Virginia coach Tony Bennett to announce retirement Friday

Virginia head coach Tony Bennett will announce his retirement in a press conference Friday morning, the program confirmed in a social media post Thursday. Bennett, 55, won the 2019 national championship with Virginia and is retiring less than three weeks from the start of the new season. No reason for Bennett's decision was made public. Bennett is not stepping away for a health-related reason, ESPN reported. It is not known who will be tapped to coach the Cavaliers in 2024-25 and beyond. Virginia has two associate head coaches, Ron Sanchez and Jason Williford. Sanchez spent five seasons as the head coach at Charlotte before resigning to join Bennett's staff in 2023. Bennett spent three seasons as the coach at Washington State (2006-09) before taking the Virginia job. In 18 seasons as a head coach, Bennett has amassed a 433-169 record (.719 winning percentage) and taken 12 teams to the NCAA Tournament, including 10 in his 15 years at Virginia. He received national college coach of the year recognition in 2007, 2015 and 2018. The Cavaliers reached the Sweet 16 in 2014 and the Elite Eight in 2016. They were the No. 1 overall seed in the 2018 NCAA Tournament and became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16, UMBC, the year before returning to the dance and winning the program's first national championship. "Tony Bennett is, first and foremost, a tremendous person who is also one of the most accomplished coaches in the storied history of ACC Basketball," ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement. "He is a fierce competitor, but one who always leads with integrity, class and unwavering values. He has made an indelible impact on countless student-athletes and developed them not only in basketball, but also as young men. "He is a legend who we will deeply miss having on the sidelines as well as his daily impact in the league, the sport and college athletics. We are incredibly thankful for all he did in making college basketball better with his steadfast dedication and commitment to the game. We wish Tony, his wife Laurel, and their entire family all the best in this next chapter." Virginia, which went 23-11 and made the NCAA Tournament last season, opens the 2024-25 campaign Nov. 6 at home against Campbell. --Field Level Media