Virginia Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Cavaliers

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 10: Tournament MVP Kyle Guy #5 of the Virginia Cavaliers celebrates after defeating the North Carolina Tar Heels 71-63 during the championship game of the 2018 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament at Barclays Center on March 10, 2018 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Tim Bradbury/Getty Images /

Overview for Virginia this upcoming season

Rankings aside, the ACC title runs through Charlottesville with the Virginia Cavaliers. There’s a reason they’re the No. 5 ranked team in the AP Preseason Poll and they should remain a top team all season long.

Their non-conference schedule isn’t the toughest but it has a few curveballs in there that should prepare them for conference play. After losing just one conference game in 2017-18, it will be interesting to see if they can dominate the ACC once again in 2018-19.

They have the returning experience to be a quality team but guys like Braxton Key, Mamadi Diakite and Francesco Badocchi will need to step up to give them some added depth. Depth wasn’t an issue last year but it could be this season.

With De’Andre Hunter, Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy in the starting rotation, this team has an opportunity to be one of the best offensive units in the ACC. Last year, they were the best defensive team, allowing just 54.1 points per game in conference play.

Next. ACC Rankings for 2018-19. dark

Virginia lost one conference game in 2017-18 and that was against Virginia Tech. The Cavaliers should be a Top 3 team in the conference once again but the Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Tar Heels always lurk.

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