Tony Bennett (basketball)

Tony Bennett
Coach Tony Bennett of the Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team
Bennett at the Barclays Center in 2014–15
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamVirginia
ConferenceACC
Record364–136 (.728)
Annual salary$4.15 million[1]
Biographical details
Born (1969-06-01) June 1, 1969 (age 55)
Clintonville, Wisconsin, U.S.[2]
Playing career
1988–1992Green Bay
1992–1995Charlotte Hornets
1996–1997North Harbour Vikings
Position(s)Point guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1998–1999North Harbour Kings
1999–2003Wisconsin (assistant)
2003–2004Washington State (assistant)
2004–2006Washington State (associate HC)
2006–2009Washington State
2009–presentVirginia
National
2013USA U-19 (assistant)
Head coaching record
Overall433–169 (.719)
Tournaments16–11 (NCAA Division I)
4–3 (NIT)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Awards
Henry Iba Award (2007, 2015, 2018)
Naismith College Coach of the Year (2007, 2018)
AP National Coach of the Year (2007, 2018)
NABC Coach of the Year (2018)
Jim Phelan Award (2007)
Sporting News Coach of the Year (2007)
ACC Coach of the Year (2014, 2015, 2018, 2019)
Pac-10 Coach of the Year (2007)
USBWA District 3 Coach of the Year (2015, 2016, 2018)
Academic All-American (1991, 1992)
Academic All-American of the Year (1991)
Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (1992)
MCC Player of the Year (1991, 1992)
Records
Coach
Single-season win records at both Virginia (35) and Washington State (26, twice)

Player
NCAA record for career three-point field goal percentage (49.7%)
Medal record
Men's basketball
Representing the  United States
Pan American Games
Bronze medal – third place 1991 Havana National team
FIBA Under-19 World Championship
Gold medal – first place 2013 Prague National team

Anthony Guy Bennett (born June 1, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player and since 2009 the head coach of the University of Virginia men's team, with whom he won the NCAA Championship in 2019.[3] Bennett is a three-time recipient of the Henry Iba Award, two-time Naismith College Coach of the Year, and two-time AP Coach of the Year. Bennett is the all-time wins leader at Virginia, and holds or shares records for single-season wins and career winning percentage at both Virginia and Washington State. He is one of three coaches in history (with Dean Smith and Mike Krzyzewski) to lead his program to ten or more consecutive winning ACC records[a][4][5] and is one of three coaches (also with Smith and Krzyzewski) to be named ACC Coach of the Year four or more times.[6]

As a 5'11" point guard, Bennett ranks first in NCAA history for career three-point field goal accuracy at 49.7%, shooting above 50% from range in both his junior and senior seasons.[7][8] He started for the United States national team at the 1991 Pan American Games, was awarded the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award as the nation's top player under six feet tall, and was named Academic All-American of the Year.[7] Bennett starred for the Green Bay Phoenix under his father, Dick Bennett, who later took Wisconsin to the 2000 Final Four using an earlier version of the packline defense seen today at Virginia.

Bennett played three years in the NBA for the Charlotte Hornets and after an injury, several more professionally in Australia and New Zealand where he started coaching.[9] He has since coached several players at the college level who've gone on to be known for shooting prowess in the NBA, such as Malcolm Brogdon (eighth 50–40–90 shooter in NBA history), Joe Harris (led NBA in three-point accuracy in 2018–19 and in 2020–21) and Klay Thompson (one-half of the Splash Brothers). Both Harris and Thompson have won the Three-Point Contest at the NBA All-Star Game.[10][11] His player Trey Murphy III recorded the only college 50–40–90 season from any ACC team.[12]

From his first day at Virginia, he set the goal of building "a program that lasts."[3] Originally inheriting the worst UVA team since 1967, his Cavaliers have had four 30-win seasons, won the NCAA tournament championship with a 35–3 team in 2019, won ACC tournaments in 2014 and in 2018, and have won or shared 6 ACC regular season titles. Known for coaching defensive intensity, Bennett has been ranked the top defensive coach in college basketball by ESPN Insider and a CBS Sports poll of head coaches.[13][14][15] The style of basketball he teaches has often been compared to a boa constrictor choking out opponents,[16][17][18][19] and his teams are known for their unselfish play, defense-first philosophy, and tempo control.[20][21][22]

