CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) – The loss of Mike Scott to a foot injury early last season left Virginia without an inside scoring threat, and turned the Cavaliers into a team that lived, and died, on outside shooting.
It was a year to grow up fast for coach Tony Bennett’s first real recruiting class, and one Bennett hopes will pay off this season with the return of Scott and his commanding presence not only as a scorer, but a deft passer skilled at finding an open man, a defender and rebounder.
“Who I think will benefit the most are some of the guys who can score,” Bennett said of the 6-foot-8 senior’s return. “He’ll draw attention whether he’s scoring or not. You’re going to have to account for him on the offensive end, and then his play on the glass and his ability to … get to the line, draw fouls, shoot free throws. Those are important aspects.”
Scott averaged 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds before going down with a foot injury, and became the first Virginia player since Ralph Sampson in 1983 to have five consecutive games with at least 10 points and 10 rebounds. He’s one of six players on the All-ACC preseason team.
Watching the team struggle without him – they were 6-4 when he played and 10-11 when he watched – was humbling, Scott said, and left him eager to see what they can do this year.
“I think it would have been a lot different,” he said of the season in which freshmen Joe Harris, KT Harrell and Akil Mitchell were forced to not only play extensively, but often out of position guarding bigger players inside. “The way teams played us without me, it was frustrating watching and seeing that if I was out there, I could be so much help to my teammates.”
Frustrating, but also productive, he said.
“I think I learned a lot about the basketball game as a whole, just watching,” he said.
Senior guard Sammy Zeglinski, who was second on the team with 46 3-pointers a year ago, remembers how teams spread their defense, knowing they were hardly vulnerable to inside scoring.
For a team that wanted to rely on 3-point scoring, it made things difficult.
“It definitely should come easier,” Zeglinski said. “He demands so much attention down low, and we’ve got plenty of shooters on the perimeter and he’s a willing passer as well, so if the double team comes, he’ll kick it out. He’s not selfish, but also he can score inside.”
Joe Harris led the team with 65 3-pointers last season, but the 6-6 swingman often found himself checking much bigger players on defense. He’s gained 13 or 14 pounds of muscle since he arrived at Virginia, but looks forward to being able to return to his more familiar roles.
“He makes everybody better just because of the level that he plays at and how well defenses are going to try to focus on him. He opens things up for everybody on the team,” Harris said.
In Scott’s absence, Mitchell probably played more than he would have otherwise, and Bennett had no choice but to put raw 7-footer Assane Sene on the floor to combat the size deficiency.
It paid off in a big way as Sene grew more comfortable and confident, and his games of 15 points and 13 rebounds against Wake Forest and 15 points at Maryland drove him to get better.
The way Sene sees it, not just shooters can benefit when defenses are drawn to Scott.
“I’m pretty sure a lot of people are going to be ready to trap him, so I’ve just got to be ready and know that his passes can come from anywhere,” Sene said. He also has worked tirelessly with Virginia coaches, catching footballd and basketballs to improve his catching skills.
Bennett cautions against putting too much emphasis on Scott’s return solving all the Cavaliers’ problems, but said with players improving most between their first and second seasons, and the wide variety of options for scoring this season, his third season at Virginia is also their best chance to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007.
The Cavaliers were picked fourth in the ACC, their highest projection in a decade.
The buzz around the team, Jontel Evans said, is infectious.
“I don’t know what it is about this year that feels so different and looks so different,” he said. “Just a lot of excitement, a lot of guys that want to be better and do great things.”
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