No. 11 Tennessee Next for Virginia in the Bahamas
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia (3-0) meets No. 11 Tennessee (4-0) on Thursday, Nov. 21 at the Baha Mar Hoops Championship in Nassau, Bahamas. Tipoff is set for 9:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
For Openers
• UVA meets Tennessee for the first time since suffering an 87-52 road loss to the Volunteers on Dec. 30, 2013.
• UVA would embark on a 13-game ACC streak after the loss en route to the ACC regular season and tournament titles.
• Tennessee’s Igor Milicic Jr. played at Virginia in 2021-22 and Charlotte from 2022-24, including one season under Ron Sanchez in 2022-23.
• Sanchez is 3-0 as interim head coach at UVA.
• UVA ranks eighth nationally in 3-point shooting at 44.6 percent.
• The Cavaliers seek their ninth November tournament championship in the last 11 years (Emerald Coast Classic, Charleston Classic, Barclays Center Classic, Corpus Christi Challenge, NIT Season Tip-Off, Battle 4 Atlantis, Legends Classic and Continental Tire Main Event).
• UVA is 178-54 (.767) in non-conference play since 2009-10.
Broadcast Information
• The Virginia-Tennessee game will be televised on CBS Sports Network and streamed online at paramountplus.com.
• The game will also be broadcast on Virginia Sports Radio Network, VirginiaSports.com and Virginia Sports app.
• Live statistics will be located on VirginiaSports.com and the Virginia Sports app.
The Interim Head Coach
• Ron Sanchez was named Dean and Markel Families Men’s Interim Head Basketball Coach on Oct. 18 after three-time National Coach of the Year Tony Bennett retired.
• Sanchez is 3-0 as interim head coach at Virginia.
• Sanchez, who spent 10 seasons on Bennett’s staff at UVA in two different stints (2009-19 & 2023-24), posted a 72-78 record as head coach at Charlotte from 2018-23.
• He served nine seasons on Bennett’s staff from 2009-18, the last three as associate head coach. During his time on Grounds, the Cavaliers won 212 games, three ACC regular-season titles and two ACC Tournament titles while making six appearances in the NCAA Tournament and one NIT appearance. The Cavaliers earned three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament and won 29 or more games four times. UVA won 31 games and reached No. 1 in the AP rankings for the first time since 1982-83 during Sanchez’ last season at UVA in 2017-18.
He returned to UVA as associate head coach in 2023-24 as the Cavaliers posted a 23-11 record and 13-7 mark in the ACC.
• Under Sanchez’ leadership at Charlotte, the 49ers won 16 or more games in three seasons, including a 22-14 record in 2022-23. His last season at Charlotte was highlighted by the 49ers’ first-ever postseason tournament title when they won four games in five days in Daytona Beach, Fla., at the 2023 Discount Tire College Basketball Invitational.
• Sanchez also served as an assistant coach on Tony Bennett’s staff for three seasons at Washington State from 2006-09, helping the Cougars to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and one NIT berth. Washington State reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2007 and Sweet 16 in 2008. The Cougars tied the school record with 26 wins in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
The Virginia Way
• The Virginia Way is built on former head coach Tony Bennett’s five pillars of humility, passion, unity, servanthood and thankfulness.
• The Virginia Way is playing defense, taking quality shots, sharing and taking care of the basketball, stopping transition, rebounding and playing more defense.
• UVA has finished in the top six nationally in scoring defense in each of the past 13 seasons and led the nation in the category six times.
Hoo Are These Cavaliers?
• Virginia returns two starters (Isaac McKneely and Andrew Rohde) along with Blake Buchanan and Taine Murray from last season’s team that finished third in the ACC (13-7) and advanced to the NCAA First Four.
• In 2023-24, McKneely started 33 games and averaged 12.3 points and shot 44.5 percent from 3-point range, while Rohde started 27 games and averaged 4.3 points and 2.7 assists.
• Buchanan averaged 3.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in 15 minutes per game, while Murray netted 3.3 points per game.
• In 2024-25, McKneely leads UVA in scoring at 16 points per game, while shooting a blistering 64.7 percent from 3-point range.