  1. ^ USA Today: NCAA Salaries, accessed April 2, 2019
  2. ^ "Game 14 vs. NC State, Charlottesville, Va. (John Paul Jones Arena)" (PDF). p. 2. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  3. ^ a b Norm Wood. "Bennett begins task after day of praise". The Daily Press, April 2, 2009. Accessed April 11, 2019
  4. ^ David Teel. "Teel: Victory over UNC elevates UVA's Bennett into rare company". Richmond Times-Dispatch, February 13, 2021. Accessed February 14, 2021.
  5. ^ Megan Plain. "No. 9 Virginia men's hoops faces No. 17 Florida State". WTKR Channel 3, February 15, 2021. Accessed February 16, 2021.
  6. ^ Barry Jacobs. "He’s The GOAT To Everyone - Except ACC Sportswriters". SB Nation, September 13, 2021. Accessed November 25, 2021.
  7. ^ a b The Summit League. "The Summit League Record Book". Accessed February 5, 2015
  8. ^ NCAA. "2016–17 NCAA Men's Basketball Records – Division I, p.2 – Individual Records" (PDF). Retrieved February 6, 2018.
  9. ^ Jeff Eisenberg. "Coaching was a Path Virginia's Bennett Once Resisted". Yahoo Sports, March 5, 2014. Accessed February 8, 2015
  10. ^ Tom Dowd. "JOE HARRIS: 3-POINT CONTEST CHAMPION". National Basketball Association, February 17, 2019. Accessed August 26, 2021.
  11. ^ Michael Mulford. "Warriors All-Star Rewind: Klay Thompson wins 2016 3-point contest". USA Today, March 6, 2021. Accessed August 26, 2021.
  12. ^ Brenden Welper. "Every member of DI men's basketball's 50-40-90 club". NCAA, May 6, 2021. Accessed May 26, 2024.
  13. ^ John Gasaway. "The Coaches Most Defined by Defensive Excellence: Tony Bennett Wins... in a Walk". ESPN Insider, September 20, 2018. Accessed October 14, 2018.
  14. ^ Sam Vecenie. "Candid Coaches: Who is the best defensive coach in college basketball?". CBS Sports, August 24, 2015. Accessed August 24, 2015. Archived article accessed March 30, 2019.
  15. ^ Tomer Langer. "Jim Boeheim Calls UVA Head Coach Tony Bennett Best Defensive Coach in Country...". The Daily Orange, January 8, 2018. Accessed March 30, 2019.
  16. ^ Shane Ryan. "Is Virginia the Least-Respected Great Team in College Hoops History?". Grantland, March 26, 2014. Accessed January 28, 2018.
  17. ^ Jay Bilas. "Jay Bilas: The Best Things I've Seen So Far: Volume 2". ESPN, January 24, 2018. Accessed January 28, 2018.
  18. ^ Norm Wood. "U.Va. still seeking secondary scoring options to pair with Perrantes". The Daily Press, January 19, 2017. Accessed January 28, 2018.
  19. ^ Scott Phillips. "National Title Game Likely to be Defensive Struggle Between Virginia and Texas Tech". NBC Sports, April 7, 2019. Accessed April 8, 2019.
  20. ^ Jordan Ritter Conn. "How Tony Bennett Turned Virginia Into College Basketball's Spurs". The Ringer, March 1, 2018. Accessed March 2, 2018.
  21. ^ David Teel. "Virginia Need Not Apologize for Pace, Defensive Excellence". The Daily Press, February 18, 2015. Accessed December 5, 2017.
  22. ^ Jamie Oakes. "Isaiah Wilkins Takes Hilarious Jab at Former UVA Teammate London Perrantes". 247 Sports, December 4, 2017. Accessed December 5, 2017.


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