with 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Guard Jason Rowe led Loyola with 19 points, while forward BlanchardHurd added 17.

Virginia Loses to St. John’s in Madison Square Garden
Despite a season-high 20 points from forward Chris Williams, and 10points and nine rebounds from Travis Watson, UVa dropped an 85-63 decisionto St. John’s University in Madison Square Garden last Saturday (Dec. 4).Erick Barkley led five St. John’s players in double figures with 27 points.The Red Storm shot 55.4 percent (31-56) from the field, including 50percent (6-12) from three-point range, in the victory over the Cavaliers.The loss was Virginia’s second in a row.

Cavaliers Lose to Minnesota in ACC/Big Ten Challenge
Virginia shot a season-low 36.4 percent from the field and theCavaliers were out-rebounded 41-32 in a 74-62 loss at Minnesota in theACC/Big Ten Challenge on November 30. Terrance Simmons paced fourMinnesota players in double figures with 15 points, while freshman forwardTravis Watson scored a game-high 16 points and grabbed a team-high sevenrebounds to lead Virginia.

Cavaliers Finish Fifth in Puerto Rico Shootout
After dropping its first round game in the Puerto Rico Shootout toSouth Carolina 73-71 on November 25, UVa won its next two games to finishfifth in the tournament. The Cavaliers defeated Providence 80-64 onNovember 26, and then posted a 70-64 victory over Arizona State in thefifth place game on November 27.

Junior guard Donald Hand was named to the All-Tournament team afteraveraging 19.3 points in the three contests. He was 20 of 28 (71.4 percent)from the free throw line, including a 14 of 17 effort against Providence.Hand scored a season-high 26 points in the win over the Friars.

No Three-Pointers
Virginia held Arizona State without a three-point field goal onNovember 27, marking the sixth time since the inception of the three-pointfield goal in the 1986-87 season that UVa has accomplished the feat.Interestingly, two of the five previous games that Virginia held opponentswithout a three-pointer came last season in a span of eight days (Loyola0-7 on 12/30/98 and Maryland 0-7 on 1/7/99).

Only Two in Double Figure Scoring
The Cavaliers had only two players score in double figures in theirvictory against Providence (Nov. 26) and their loss to St. John’s (Dec. 4),marking the only times this season Virginia has not had at least threeplayers score in double figures in a game. Last season, Virginia failed tohave at least three players score in double figures four times, but onlywon one of those contests (a 65-58 win over Clemson on January 17, 1999).Back-to-Back 90 Point Games

The Cavaliers scored over 90 points in back-to-back games to openthe year for the first time since the 1975-76 season. Virginia began the1999-2000 season with a 97-66 win over Elon, then defeated VMI 98-57. Thelast time the Cavaliers scored that many points in the first two games of aseason was in 1975-76 when they posted 113-65 and 101-57 victories overHampden-Sydney and Washington & Lee, respectively.

The combined margin of victory over Elon and VMI (72 points) is thelargest in the first two games of a season since 1975-76 when UVa won by 92points.

Double Double in Debut
Freshman forward Travis Watson became only the third freshman in Virginiahistory since the restoration of freshman eligibility in 1972-73 to recorda “double double” in the first game of his career. Oddly enough, it isalso the second straight year that it has happened.

Watson totaled 15 points and 14 rebounds in only 19 minutes in the seasonopener against Elon on November 19. He earned his first career startagainst VMI on November 21 and totaled 16 points (7 of 9 FGs, 2-2 FTs),seven rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots and two steals in 25 minutesof action.

Current sophomore Chris Williams opened his UVa career with a 20-point,10-rebound “double double” against Virginia Commonwealth last season.The first player to record a double double in his first game was ScottJohnson, who scored 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in 27 minutes in the1995-96 season opener against Tennessee-Martin.

The performances of several notable Cavaliers in their college debuts arelisted below.

Ducharme Eighth on Blocked Shot List
Junior center Colin Ducharme is currently eighth on Virginia’sall-time blocked shot list with 80. He needs three more blocks to movepast Ted Jefferies (1990-93) into seventh place.

Ducharme is tied with current teammate Chris Williams for theninth-best single season block total with 41. Ducharme notched his 41blocks while leading the team in that category in 1996-97. Williams’ 41blocks came last year. In addition to leading the team in blocks in1996-97, Ducharme also held that honor in 1997-98 with 34.

Watson Perfect From Field
Freshman forward/center Travis Watson was a perfect six-for-sixfrom the field against South Carolina on November 25 to tie for Virginia’sfifth best perfect shooting game from the field of all time. It is the11th time that a player has made all six attempts from the field. Prior toWatson, the last UVa player to make every attempt (minimum of five) fromthe floor was Kenny Turner, who tied the school record with a nine-for-nineeffort against Samford on 11/28/89. Jeff Jones (vs. Alabama-Birmingham3/18/82) also shares the school record with Turner.

Dersch and Hand Elected Captains
Senior forward Willie Dersch and junior guard Donald Hand have beenelected captains of the 1999-2000 Virginia basketball team by theirteammates. Both players served as captains of the basketball team lastseason.

In 1998-99, Dersch started 26 of the 30 games in which he playedand received the team’s Michael McCann Leadership Award. He averaged 10.2points and 2.8 rebounds a game last season. The three-year letterwinner isthe only senior on the 1999-2000 UVa team.

Hand started all 30 games last season and was the co-recipient ofthe Bill Gibson Cavalier of the Year Award as the team’s most valuableplayer. Hand led the Cavaliers in scoring (17.1 ppg), assists (123, 4.1ppg.), steals (57), free throw shooting (86.2 percent, 162-188) andthree-point field goals (50). He was the top free throw shooter in theAtlantic Coast Conference last season. His 41 points in Virginia’s 82-79overtime victory over North Carolina State last February are a UVasophomore record and the most points scored by a Virginia player sinceBarry Parkhill established a school record with 51 points againstBaldwin-Wallace during the 1971-72 season.

