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uva recruiting CAVALIERS STOCK UP ON TALENTED GUARDS BY JACEY ZEMBAL Sophomore combo guard B.J. Stith, the son of former Cavalier great Bry- ant Stith, grew up loving Virginia and dreaming of following in his famous father's footsteps. Post-graduate senior point guard Teven Jones just wanted a chance to play Division I basketball. Their recruitments were polar op- posites of each other, but both landed at Virginia in September and can't wait to compete for head coach Tony Ben- nett. Stith, who plays for his father at Lawrenceville (Va.) Brunswick High, committed Sept. 3, while Jones popped for the Cavaliers Sept. 14. Jones won't have to wait as long to play for Virginia. He will be expected to help provide depth behind point guard Jontel Evans next year. The 6-1, 190-pound Jones stood out in both football and basketball for A.L. Brown High in Kannapolis, N.C., and earned a little attention from Clem- son and Appalachian State and some Division II offers for basketball after averaging 21.6 points per game his se- nior year. He didn't want to give up his dream of overall selection in the 1992 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. He played for three teams from 1992-2002 and aver- aged 10.1 points and 3.4 rebounds per game during his pro career. The UVa legend is proud his son is going to Char- lottesville for college, but said he didn't try to push him. "It was a great feeling," Bryant said of B.J.'s commitment. "B.J. has worked extremely hard to put himself in posi- tion to earn a scholarship. For him to consider going to the school I attended is special. He is definitely orange and blue all the way. "Coach Bennett and his staff are great people. Those are the type of people you want to surround your child with." The 6-4, 175-pound B.J. Stith and his older brother Brandon both grew up going to Virginia football and basketball games. Brandon, a junior, is also a UVa recruiting target, and two younger sis- ters are playing basketball and running track in middle school. B.J. Stith is looking forward to play- B.J. Stith, the son of former Cavalier great Bryant Stith, is playing Division I basketball and elected to spend a post-graduate year at Fish- burne Military School in Waynesboro, Va. Virginia assistant coach Ritchie McKay rated as a four-star prospect by Rivals.com. PHOTO BY JACEY ZEMBAL love Coach Bennett and his staff." Jones has been impressed by how many watched Jones play with Team Phenom, which is based in Salisbury, N.C., last July and followed up at Fishburne. "Coach McKay actually wanted me to come this year," said Jones, who hopes to be a dentist. "I went from basically being a no- body to a somebody. I had to prove myself, and I look forward to providing help. I want to win an ACC cham- pionship or even a na- tional championship." Bennett eventually UVa fans have come out to see him play this season. He also looks forward to play- ing against the ACC schools from North Carolina in front of his friends and family next year. "It's going to be real exciting," said Jones, 18, who grew up a UNC fan. "They didn't pay any attention to me, and they over- looked me. I just have a lot to prove." Fishburne coach Ed Huckaby Jr. said Jones can really score the ball, but is prov- ing to be a quality setup man. "He is a very good passer and is a good TEVEN JONES offered Jones and he became the Cavaliers' fourth commit in the class of 2012, joining center Mike Tobey, small forward Justin An- derson and forward Evan Nolte. Rivals.com rated the class No. 20 nationally entering November. "It's been a great experience, especially the official visit where I got to meet the other recruits. We exchanged numbers and have been staying in touch," Jones said. "Af- ter seeing the campus, I fell in love with it. I decision maker," Huckaby said. "He is a very good leader, but like most young guys, he has to continue to work on it. He's very responsible and mature." Stith is already one of the top sophomore guards in the country and is a Rivals.com four-star prospect. "It was extremely exciting because I al- ways wanted to go to UVa," he said. "I always dreamed of playing for UVa. The process was kind of simple. There weren't a lot of schools recruiting me as hard as UVa at the time. I didn't think about my decision twice." His father, Bryant Stith, was the No. 13 ing for Bennett and carving out his own niche at the school. Stith is also try- ing to get guard Devon Hall of Virginia Beach (Va.) Cape Henry Collegiate School, Rivals.com's No. 24 sophomore nationally, to join him at Virginia. "Coach Bennett's style of play fits my game perfectly," said Stith, 15. "He likes his guards skilled and able to shoot the ball well. I can play both guard positions pretty well. I'll play whatever position Coach wants me to." ◆ NOTES FROM THE RECRUITING TRAIL • Rivals.com ranked Virginia's football class No. 18 in the country as of Nov. 7. The 25-mem- ber group, which features four four-star pros- pects and 14 three-star players, is the fifth best in the ACC. The Cavaliers are seventh best in the league with an average of 2.88 stars per player. • Virginia has been aggressive in the class of 2013 at the quarterback position. At least four players claim offers from the Cavaliers — Ryan Burns of Ashburn (Va.) Stone Bridge, Christian Hackenberg of Fork Union (Va.) Military Acad- emy, Bucky Hodges of Virginia Beach (Va.) Salem and Brendan Marshall of Olney (Md.) Good Counsel. Wilton Speight of Richmond (Va.) The Col- legiate School, Corwin Cutler of Virginia Beach Ocean Lakes and Connor Mitch of Raleigh (N.C.) Wakefield, are also getting interest. DECEMBER 2011 ◆ 27