Cavaliers' Byars leaving program
By Andrew Joyner / Daily Progress staff writer
April 21, 2004

It was announced three weeks ago that Virginia men’s basketball coach Pete Gillen will return for the 2004-05 season. It was announced Tuesday that sophomore Derrick Byars will not.

Byars, a 6-foot-7 forward from Memphis, announced he would transfer from UVa on Tuesday. His future destination is not yet known, though proximity to home may be a factor.

“He just wants to be closer to home,” Byars’ father, David, told the Memphis Commercial-Appeal. “We haven’t talked to anybody anywhere yet.”

Phone messages left at Derrick Byars’ dorm room were not returned. A statement from the school said Byars will remain enrolled for the remainder of the semester.

“We appreciate Derrick’s contributions to our basketball program for the past two years,” Gillen said in the released statement. “We wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

The decision is not completely unexpected. Sources have indicated for weeks that it was a possibility and Byars’ own body language during games indicated he was not always content at Virginia.

“He’s been thinking about it for a while. He was just generally unhappy with playing time and the position he was played at,” said Wes Henning, Byars’ coach at Ridgeway High School in Memphis.

Byars becomes the 13th player to leave the program with eligibility remaining in Gillen’s six-year tenure and the second -technically - this season. Point guard Majestic Mapp, who missed two-and-a-half seasons with a knee injury, could have petitioned the NCAA for another season of eligibility but Gillen announced in November that Mapp would not be asked to return next season. Mapp said in March that he would explore the possibility of playing at a Division II or III school next season. Another player, Roger Mason Jr., left after his junior year to enter the NBA Draft.

Of the 13 players to transfer, Byars is the seventh that was actually recruited by Gillen.

Byars, who started 18 of 31 games, averaged 7.5 points and 3.4 rebounds during the 2003-04 season. He had averaged 6.5 points and 2.9 rebounds during his freshman campaign.

Byars’ Virginia career was comprised of flashes of brilliance but periods of slumps.

In his freshman season, Byars had consecutive games when he scored 16 and 20 points, respectively, in mid-December. Byars, however, would only reach double figures on five more occasions and had eight games in which he scored two or fewer points.

This past season, Byars initially appeared to have matured past the inconsistency of his freshman season.

Byars scored 25 and 21 points in Virginia’s first two exhibition games and then reached double figures in eight of Virginia’s first 10 games. Byars scored a season-high 21 points against Loyola Marymount on Dec. 19.

Another slump and funk, however, arrived as the Cavaliers reached ACC play. Byars’ playing time was eventually diminished by the performance of Devin Smith and the emergence of freshmen Gary Forbes and J.R. Reynolds.

Byars only hit double figures three times in the Cavaliers’ final 21 games, though he did show flashes toward the end of the season of his potential as he scored 15 points in a key victory over Wake Forest in early March.

Like many of the transfers before him, Byars is somewhat a victim of the numbers game.

Virginia had three players - Smith, Forbes and Byars - that all played the swingman or small forward position. Virginia has also signed another player - 6-foot-7 Adrian Joseph of Brewster Academy in New Hampshire - that also has comparable skills to that trio.

At times, Gillen opted to play Byars at the power forward position to get him minutes on the floor but that had only mixed results. According to Henning, that eroded Byars’ confidence more and pushed him more to the ultimate decision to leave the program.

“He wasn’t playing where he should have been. Derrick’s better at handling the ball and shooting and getting to the basket. He wasn’t going to be able to play the four spot and he was getting in foul trouble trying to handle the position,” said Henning, who added that he has made some initial contacts Tuesday in finding a new school for Byars. “I think that made him unhappy and he didn’t feel that things were going to change next season.”

 

OL Lowry commits to Virginia
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
April 21, 2004

The first couple of years that Al Groh’s coaching staff assembled top 15 national recruiting classes, they often waited for the big splash at the end of the process. Now, it’s going the other way.

With a week remaining in April, the Cavaliers already have a third of their 2005 recruiting class committed. The eighth commitment came after Saturday’s Spring Game when gigantic Matt Lowry told Groh he would join the Wahoos.

Lowry is a 6-foot-6, 305-pound junior offensive lineman from Cardinal O’Hara in Springfield, Pa., the same program that produced Virginia Tech All-American running back Kevin Jones. He chose the Cavaliers over Syracuse, the only other school that had officially offered him, although he received strong interest from Michigan, Rutgers, Boston College, Michigan State, Iowa and Penn State.

