BY BRAD FRANKLIN
W
ITH SUCCESS ON THE
court, like UVA has had
finishing the past two sea-
sons as ACC regular-season
champions, comes success
on the recruiting trail, and
that's been the case so far for the Cavaliers in the
class of 2016.
The wealth of talent that head coach Tony Ben-
nett has brought in over the past few months is
somewhat historic, not only with a top-10 class
but also with a pair of players who are currently
waiting their turn during their redshirt years.
The first two pieces of the puzzle officially
fell into place last fall, when the Wahoos wel-
comed former five-star recruit and former Mem-
phis standout Austin Nichols as well as four-star
Rivals150 power forward Mamadi Diakite, who at
the time of his commitment was the No. 30 player
in the country. Nichols is sitting out this season
per NCAA transfer rules, while Diakite enrolled
early at Virginia and is redshirting.
However, it's the four-man group that Bennett
signed in November that is bringing even more
optimism. UVA officially added what was at the
time already the No. 7 class in the nation accord-
ing to Rivals.com.
In it, Virginia currently has a trio of four-star
Rivals.com signees as well as a solid three-star
power forward known for his versatility that could
very well be the steal of the entire class.
The first of the group to commit to UVA was
four-star guard Ty Jerome, a New York native who
picked the Cavaliers all the way back in Septem-
ber 2014. At the time, the New Rochelle (N.Y.)
Iona Prep standout was something of an unknown
commodity but he was someone Bennett knew he
liked right away.
"He has a really great feel for the game," said
Bennett. "Whatever team he is on, he knows how
to make a difference. He's very competitive, and
he pushes hard to get the win. I really liked that
about him."
Rivals.com national basketball analyst Eric
Bossi, who has consistently moved Jerome up in
the Rivals rankings, says a big reason why the 6-5,
190-pound guard is now No. 50 overall is due to
his vision.
"Jerome is a tall point guard whose biggest
SWEET '16
HAUL
Men's Basketball Lands
A Top-10 Recruiting Class
