How UVa basketball won the transfer portal recruiting battle

CHARLOTTESVILLE – With everything Virginia showed off to its basketball portal recruits during their visits last month, basic, fundamental work wowed the trio of transfers the most.

Oklahoma forward Jacob Groves, Merrimack forward Jordan Minor and St. Thomas Minnesota guard Andrew Rohde said being in the practice gym at John Paul Jones Arena and watching the hands-on instruction UVa players received from coach Tony Bennett and his staff made the strongest impression as they decided where to continue their college careers.

“How hard they were pushed, for sure,” Rohde said. “You could tell everybody on the team really wants to get better and they’re all working towards a common goal. They’re pushing each other and the coaches are pushing them. That’s the biggest thing that stood out to me.”

For three straight weekends in April, Bennett and UVa – which shared the ACC regular-season title this past season but lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament – hosted portal prospects, working to rebuild a roster depleted by graduation, transfers and early departures.