“I never had a favorite college that I followed, but I always liked Virginia,” Lowry said. “It was exciting when I got letters from them all last fall. All I was looking for was a place I could call home.”

While Lowry visited Syracuse, he had eagerly awaited an offer from the Cavaliers. He and has family had visited UVa unofficially for the win over Virginia Tech last November, then he and his dad came down for the spring game. Lowry liked what he saw.

“You could sit in the stands and then talk to players afterward,” Lowry said. “It was a nice atmosphere. I like the whole campus. It’s nice as it is, and they’re getting a lot of stuff redone like the weight room.”

During his junior season, the big lineman earned first-team all-conference and all-city plaudits and was second-team all-county. He has already qualified academically with a 3.2 GPA and 1190 SAT.

“His best years are still ahead of him,” Cardinal O’Hara coach Dan Algeo said. “He’s still growing into his body and the progress he made between his sophomore and junior year was remarkable.”

Algeo said that O’Hara ran behind Lowry often but that the rising senior needed to improve on his pass-blocking skills. O’Hara has been a run-oriented program. In fact, Lowry was the chief blocker who opened holes for Purdue signee Anthony Heygood last season.

“He’s not bad at pass blocking, we just haven’t thrown the ball that much lately,” Algeo said.

The coach and Lowry had planned to narrow his list to 10 schools sometime this spring, but once the Virginia offer came in, the big lineman was ready to pull the trigger.

“Next year I want to concentrate on schoolwork and each game, one by one, and not have to worry about a third thing,” Lowry said. “I’m sure I’ll still get letters and phone calls from other schools, but hopefully not as many.”

It could be that Virginia is in position to use its early recruiting success as leverage to land other players.

Algeo mentioned that Lowry wanted to make sure he was committed to UVa before the Cavaliers ran out of room. Other prospects could also be lured into the fold early because of the same line of thinking.

Lowry is the third Virginia offensive line commitment, including Pat Slebonick and Will Barker.
 

Mikalauskas commits to Virginia
By Andrew Joyner / Daily Progress staff writer
April 20, 2004

Recruits frequently say their chosen school was the best fit.

For Blue Ridge junior forward Laurynas Mikalauskas, truer words were never spoken.

The 6-foot-8 Lithuanian committed to Virginia on Monday for a plethora of reasons that indeed made the school the best fit for him.

“I really like Coach [Pete] Gillen and just really like the school, the campus, the academics and just everything made me feel it was the best place for me,” said Mikalauskas, who averaged 18.3 points and 11 rebounds during his junior season and earned first-team All-Central Virginia honors. “I have been a fan of the program for a long time and just really like the school so much.”

Two other items factored prominently in Mikalauskas’ decision: proximity and team needs.

Mikalauskas has become quite attached to his surroundings at Blue Ridge, where he first arrived nearly three years ago. He also has a strong relationship with Blue Ridge coach Bill Ramsey.

“Coach Ramsey’s family is like my family. We have very close relationships. That is certainly one of the reasons I wanted to stay close,” Mikalauskas said.

Mikalauskas’ talents also fit perfectly in what Virginia’s desperate needs are at the moment.

Mikalauskas has proven to be a consistent and strong rebounder at the high-school level and Virginia ranked near the bottom of the ACC standings in rebounding last season. Additionally, Virginia will graduate its three primary frontcourt players - Elton Brown, Jason Clark and Devin Smith - by the time Mikalauskas arrives for the 2005-06 academic year.

“Their frontline will be graduating and he will figure in the mix right away. They can’t really bring him in if he’s not going to play because he’s going to need to play. From all indications and from people I’ve talked to, he really will be able to play right away,” Ramsey said. “I think he will be in the mix right away there.”

Mikalauskas, who has only been speaking English for approximately three-and-a-half years, has fully qualified academically though at the minimum levels. Mikalauskas’ aim is to become an even better student as he becomes more familiar with the language. He has already achieved the necessary ACT score but will continue to take both the SAT and the SAT II to seek better scores.

Mikalauskas expressed some relief Monday that the decision has now been made. There was some trepidation over the past few weeks as Gillen’s job status became an issue but Gillen will return as Virginia’s coach and that seemed to be the final item that solidified his commitment.

“There were a lot of rumors and some bad people saying bad things. He’s going to be at Virginia,” Mikalauskas said. “I think it’s also very helpful that a decision has now been made. Now I can concentrate on playing better next season because I know where I’m going to college and know that I’m wanted there. I don’t have to worry about it all anymore.”