1999-2000 ACC Pre-Season Media Prediction
(Indicates first place votes)

Five Players Mentioned for ACC Pre-Season Honors
Virginia had five players receive votes for various 1999-2000Pre-Season Atlantic Coast Conference teams as selected by the mediaattending the conference’s 38th annual Operation Basketball held on October24 in Greensboro.

Headlining the UVa list is sophomore forward Chris Williams who wasselected to the pre-season All-ACC second team. Williams also receivedconsideration as the pre-season ACC Player of the Year. Last season,Williams was named the ACC Rookie of the Year and also garnered third teamaccolades. He was Virginia’s second leading scorer at 16.8 points per gameand also led the squad with 7.5 rebounds per outing.

Junior guard Donald Hand was a 1999-2000 honorable mentionpre-season All-ACC selection, having received the 13th-most votes. Handled the Cavaliers in scoring in 1998-99 with 17.1 points per game and wasan honorable mention All-ACC pick at the conclusion of the season.

Three members of Virginia’s heralded freshman class receivedconsideration as the 1999-2000 pre-season ACC Rookie of the Year. Pointguard Majestic Mapp, guard Roger Mason and forward Travis Watson were amongseven league players to receive votes for Rookie of the Year.

Cavaliers Welcome Five Newcomers
The 1999-2000 Virginia men’s basketball team features five newfaces, not including junior Keith Friel. Joining nine returning lettermen,including four returning starters, are Stephane Dondon, Majestic Mapp,Roger Mason, Jason Rogers and Travis Watson.

Dondon, a 6-8 forward from Toulouse, France, is a junior transferfrom Collin County Community College. He earned All-North Texas JuniorCollege Athletic Conference honors both seasons at Collin County CommunityCollege. He is the school’s all-time leading rebounder (550) and ranksfifth in scoring (859 points). He averaged 14.2 points and 8.5 reboundsper game in 1998-99 and led the team to a 22-12 record. In 1997-98, Dondonaveraged 12.1 points and 8.5 rebounds as the team finished the year with a20-11 record. Dondon was Collin County Community College’s Two-YearStudent-Athlete of the Year Award recipient.

Mapp is a 6-2 point guard from St. Raymond’s High School in NewYork City. A highly-rated prospect, Mapp was a four-year starter and twiceearned All-New York City and All-State accolades. He was a McDonald’sAll-America selection and also earned third-team Parade All-America honors.

Mason, a 6-5 guard from Silver Spring, Md., is another freshmanguard who is expected to make an impact in 1999-2000. A three-year starterat Good Counsel High School (he started at Sidwell Friends High School as afreshman before transferring to Good Counsel), Mason averaged 18.7 points,5.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game as a senior. He was Powerade “Mr.Basketball,” as the best player in the Washington, D.C. area, as a senior.

Rogers is a 6-10 center/forward from Staunton, Va. He averaged18.3 points, 11.9 rebounds and 5.9 blocked shots per game as a senior atRobert E. Lee High School. Rogers was a unanimous first-team All-Stateselection by The Associated Press and was also named the Gatorade Player ofthe Year in Virginia.

Watson, a 6-7 forward from Brookneal, Va., was one of 16 finalistsfor the USA Basketball Men’s Junior World Championship Team. He withdrewfor personal reasons before the final 12-man roster was selected. He willcontend for a starting spot on the front line. Watson helped lead Oak HillAcademy to a perfect 31-0 record and a number one ranking in the nation onthe USA Today Super 25 list last season. As a senior, he averaged 16points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.5 steals, 1.3 assists and 1.2 blocked shots agame.

Williams and Hall Win Silver
Sophomores Chris Williams and Adam Hall played on the USABasketball Men’s Junior World Championship Team that earned a silver medalat the 16-team 1999 FIBA Men’s Junior World Championships in Portugal inJuly. Williams, the 1998-99 ACC Rookie of the Year and All-ACC third-teampick, set a tournament record for the USA with 12 blocked shots during thecompetition. He averaged 10.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.

Four Starters Return for 1999-2000
The Cavaliers return four starters from last season-Donald Hand,Chris Williams, Willie Dersch and Chezley Watson. In addition, UVa alsoreturns Adam Hall, who started 17 games, and Colin Ducharme, a two-yearstarter, who was injured after last year’s season-opener. A total of ninelettermen are back to take the hardwood in 1999-2000.

With the return of the nine letterwinners, it’s not surprising thatVirginia returns from last season:

95.3 percent (245 of 257) of the steals
92.9 percent (382 of 411) of the assists
91.0 percent (1986 of 2183) of the points
85.6 percent (5,176 of 6,050) of the minutes
82.1 percent (814 of 992) of the rebounds

Blocked shots is the only category where the Cavaliers lost ahigher percentage than they return. Virginia returns players thataccounted for 41 percent (64 of 156 blocks) of its blocked shots. The goodnews on the blocked shot front is Colin Ducharme, who swatted 75 shots inhis first two seasons, returns.

Ducharme Living on The Lawn
Redshirt junior Colin Ducharme was selected to live in one ofVirginia’s prestigious Lawn rooms during the 1999-2000 academic year. Heis the 15th men’s basketball player to be chosen to live on The Lawn andthe first since Matt Blundin, who played both basketball and football atVirginia, lived on The Lawn in 1992.

Ricky Stokes (1984), Ralph Sampson (1983) and Terry Gates (1980)are the other most recent basketball players to live on The Lawn.