Tony Bennett on Jayden Gardner Returning: "I would hope he would strongly consider coming back"

Bennett weighed in on the possibility of Gardner returning to Virginia for another season

On Monday night's Coach's Corner with Tony Bennett, the Virginia men's basketball head coach was asked about the possibility of Jayden Gardner returning to UVA next year for what would be his fifth season of college basketball. 

"Unless there's something out there that's ideal from a professional playing career, I would hope he would strongly consider coming back," Bennett said on the show on Monday night. 

Gardner, who spent the first three seasons at East Carolina before transferring to Virginia last year, was not among the seniors honored before Saturday's game against Florida State on Senior Night. Kihei Clark, Kody Stattmann, and Jayden Nixon were celebrated, but Gardner was not included in the ceremony. Gardner is currently playing his fourth season of college basketball, but he maintains the option to play a fifth season under the NCAA's COVID-19 eligibility rules. 

Bennett provided some additional context regarding Gardner's academic status and the role it will play in his future, as not all of Gardner's class credits transferred to UVA from his three years as a student at East Carolina, so he will need an additional year at Virginia in order to complete his degree. 

"In coming to UVA, it's hard to get credits to transfer," Bennett said. "Armaan [Franklin] and Jayden had to take 12 credits in the summer to get eligible because the school protects its degree at UVA, so you don't get as many transfer credits... it'll take them an extra year to get a degree. So, though he came in as a senior, he's going to need to be here for another year to get his degree."

With that academic context in mind, it makes sense that Gardner would return to UVA for another season, barring an NBA evaluation that projections him to be selected in the NBA Draft. 

Of course, Bennett concluded his comments with, "but I don't pretend to know anything." 

As a kid growing up in Wake Forest, North Carolina, Gardner dreamed of playing ACC basketball. This season, that dream has come true and much, much more as Gardner has emerged as a leader for Virginia since transferring last April. 

Gardner is UVA's leading scorer and rebounder this season, averaging 15.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. He was named the Most Valuable Player at the Legends Classic back in November and was also named the ACC Player of the Week on February 14th. 

Bennett also briefly addressed another senior who has a decision to make regarding his future with the UVA men's basketball program - Kihei Clark. 

On the possibility of Clark returning for a fifth year, Bennett said, "He'll have a decision to make. My assumption is he's probably in his last [year]. But who knows. We'll have those conversations when the time is right."

Clark, along with Stattmann and Nixon, will have completed their degrees by the end of this academic year. 

"My hope is that the majority of the team is coming back," Bennett continued. "But with the one-time transfer portal, you never know. You just have those conversations at the end of the year." 

Virginia will play the regular season finale at Louisville on Saturday at 12pm. 

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