2007-08 Virginia Basketball Preview

Virginia Cavaliers

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Schedule
Virginia Records

Key Losses: JR Reynolds, Jason Cain
Impact Freshmen: Jeff Jones, Mustapha Farrakhan
Likely Starting Lineup:  Sean Singletary, Mamadi Diane, Will Harris, Jamil Tucker, Tunji Soroye

Three Important Questions:

1. Who can supplement Singletary's scoring?  With Reynolds departure, the Cavaliers will lose 23% of their scoring, and while Singletary accounted for another 24%, there is a big hole to fill.  The most likely player to step up is Mamadi Diane, who averaged 9.6 ppg a season ago, but who has been wildly inconsistent over his first two years.  Adrian Joseph and Will Harris are two players that could make an impact offensively, while freshman guard, Jeff Jones might be able to add some offense, as well.
2. Can Singletary get better at making others around him better?  One of the big challenges for a star point guard in college basketball is to walking the line of taking good shots and being a playmaker.  Last year, Singletary could penetrate and look for Reynolds to bail him out of situations, but he doesn't have the same luxury in 2007-08.  A lot of Singletary's success will be found in whether or not the Cavaliers can stretch defenses with the three point shot.  If they can Singletary will not only be able to kick out to the perimeter, but also have lanes to drive and dish to the Virginia big men.
3. What will the freshman bring?  If Mustapha Farrakhan's name sounds familiar, it likely is, as his father, who carries the same name, is a supreme captain of the Nation of Islam.  His son will have to face some heckling on the floor, but was a three star recruit.  Jeff Jones, who is the son of the former Virginia head coach, is said to be a superb ball handler and shooter, but likely his defense is a bit behind.  One other player that should contribute, but is a transfer, is Calvin Baker who averaged 11.3 ppg and 3.6 apg for William & Mary as a freshman.

Fantasy Player to Watch:  There's no question that Sean Singletary will be the top fantasy performer for UVA, as Singletary is just under 600 points away from reaching 2000 for his career.  Singletary will likely approach 18 ppg again this season while dishing out 4-5 assists per game.