Several recruiting targets are in attendance for Virginia Basketball’s official visits.
Within the next week, Tony Bennett and the Cavaliers plan to have three high school recruits and three transfer portal targets on the grounds.
Even though the basketball season is over, Tony Bennett and his staff are putting in more effort than ever to attract new players. Over the course of one week, Virginia men’s basketball will host six recruiting targets—three high school prospects and three transfers—for official visits.
The 6’4″ shooting guard Derek Dixon, a four-star prospect in the class of 2025 out of Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., was the guest of the Cavaliers last Thursday and Friday. Dixon, a prospect ranked among the top 75 in the class of 2025, is receiving the most attention from Virginia, Pittsburgh,
Trent Perry, a 2024 four-star point guard, is the target of Virginia’s big play, who paid an official visit to Charlottesville this past weekend. Perry, a McDonald’s All-American, attracted interest from numerous major conference programs prior to deciding to commit to USC in October of last year. However, Perry reopened his recruiting after USC head coach Andy Enfield left to take a position at SMU, and UVA was the first—and thus far, only—school to which he paid an official visit.
Another Washington, D.C. product and prominent 2025 prospect, Acaden Lewis, started his official visit to Virginia on Monday. The six foot two, four-star combo guard has visited UVA more than once and has offers from over twenty programs. Last month, Lewis received the Gatorade Player of the Year award in Washington, D.C.
Virginia is hosting two transfer targets on Tuesday in relation to the transfer portal. Toby Okani, a transfer from Illinois to Chicago, ranks UVA among his top five schools, along with LSU, West Virginia, Pepperdine, and St. Bonaventure. Okani, a 6’8″, 210-pound graduate transfer wing, is currently visiting Virginia, where front court depth is especially needed. He has previously visited St. Bonaventure, West Virginia, and LSU.
Tuesday in Charlottesville, Aidan Mahaney, a transfer from Saint Mary’s, will join Okani. Since logging onto the transfer portal, the two-time All-West Coast Conference First-Team selection has received offers from Duke, UConn, Kentucky, Alabama, Villanova, Creighton, Arkansas, Michigan, Xavier, USC, and other schools. The 6’3″ sophomore guard is currently traveling to Virginia for his next official visit after spending the weekend at Creighton. Before making his choice, Mahaney allegedly intends to visit UConn, Florida, USC, or Kentucky.
Lastly, this Friday, Virginia will play host to Xavier Amos, a transfer forward from Northern Illinois. Amos, a 6’8″, 215-pound forward with a 38.5% three-point percentage, might be a perfect fit for the Cavaliers, who desperately need a stretch four. His best performance of the season came against Northwestern on the road, where he scored 26 points on 11/15 shooting from the field and 4/5 three-point range. Amos is still eligible for two more years.