There was a slight damper on things for Mikalauskas on Monday. He broke his nose playing for Boo Williams’ AAU team in a tournament this weekend.

“It hurts a little now but we went to the hospital and it will take a little time to heal,” Mikalauskas said.

Notes. In other Virginia recruiting news, point guard Sean Singletary of Philadelphia was named the MVP of the Pittsburgh Hoops World Classic on Saturday after he scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in leading the Pennsylvania squad to a 123-118 victory of the USA and World All-Stars. Singletary signed with Virginia in November and is expected to be UVa’s starting point guard of the future. …

Eric Boateng, a 6-10 junior power forward from the St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, Del., recently took an unofficial vist to Virginia. Boateng, a native of London and a consensus top 15 player by the recruiting services, is looking at a host of schools including Virginia, UCLA and many others from the Big East and ACC.
 

Cavaliers win 13th straight
From staff reports / Charlottesville Daily Progress
April 21, 2004

The No. 15 Virginia baseball team recorded its school-record 13th consecutive win following an 8-3 home victory against Norfolk State on Tuesday. UVa has not lost a game since March 28.

Cavaliers starting pitcher Josh Myers picked up his first collegiate victory in just his second career start and Virginia (33-7) scored eight runs on 10 hits to cruise to the five-run victory against NSU (14-26).

The Cavaliers used a key offensive third inning to take a 4-0 lead. Matt Street was hit by a pitch and scored the first run of the game on an RBI single through the left side by Ryan Zimmerman two batters later.

Up next, Joe Koshansky turned Virginia’s 1-0 lead into a 3-0 advantage with one swing of the bat when he belted his team-leading 12th home run over the right field wall. The Cavaliers plated the eventual game-winning run when Matt Dunn was hit by a pitch and scored one batter later on an RBI triple to right-center field by Tom Hagan.

Norfolk State tried to answer immediately, scoring all three of its runs in the top of the fourth inning to make it a one-game run at 4-3. Darryl Chever hit a two-run home run and Alfred Corbin connected on a solo shot.

UVa’s Myers (1-0) picked up the win after he pitched 6.0 innings and allowed three runs on four hits and struck out three batters. Reliever Adam Laird tossed 2.0 scoreless innings and struck out a game-high four batters before Alan Zimmerer closed out the game with a scoreless inning of work.

Virginia returns to action today when it hosts Virginia Tech at 7 p.m.

 

A year makes all the difference in the world
Jeremy Root
Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

The Cavaliers' 8-3 thrashing over Norfolk State last night only confirmed what I learned as soon as I started following the baseball team -- this team is one of, if not the best at Virginia.

When I was making my decision to come to Virginia, I remember hearing about how the great the football games were. Everybody dressed up and we sung the "Good Ol' Song." Basketball in the winter was awesome because we got to play every team in the ACC at home (we used to anyways -- dumb expansion). In the spring, the sport to follow was lacrosse. We were returning national champions and a Saturday afternoon with the men's lacrosse team at Klöckner was the place to be.

Two Continental Tire Bowl victories in a row are nothing to brag about. You can't be satisfied with the ACC play-in game for basketball. Lacrosse is in danger of not even making the tournament after being preseason No. 1.

Little did I know that one of our best teams would be the baseball squad. What makes the story even more intriguing is the remarkable transition the Cavaliers have made in just one year.

Last season the team finished 29-25 and in sixth place in the ACC. The last time they made NCAA regionals was 1996. This season, the Cavaliers have jumped to a No. 15 national ranking and are dominating the ACC with a 14-4 conference record and 33-7 mark overall. The most ACC wins any of the other schools currently have is nine. The Cavaliers have four sweeps of ACC schools including three wins over then-No. 17 Georgia Tech, for their first sweep of the Yellow Jackets ever.

Where did this metamorphosis come from?

It started with the hiring of Brian O'Connor as head coach this past offseason. O'Connor was as assistant coach at Notre Dame, where he was named 2001 National Assistant Coach of the Year and led the recruiting effort in 2002 that landed the nation's top recruiting class as ranked by Baseball America.

The Cavaliers only play two freshman regularly, centerfielder Tim Henry and southpaw closer Casey Lambert. Other than that, it's basically the same lineup as last year, yet the results have been anything but similar.

