[caption id="attachment_32662" align="alignleft" width="217" caption="Sophomore guard Whitny Edwards notched 10 points, including back-to-back three pointers late in the second half, to help Virginia top N.C.
[caption id="attachment_32627" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="After a lackluster 3-9 season, newly hired football coach Mike London hopes to follow in men's basketball coach Tony Bennett's footsteps and return Virginia to ACC prominence.
[caption id="attachment_32624" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="After a lackluster 3-9 season, newly hired football coach Mike London hopes to follow in men's basketball coach Tony Bennett's footsteps and return Virginia to ACC prominence.
[caption id="attachment_32621" align="alignleft" width="259" caption="Freshman guard China Crosby has started all 13 of the Cavaliers' games in which she has played this season, averaging 5.9 points each game, which is good for fifth on the team.
Last week, I introduced my "Best of the Decade" series of columns, in which I planned to rank my personal choices for the greatest Virginia athletic accomplishments of the past decade.
Not every varsity sport at Virginia is known for consistently fielding great teams. Though some squads are expected to perform well all the time, others often go overlooked until they have an outstanding season. The Virginia wrestling team has not always been among the best programs in the country, but this season has proved to be a departure from the past.
The Virginia women's tennis team entered Sunday unsure of how it would perform in its first dual match, especially against a more experienced Illinois squad, which boasted six upperclassmen.
Last Thursday morning, I was fortunate enough to be able to sit down with first-year Virginia men's basketball coach Tony Bennett for an interview.
[caption id="attachment_32575" align="alignleft" width="184" caption="Sophomore forward Chelsea Shine ranks second on the team in scoring behind senior guard Monica Wright, averaging 7.9 points per game.
I've long been a bigger fan of college basketball than I have of the NBA, and the reason actually has less to do with basketball than you might think. Even though the NCAA has some crazy rules in many sports, the game rules are pretty similar to the pros when it comes to basketball.
[caption id="attachment_32540" align="alignleft" width="253" caption="Junior forward Will Sherrill (above) had to carry the Cavalier offense after sophomore guard Sylven Landesberg got into foul trouble.
They've conceded they are not the most athletic team. Or the biggest. Or the most talented. Sixteen games into the season, the Cavaliers took pride in their ability to win games with superior team defense, despite their other shortcomings.
[caption id="attachment_32537" align="alignleft" width="195" caption="Freshman guard Lexie Gerson contributed to the Cavaliers' 57-55 win against the Yellow Jackets.
[caption id="attachment_32535" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The wrestling team played two ACC foes this weekend, topping the Tar Heels and falling to the Hokies.
[caption id="attachment_32533" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Four swimmers set pool records in the dual meet against Duke Friday afternoon.
[caption id="attachment_32511" align="alignleft" width="205" caption="Sylven Landesberg, the 2008 ACC Rookie of the Year, will lead Virginia against award runner-up Al-Farouq Aminu and the Demon Deacons Saturday in Winston-Salem.
[caption id="attachment_32509" align="alignleft" width="199" caption="Though she only scored three points in 22 minutes, junior guard Paulisha Kellum delivered the game-winning basket in Virginia's victory against Boston College.
Out with the old, in with the new. Groh is gone, Mike London returns. After a nine-loss season, including one to FCS school William & Mary, Athletic Director Craig Littlepage decided he had had enough.
[caption id="attachment_32506" align="alignleft" width="199" caption="Senior Brent Jones only needed 15 seconds to pin third-ranked Eric Lapotsky of Oklahoma.
The No. 9 men and No. 11 women swim and dive teams will resume ACC action this weekend at Duke and North Carolina. The Cavaliers (5-1, 2-0 ACC) hope to pick up where they left off last Thursday when they defeated nationally-ranked Florida State, 161-134 and 163-123, respectively.
