University of Virginia announces sudden retirement of basketball coach Tony Bennett
University of Virginia men’s basketball head coach Tony Bennett is set to announce his sudden retirement on Friday, according to the university.
A three-time national coach of the year, Bennett has posted a 364-136 record with the Cavaliers. He guided the men’s program to their first NCAA national championship in 2019, a year after Virginia was famously upset in the first round of March Madness.
In 2018, UVA was a No. 1 seed and a heavy favorite to beat No. 16 seed University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) in the annual NCAA men’s basketball postseason tourney. The Retrievers made history when they beat the Bennett-led Cavaliers, becoming the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed in tournament history.
To Bennett’s credit, he orchestrated one of the most remarkable redemption stories in sports history a year later.
UVA returned to the title game the following year again as a No. 1 seed and defeated Texas Tech in overtime to clinch the program’s first title.
During his 15-year tenure as head coach of the Cavaliers, Virginia has won two ACC tournament titles and six ACC regular season championships.
Bennett and Virginia had agreed to a contract extension in the offseason, which would’ve kept him with the program until 2030. The school gave no reason for his sudden retirement.
Bennett will officially announce his retirement at a press conference at John Paul Jones Arena on Friday, October 18 at 11 a.m. ET.
Virginia men’s basketball will open their season against Campbell on November 6.