"You got to give [O'Connor] a lot credit for the attitude he's instilled in the team," senior Kyle Werman said. Last year "we worked really hard and it's just we weren't as aggressive and that's really shown. That's such a big part of the game. Teams come in knowing that we going to run, so they're changing their game. It makes it a lot of fun for us too."

Although O'Connor would agree that his aggressive style has been an obvious change from last year, he also thinks the right mindset is critical to success.

One thing he's really tried to instill is "a mental toughness and a mental approach," he said. "That's part of the reason we put these kids through what we did in our winter workouts, our conditioning workouts, just because we needed to develop a mental attitude on this team of toughness...I really believe that has a carry over to the season when you get into difficult situations in a game and how much it means to you to win or lose."

There are only two home games left while school is in session, tonight versus Virginia Tech and next Tuesday against Radford. The team is poised to have their greatest season in Virginia history and make a deep run into the NCAA tournament.

If you haven't made it out to the immaculate Davenport Field to watch O'Connor's boys play, then your U. Va. experience is not complete, because something special is happening with this Virginia baseball team.
 

Schaub won't wait by phone
Matt Schaub says he's been told he'll be picked somewhere in rounds 1-3 on the first day of the NFL Draft.
By Doug Doughty
doug.doughty@roanoke.com

Matt Schaub already has plans for Saturday and they don't involve watching the NFL Draft on television.

In case anybody wants to get in touch with him, Schaub will have his cellphone activated as he plays golf in Charlottesville with his family.

"I didn't want to sit around and watch it," said Schaub, who holds virtually every passing record at Virginia. "That's the advice I had gotten. People had told me not to waste the whole day.

"Whatever happens is going to happen, regardless of whether you watch it or not. Rather than sit around for five or six hours and torture yourself like that, you need to get out and do something."

Almost any rating of the top quarterback prospects has Schaub in the top five, but that doesn't guarantee anything.

On USA Today's Web site, J.P. Losman of Tulane, who is rated the No.4 quarterback, is the 40th-rated player overall. The same site has Schaub as the No.5 quarterback but not in the top 100 players.

"I hope to go in the first day, in rounds 1 through 3," Schaub said. "That's where I hope to go and that's what I've been told. Other than that, I'm just waiting for somebody to pick me up and get started."

Schaub has not flown to any NFL cities for interviews, but he has had private workouts with scouts from New England and Cleveland. More than a dozen NFL scouts were in attendance when UVa held its "pro day."

Schaub's fate could be determined by what happens with the quarterbacks rated ahead of him - Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers and Losman.

Manning is expected to go to San Diego with the first pick and some analysts have penciled in Roethlisberger for the New York Giants, who pick fourth, but the Giants may go with massive Iowa offensive lineman Robert Gallery if he's still available.

Pittsburgh picks 11th and likes Rivers, but Pittsburgh recently brought Roethlisberger to town in the event he falls below the top 10.

Schaub's mentor has been one-time UVa offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave, now with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Schaub chose Musgrave's agent, David Dunn, as his representative.

Dunn represents current NFL quarterbacks Carson Palmer, Joey Harrington, Drew Bledsoe and Jake Plummer, and took Schaub to California for workouts with four of his other clients and NFL quarterback hopefuls Cody Pickett, Ryan Dinwiddie, Jason Fife and Matt Kegel.

At 6-foot-6 and 243 pounds, Schaub is the tallest of the top 35 quarterbacks rated by USA Today, and his 5.04-second time for 40 yards isn't a major detriment. When he went to the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis, doctors noted that a dislocated right (throwing) shoulder had caused him to miss two games early in the 2003 season but could find no residual damage.

If there has been a question about him, it is his ability to throw the deep ball.

"It's definitely something that was out there," Schaub said. "It was something I addressed in the combine, in the Senior Bowl and at my pro day. I was able to throw the deep ball and put it out there a good distance - the way they like to see it. I definitely have quieted some of that.

"With the type of offense and the personnel we had here, we geared ourselves to a little bit different style."

As a junior, Schaub was named ACC player of the year in 2003. This year, Rivers was named ACC player of the year and outpointed Schaub for first-team All-ACC quarterback.

"Those guys have all had great careers and have done it for four years, whereas I've done it for two years," said Schaub, who did not become a full-time starter until he was a redshirt junior. "I know I can play alongside those guys and the difference between [Nos.] 1 and 2 and the 4 and 5 isn't much, but you have to be put somewhere."
 

