Virginia announced late Tuesday that men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett received a new seven-year contract through the 2020-21 season.
The new deal replaces Bennett’s former contract. The annual base salary and supplemental compensation is set at $1.924 million and will be funded from Athletics Department funds. The full news release also indicates that $1.4 million longevity bonuses over the life of the contract and a buyout clause are included.
“I’m thankful for receiving this new contract,” Bennett said in the release. “I love coaching at the University of Virginia and living in Charlottesville where the community has been wonderful to my family. I feel we are building something special here and this commitment by the University is another great step towards ensuring we continue to compete at a high level.”
Sabre NewsLink includes a number of articles on the new contract with other details. Numerous articles indicate that Bennett took less money that he could have demanded in order to steer more funds toward assistant coaches and other program improvements. The contract also includes perks such as season tickets, postseason tickets, and car allowances.
Bennett’s top assistants all received new deals last month. Associate coach Ritchie McKay’s new deal runs through 2018-19 and includes approximately a $30,000 per year raise to $334,800. Assistants Ron Sanchez and Jason Williford each signed new extensions through 2017-18 with raises of $60,000 per year to $225,000.
The Cavaliers, of course, just completed a rise to the top of the ACC. They won their first outright ACC Regular Season Championship since 1981 and their first ACC Tournament title since 1976. They tied a school record for wins with 30. Bennett was named ACC Coach of the Year.
“We are pleased with Coach Bennett’s commitment to the University of Virginia,” Littlepage said in the release. “Tony believes in the goals of the athletics department and the mission of the University. The vision he had for our program when he accepted the head coaching position is developing according to his plan. It will be exciting to watch the development of our players and the program in the coming years.”
Reynolds’ Team Nears Title
Limoges, featuring former Cavalier star J.R. Reynolds, leads Strasbourg 2-0 in the French Pro A Championship Series and will try to close out the best-of-five set Thursday at home. Reynolds tallied 10 points (two 3-pointers), two steals, one rebound, and one assist in 19 minutes in game one. He added 15 points (three 3-pointers), two rebounds, and one steal in 25 minutes in game two. Both of those games were on the road at Strasbourg.
Looking back at the previous rounds in the playoffs, Limoges swept ASVEL 2-0 in the opening round. Reynolds had 18 points (six 3-pointers), two rebounds, and one steal in game one. He recorded 10 points (two 3-pointers), two rebounds, two assists, and one steal in game two. Limoges outlasted Dijon 3-2 in the Pro A semifinals. Reynolds’ stats held steady for five games – game one (seven points, four rebounds, five assists, one steal), game two (12 points, three rebounds, four assists, one steal), game three (seven points, three rebounds, three assists, one steal), game four (10 points, two rebounds, four assists), and game five (three points, one assist).
For the season (39 games), Reynolds has averaged 10.8 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 0.7 steals. He has made 45.5% of his 3-pointers.
Some Baseball Links
- Virginia shortstop Daniel Pinero picked up Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America honors Wednesday. Click here to see all seven of the ACC’s honorees.
- UVa’s Reed Gragnani is having a great season in the Carolina League. This article features Gragnani, who ” leads the league with a .337 average through Tuesday’s action and sports an astonishing .441 average with runners in scoring position.”
- Cavalier star Ryan Zimmerman returned to the lineup for the Washington Nationals on Tuesday as his team defeated the Phillies, 7-0. Zimmerman, who missed time with a broken thumb, had two doubles and an RBI. Click here to read more from USA Today.
Early Lacrosse Rankings
Another day, another prediction … you know the drill.
Patrick Stevens, who now writes for Syracuse.com, is taking an early – or way too early if you go by the headline – look at college lacrosse’s best teams for 2015. Read it here. Virginia checks in at No. 8 in Part IV of the series (all of the articles are linked within the piece that contains UVa).
Stevens concludes that “Virginia still possesses the talent to beat just about anyone, but without greater consistency on defense it will have a lower ceiling than it usually does.” Make sure to read the article for a full capsule on the Hoos.
Tweet of the Day
It's been a great day. Big thanks to all my family, friends, and coaches!! #UVA #wahoo
— tanner cowley (@tannercowley) June 4, 2014
Hoo-Tube Video of the Day
With J.R. Reynolds featured above, this video highlights a 3-pointer from the UVa standout. Nice fake!
