Darion Atkins celebrated his 18th birthday in style Friday by accepting a scholarship offer from the University of Virginia. The decision, which the 6-8, 210-pound Landon School (Bethesda, MD) power forward settled on Thursday night, was close, but Tony Bennett and company won out over Notre Dame.

“They were neck and neck the whole way besides [Thursday] night,” said Atkins, who becomes the third high school senior to commit to the Cavaliers. All three plan to sign in November. “UVa just seemed more hungry to win because they’re not a winning team yet. It’s a situation similar to what we had at Landon and Landon has turned around. I feel like I can help the team progress.”

Over the course of the past month, Atkins made two unofficial visits to UVa. The first came in August, and it was then that UVa became a serious option.

“I had a strong feeling with Coach Bennett,” Atkins said. “We clicked the first day I made my first unofficial visit there. He’s real from head to toe. I like what he’s about, what he said he was going to do with me, and looking at the guys, they practice so hard and they’re ready to win. I watched them practice and they went hard for the entire time.”

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