Byars opts to leave Cavaliers
Forward Derrick Byars will become the eighth player to transfer out of Pete Gillen's program.
By Doug Doughty
doug.doughty@roanoke.com
981-3129

After saying this month that he did not expect to lose any players, Virginia men's basketball coach Pete Gillen has given sophomore forward Derrick Byars a release that will enable him to transfer to another school.

Byars, the Gatorade state player of the year in Tennessee in 2002, had played in 62 of 63 Virginia games during the past two seasons and started 34.

A 6-foot-7 forward from Memphis, Byars averaged 7.5 points and 3.4 rebounds per game last season.

Byars could not be reached for comment but his father, David, told The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal that his son wanted to play closer to home.

Gillen did not return a phone message left at his office. He said in a statement released by the school that he appreciated Byars' contributions.

Byars will become the eighth Virginia player to transfer since Gillen's arrival in 1998 and the 13th player to leave the program before the end of his eligibility. That includes six players signed by Gillen's predecessor, Jeff Jones.

There were two Parade All-Americans in the Virginia program last season, Byars and Majestic Mapp. Gillen had notified Mapp that he would not be invited to return for a sixth year in 2005-06. Mapp, who missed more than two full seasons with a knee injury, might have been eligible on appeal to the NCAA.

Byars averaged 6.5 points as a freshman in 2002-03. In both of his seasons, however, his average was much higher in non-ACC games than it was in conference play.

Byars played fewer than 10 minutes in one game last season but faced a battle for playing time with the arrival of Adrian Joseph, a 6-7 signee with similar athletic ability.

Byars was plagued by inconsistency. He finished the season by making nine of his last 11 3-point attempts but earlier had gone through a 1-for-24 drought from behind the arc.

 

Byars, U.Va. parting ways
He becomes the sixth recruit of Gillen's to leave with eligibility
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Apr 21, 2004

Yet another player is leaving the University of Virginia men's basketball program with eligibility remaining.

This time it's Derrick Byars, who started 34 games in his two seasons with the Cavaliers.

Byars averaged 20.9 minutes as a freshman and again as a sophomore. The 6-7 small for- ward from Memphis, Tenn., would have been a candidate to start as a junior, but Virginia remains well-stocked at that position, with Devin Smith, Gary Forbes and incoming freshman Adrian Joseph.

Pete Gillen, who last month completed his sixth season as U.Va.'s coach, couldn't be reached for comment. In a statement the school released yesterday, Gillen said, "We appreciate Derrick's contributions to our basketball program for the past two years. We wish him the best in his future endeavors."

That Byars intended to transfer had been rumored for weeks. He plans to remain at U.Va. through the end of the spring semester. Byars is likely to consider Southeastern Conference schools when choosing his next destination.

"He just wants to be closer to home," his father, David Byars, told the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

Neither Byars nor his father could be reached for comment yesterday, but sources said Byars had long been unhappy about his role in Gillen's program.

And so continues a troubling trend for the Cavaliers. Byars will be the sixth player who signed with U.Va. during Gillen's tenure to leave the program and transfer to another school. The first five: J.C. Mathis, Maurice Young, Keith Jenifer, Jermaine Harper and Nick Vander Laan.

Moreover, several players recruited by his predecessor, Jeff Jones, left Gillen's program with eligibility remaining, including Monte Marcaccini, Colin Ducharme and Kris Hunter.

Byars, a fourth-team Parade All-American as a senior at Ridgeway High, averaged 6.5 points and 2.9 rebounds for Virginia in 2002-03. He started 18 games and averaged 7.5 points and 3.4 rebounds in'03-04, but his sophomore year was a roller-coaster ride.

Ten games into the season, Byars was averaging 13.6 points and playing like an all-ACC candidate. He had 20 points and eight rebounds in Virginia's Dec. 31 win over Iowa State, but that turned out to be the high point of his season.

Three days later, in a loss to Providence, Byars scored two points in a 26-minute stint. He scored in double figures only three more times the rest of the season. Virginia started a three-guard lineup late in the season, which reduced Byars' playing time.
. . .

NOTE: T.J. Bannister, who started 10 games at point guard for Virginia this season, was one of seven people arrested and charged with disorderly conduct early Sunday morning.

Bannister was involved in fights that broke out after a large fraternity party ended at U.Va. It wasn't clear last night what disciplinary action, if any, the school will take against the freshman from Jacksonville, Fla.
 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Apr 20, 2004

ANOTHER OPTION: At some point this spring, football coach Al Groh is expected to inform his four scholarship quarterbacks how he has them rated heading into summer training camp. One of those QBs, Anthony Martinez, was a star baseball player at Patrick Henry High in Ashland.

