Evaluation Needed in Charlottesville

On a night when Virginia Tech beat Connecticut in the NIT, the state of basketball in Virginia became a bit more foggy. Tristan Spurlock, a top recruit for the University of Virginia out of Woodbridge, Virginia, announced on Monday that he is transferring from the Hoos.

This transfer should not come as a surprise to anyone who follows U.Va., but it can be notched as a loss in Tony Bennett's career so far in Charlottesville. After Bennett's arrival about a year ago, he said that his first two priorities were to retain Spurlock and fellow recruit Jontel Evans. He achieved both of these goals and began working on his 2010-2011 class, still ranked by many to be a top 15 class.

But as the season got going, Cavalier fans realized that the Spurlock era was going to be a short one. Rumors swirled that Spurlock was lazy defensively and he was quickly stashed towards the back of Bennett's bench. In rare appearances, though, Spurlock showed the flash of offensive talent that the Hoos needed as they struggled down the stretch of the ACC season.

Spurlock's decision to transfer does not come as a surprise. It seemed that he and Bennett could not find the right solution to his development and a fresh start was needed for both parities. The next step for the Cavaliers has to be finding a way to convince Sylven Landesberg to come back to school. Landesberg, suspended before the ACC tournament, is the heart and soul of the Hoos and could help lead a team that does have a solid post presence in Mike Scott.

For Bennett, he needs to find a way to alter his coaching techniques for U.VA. Virginia is not Washington State and what worked in one place may not be the perfect answer in Virginia. If he does not evaluate his coaching style, The University of Virginia may have to evaluate their coaching situation once again.

Virginia Tech might only be playing in the NIT, but at least they are still playing in March.