UVA To Play Four Exhibition Games on Italy Tour

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s basketball team will play four exhibition games during its trip to Italy from Aug. 10-20. Highlighting the tour will be a pair of games against the European dominant KK Mega Mozzart of Belgrade, Serbia.

The Cavaliers will play games in Rome (Aug. 13), Florence (Aug. 15) and Rapallo (Aug. 18-19). UVA will also visit Portofino during the 10-day tour.

UVA returns eight letterwinners from last season’s team that finished with a 21-14 record and advanced to the NIT quarterfinals. The Cavaliers’ roster for the trip to Italy includes veterans Kihei Clark, Jayden Gardner, Reece Beekman, Armaan Franklin, Francisco Caffaro, Kadin Shedrick, Taine Murray and Chase Coleman, transfer Ben Vander Plas, and newcomers Leon Bond III, Ryan Dunn, Isaac McKneely and Isaac Traudt.

“We are very excited to take our team to Italy,” Dean and Markel Families Men’s Head Basketball Coach Tony Bennett said. “We are adding four freshmen and a graduate transfer to an experienced group which showed improvement last season. The additional practices and quality competition during this tour allows us to improve and prepare for the 2022-23 season. We are looking forward to bonding and growing as a team in a beautiful country.”

This is Virginia’s fifth tour to Europe since 1996. UVA posted a 5-0 mark in Spain in 2016 and 2-3 record on a trip to The Netherlands, Belgium and France in 2012. UVA went 3-3 on a tour of Belgium and France in 1996 and 5-1 on a visit to Germany, Belgium and France in 2000.