Football is his favorite sport, Martinez said Saturday, but if it doesn't work out for him at U.Va., he'll consider joining the baseball team.

"It'll always be there for me, and I could always go back there if something wasn't to work out to my favor," said Martinez, a 2002 graduate of PH. "But I try not to think about that right now and just concentrate on football."

In Virginia's spring game Saturday, Martinez completed 3 of 6 passes for 19 yards. He's competing with Marques Hagans, Christian Olsen and Kevin McCabe for playing time.

Hagans is likely to enter the summer No. 1 on the depth chart, but the quarterbacks "still got a lot of battling to do," Martinez said. "We've got summer camp coming up, and we got workouts coming up, so it's still to be determined."

Martinez and Hagans are the only quarterbacks at U.Va. to have played in a college game. McCabe, a freshman, redshirted last season. Olsen had to sit out last season after transferring from Notre Dame, where he redshirted as a freshman in 2002.

MORE ACCOLADES: U.Va. basketball recruit Sean Singletary totaled 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists Saturday night in the Pittsburgh Hoops World Classic. The 5-11 point guard was named MVP after helping the Pennsylvania All-Stars beat the USA & World All-Stars 123-118.

Singletary, a senior at William Penn Charter, was player of the year in Philadelphia this season.

VICTIM OF CIRCUMSTANCES: Wideout Fontel Mines didn't catch any passes in Virginia's spring game. Then again, the former Hermitage High star didn't have any balls thrown to him.

"I thought he worked really hard at things throughout the course of the spring," Groh said of Mines, a 6-5, 220-pound rising sophomore. "It was just the way the ball came out today. I'm sure, again, if [former U.Va. quarterback Matt Schaub] had been throwing at the receivers today, it would have looked like all of them were in the mix a little more."

ON THE DIAMOND: First-year coach Brian O'Connor sees no reason Virginia can't become a national power in baseball.

"You look at the teams that are successful in this country in college baseball," O'Connor said. "It's different than in basketball and football. Yeah, you have the South Carolinas and the LSUs of the world, but then you got the Rices and the Stanfords and the Notre Dames and the Tulanes."

Of the nearly 300 schools that play Division I baseball, O'Connor believes, few can match what Virginia offers: a "great baseball conference, top public education in the country, a tremendous state for high school baseball that in the last five years has just taken off [in terms of] how it's viewed in the country."

Virginia, 32-7 overall, leads the ACC with a 14-4 record. The Cavaliers take a 12-game winning streak into their game with visiting Norfolk State tonight. U.Va. plays host to Virginia Tech tomorrow night.

STILL BREATHING: The men's lacrosse team remains in contention for an NCAA tournament berth. The defending NCAA champion Cavaliers improved to 4-6 by crushing Duke on Saturday. To qualify for the NCAAs, U.Va. must capture this weekend's ACC tournament at Chapel Hill, N.C., and then win at Penn State in the May 8 regular-season finale. Virginia is defending champion in the ACC tourney, too. - Jeff White
 

Keeping up with Jones
Construction on track for John Paul Jones Arena, scheduled to open in 2006
Richmond Times-Dispatch Apr 21, 2004
Construction of U.Va.'s $129.8 million John Paul Jones Arena began in April 2003. The complex is slated to open in June 2006.
MARK GORMUS/TIMES-DISPATCH

CHARLOTTESVILLE - It's not scheduled to open until June 2006, but the University of Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena steadily is taking shape.

Construction crews work six days a week on the 15,000-seat multipurpose arena. The $129.8 million project also will include a parking garage and a connector road to serve the arena, which is directly across Massie Road from University Hall. Work began in April 2003.

"We're right on schedule at this point," said Dick Laurance, the project director.

Construction of the upper seating bowl will start in late August, Laurance said, when precast concrete arrives on site.

The arena will include a practice facility for the men's and women's basketball teams, training rooms, coaches' offices and luxury suites.

The arena is named for John Paul Jones, a 1948 graduate of U.Va.'s law school who's a retired publisher and attorney in Memphis, Tenn.

His son Paul Tudor Jones II has pledged $35 million for the project, the most of any donor. The younger Jones is a 1976 graduate of U.Va.

University Hall is the smallest - and second-oldest - arena in the ACC. It was dedicated in November 1965. - Jeff White