The 2020–21 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team represented the University of Virginia during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Tony Bennett in his 12th year and played their home games at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia, as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). In a season limited by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, they finished the season 18–7, 13–4 in ACC play, to win their fifth regular season championship in eight seasons. They defeated Syracuse in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament before they were forced to withdraw from the tournament due to COVID-19 issues. They received a bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 4 seed in the West region. They were upset in the first round by Ohio.
Previous season The Cavaliers finished the 2019–20 season 23–7, 15–5 in ACC play, to finish in a three-way tie for second place. The team was scheduled to play Notre Dame in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament before the tournament was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The NCAA tournament was also later canceled due to the pandemic.
Offseason
Departures Virginia departures F 230 Charlotte, NC Graduated F 224 Conakry, Guinea Graduated
Incoming transfers Virginia incoming transfers F 206 Durham, NC Rice 3 October 1, 2020
2020 recruiting class
Roster
Players
Coaching staff Virginia coaching staff Tony Bennett Head coach 12 12 UW-Green Bay Jason Williford Associate head coach 3 12 Virginia Brad Soderberg Assistant coach 6 6 UW-Stevens Point Orlando Vandross Assistant coach 3 6 American International Kyle Getter Director of recruiting/player development 3 3 Hanover Larry Mangino Director of scouting/recruiting 5 5 Montclair State Johnny Carpenter Director of player personnel 3 6 Virginia Mike Curtis Strength and conditioning coach 12 12 Virginia Ethan Saliba Head athletic trainer 23 38 Kansas Ronnie Wideman Associate AD for basketball administration/operations 11 12 Washington State
Depth chart
Schedule and results Along with Kansas, UCLA and Georgetown, UVA was supposed to play in the early-season Wooden Legacy in Anaheim, California, but withdrew due to COVID-19.
Games that were canceled due to COVID-19 issues include: (11/25/20) vs. Maine (Bubbleville) (11/27/20) vs. Florida (Bubbleville) (12/9/20) Michigan State (ACC–B1G Challenge) (12/16/20) at Wake Forest (12/19/20) vs. Villanova (Holiday Hoops Classic) (1/2/21) Virginia Tech (Commonwealth Clash) (2/6/21) Louisville (3/12/21) vs. Georgia Tech (ACC tournament)
!colspan=12 style=""| Non-conference regular season
!colspan=12 style=""| ACC regular season
!colspan=12 style=""| ACC tournament
!colspan=12 style=""| NCAA tournament
Source
Rankings
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.
Notes
References