2008 Virginia Basketball Season Preview & Predictions
Written October 6, 2008 by Jack Jones
Just two short years ago Virginia earned a share of the ACC conference title, but last year the team took a major step back by going 17-16 and 5-11 in league play. That was with Sean Singletary contributing almost 20 points and more than six assists per game. He’s gone, and so is Adrian Joseph’s 10 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest. Without those two to help keep this team in games, we see it being a long year for Cavaliers basketball. The defense is going to have to improve greatly over last year’s squad that was probably the worst in the ACC or else this team will finish dead last in the conference. The odds on Virginia winning the national title are a long shot at 1,000 to 1.
The front court was hit hard by injuries a year ago and that was a big reason for so many of Virginia’s defensive problems. Tunji Soroye played in only two games last season as he battled both knee and back injuries. He was granted a medical hardship waiver for a fifth year of eligibility and his shot blocking prowess will help the team’s interior defense. Laurynas Mikalauskas is a physical inside player who missed 13 games with shoulder problems, but he should be healthy to start the year. Mike Scott had to play a lot of center last year, but the 6′8″ power forward should do a lot better moving back to a more natural power forward position. For depth, Jamil Tucker is a decent shooter, Jerome Meyinsse is a good defender and rebounding specialist, while two freshman in John Brandenburn and Assane Sene should eat up some minutes.
Without Singletary, the Virginia backcourt is going to have to work a little harder in order to get the offense going. There is hope with freshman Sylven Landesberg, who is a tall guard at 6′5″ and a good scorer. Head coach Dave Leitao also thinks he can run the point if needed to. Sammy Zeglinski should be the main ball handler. He’s coming off a freshman season that was limited due to an ankle injury. There is also junior Calvin Baker, who can play either spot pretty well. Jeff Jones plays the two spot and needs to regain his early season form after fading to end the year. Mamadi Diane is the leading returning scorer and can shoot the ball well from behind the arc, but won’t get as many easy looks without Singletary out there.
Final Analysis
We just don’t see Virginia being all that good this year. The team lost it’s heart and soul in Singletary and doesn’t have the kind of talent needed to replace a superstar like him. If this team can finish anywhere above last in the ACC you would have to think it was a surprisingly good season for Leitao’s bunch, however that’s where we find them in our ACC basketball predictions. If you want to look at the college basketball odds on Virginia before each game, we recommend BetUS, where you can get up to 145% in signup bonuses for opening a new account. Read our BetUS review for more information on why we like their company.
Get free basketball picks every night from our team of handicappers to do a better job of betting on basketball. Our experts give out winning college basketball picks and predictions to clients to help them beat the spreads and win more cash.
NCAA basketball picks at BetFirms!