• Jacob Cofie (13 ppg, 7.6 rpg) has reached double figures in all three games off the bench.
• Elijah Saunders (10.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Buchanan (5.7 ppg, 5 rpg, 1.7 bpg) and TJ Power (3.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg) have started all three games.
• Andrew Rohde (7 ppg, 4.5 apg) and Dai Dai Ames (7.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg) have shared point guard duties.
• Ishan Sharma, Taine Murray and Anthony Robinson have seen action off the bench, while Christian Bliss awaits his UVA debut after redshirting last season.
• Promising sophomore Elijah Gertrude will miss the 2024-25 after suffering an offseason knee injury.
• Point guard Jalen Warley (Florida State) transferred out of the program on Oct. 29.
All-Time vs. Tennessee
• The Cavaliers own an 8-5 advantage over the Volunteers in the all-time series that dates back to 1917.
• Tennessee defeated Virginia 87-52 in the last meeting between the teams at Thompson-Boling Arena on Dec. 30, 2013, in Knoxville, Tenn.
• UVA is 3-1 against Tennessee on neutral courts, including a 62-48 win in the 1981 NCAA Tournament Regional Semifinals in Atlanta, Ga., and a 54-51 win in the 1982 NCAA Tournament Second Round in Indianapolis, Ind.
• The Cavaliers also topped the Volunteers 107-89 on Dec. 19, 2000, in East Rutherford, N.J.
• The Cavaliers are 5-1 against the Volunteers in Virginia, including a 46-38 win at John Paul Jones Arena in 2012.
• UVA is 0-3 against Tennessee in true road games.
Last Time Against the Volunteers
• Jordan McRae (21 points), Josh Richardson (20 points) and Jarnell Stokes (20) led Tennessee to an 87-52 victory over the Cavaliers at Thompson-Boling Arena on Dec. 30, 2013.
• The 35-point defeat marked the second-largest loss during the 15-year Tony Bennett era at UVA.
• Tennessee made 11 3-pointers, including eight in the first half.
• Antonio Barton added 14 points as four Volunteers landed in double figures.
• Justin Anderson led the Cavaliers with 11 points and Mike Tobey chipped in 10 points and seven rebounds.
• UT held UVA’s Joe Harris to seven points on 2 of 9 shooting.
Last Time Out
• Isaac McKneely scored 23 points on 8 of 9 shooting, including a school-best 6 of 6 from 3-point range, to lead Virginia (3-0) past Villanova 70-60 in a Hall of Fame Series event in Baltimore, Md., on Friday, Nov. 15.
• Andrew Rohde added 13 points and Jacob Cofie chipped in 12 points and six rebounds in the non-conference win.
• UVA shot 51 percent, including 56 percent (14 of 25) from 3-point range.
• The Cavaliers enjoyed a 26-10 advantage in bench points, led by Cofie’s 12 points.
• Eric Dixon led Villanova with 20 points and eight rebounds.
Seattle’s Best Cofie
• Seattle, Wash., native Jacob Cofie has enjoyed a hot start to his collegiate career.
• Cofie leads UVA in rebounding (7.7 rpg), steals (2.0 spg) and blocks (1.7 bpg), and ranks second in scoring (13 ppg).
• He is the first UVA freshman to reach double figures in scoring in each of the first three games since Sylven Landesberg in 2008-09.
• Cofie’s 16 points (7 of 8 FGs) in his collegiate debut were the most in a UVA debut since transfer Jayden Gardner had 18 vs. Navy in 2021-22.
• Cofie’s 11-point, 11-rebound double-double against Coppin State was the first by a UVA freshman since redshirt freshman De’Andre Hunter had 14 points and 10 rebounds vs. Pitt on Feb. 24, 2018.
• Cofie’s 11-point, 11-rebound double-double against Coppin State was the first by a UVA freshman since redshirt freshman De’Andre Hunter had 14 points and 10 rebounds vs. Pitt on Feb. 24, 2018.
On The Horizon
• Virginia will play No. 13 Baylor or No. 22 St. John’s on Friday, Nov. 22 at the Baha Mar Hoops Championship in Nassau, Bahamas. Tipoff is 7 or 9:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.