A new rivalry for recruitment is emerging between the Virginia and Maryland men’s basketball programs.
Courtesy of Maryland Athletics and USATSI
The historic rivalry between Virginia and Maryland essentially ended when Maryland left the ACC for the Big Ten in 2014. The Cavalier and Terrapin men’s basketball teams have only faced each other twice since, and UVA dominated both times at College Park. For the most part, the epic cobblestone battles between these two arch-enemys no longer exist.
That hasn’t stopped these two basketball programs from developing a new rivalry in a different environment: the recruiting path.
Former Seton Hall head coach Kevin Willard was hired as Maryland’s new men’s basketball head coach in March and immediately hit the hiring path hard, extending bids to nearly 40 candidates for the class of 2023. While Willard builds a large network, Tony Bennett is almost the opposite, focusing on a smaller number of players and actively following each and every one of them.
Bennett and Willard converged on three main goals in the recruiting class of 2023, and reports also indicate that there are several co-players in the class of 2024 that both coaches have already made contact with.
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Most notably, Virginia and Maryland are finalists for the services of four-star wing Jamie Kaiser of Burke, Virginia. Bishop Ireton’s (Alexandria, VA) 6’6″, 200-pound wing is currently receiving offers from nearly 40 programs, one of the most sought-after candidates in the 2023 class. Kaiser is the 2nd ranked player in Virginia. , the #14 small forward in the country and #75 overall in the class of 2023, and these rankings could rise as Kaiser continues to impress this summer.
“Maryland, UCLA, Indiana, Virginia and Miami – those are probably the top five,” Kaiser told Travis Branham of 247Sports this week. Perhaps the most talented player to come out of the DMV from this recruitment cycle, it just seems fitting that Virginia and Maryland are among the leaders who have lived up to the Kaiser’s commitment. The Terrapins seem to be leading, but Kaiser definitely has great respect for Tony Bennett, so the Cavaliers have a shot.
“Coach Bennett is a great guy,” Kaiser said. “A winner, a two-time National Coach of the Year, a champion. If he’s proposing to you, you have to respect that and do some research because he doesn’t offer many children.”
Kaiser, who plans to make two official visits to Indiana and UCLA this summer, has yet to announce a firm commitment date, but the university plans to make its decision before the school year begins.
Maryland is also considered a favorite to take down Elmarko Jackson, a four-star guard from South Kent, Connecticut. The 6’3″, 185-pound combo guard is reportedly looking to narrow his roster from around 30 offers by the end of the summer and has been recruited as the hardest by Maryland, Virginia, Miami, Indiana, UCLA, Ohio State, Michigan. , and the VCU, according to a report from the Zags Blog.
“I was talking to coach Tony Bennett and coach Vandross,” Jackson said this week. “They were telling me how their program was going, the basics of their program, how they expected us to be there as basketball players on and off the court.”
Jackson is rated #1. 3 players from the state of Connecticut, No. 14 combo guards and number 1 in the country. 71 overall expectations in the class of 2023.
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Virginia and Maryland are also recruiting another four-star combo guard, Freddie Dilione from Raleigh, North Carolina. 247Sports ranks Dilione as North Carolina’s #1. 1 hope, No. 15 combo guards and No. 72 players in the country.
Swipe to continue
Virginia made an offer to Dilione on May 4 and planned a visit to Charlottesville for the weekend immediately following. He has also taken officials to Tennessee and VCU, on an unofficial visit to NC State, and plans to visit UConn in late July. One of the top goalscorers on the Adidas 3SSB track, Dilione has seen her recruiting increase significantly this summer and is currently receiving offers from over 20 schools. North Carolina and Kentucky are the last major programs to show interest.
“I plan to cut my roster after the livestream period,” Dilione told Sports Illustrated. “I’m not sure if it’s going to be five or more than that, but I need to get it down.”
The good news: Virginia entered Dilione relatively early and has developed a good relationship with the UVA coaching team. Bad news? Dilione told On3 last week: “I like to play on a fast system; Whoever gets the ball goes. I love playing pick and roll and doing readings.” It is clear that there is a mismatch between the preferred styles of Dilione and Virginia. UVA is unlikely to be the place unless Dilione changes her mind on the matter in favor of “embracing speed”. for him.
Tennessee and VCU are reportedly locked to make the final cut of Dilione, but UVA and Maryland remain in hot pursuit. So, although the Cavaliers and Terrapins rarely face each other throughout the season, the competition is alive and well on the way to recruiting.
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