Virginia basketball's leading scorer makes transfer portal decision after Ryan Odom hire
03/24/2025 11:46 AM
Virginia basketball did not have a great first season in the post-Tony Bennett era. The Cavaliers went just 15-17 overall in the 2024-25 college basketball campaign and lost in its first assignment in the ACC Tournament to miss the Big Dance for the first time in three years.
Although the Hoos are not part of the 2025 iteration of the NCAA Tournament, they still made headlines when news broke that Virginia basketball hired a new head coach to handle the program in now ex-VCU Rams coach Ryan Odom to succeed the long-time assistant of Bennett and interim Cavs head coach Ron Sanchez.
But apart from the Odom hire, Virginia basketball also turned some heads amid the heat of March Madness with the report of the program losing one of its key players this season to enter the NCAA Transfer Portal, according to a report by Keegan Pope of On3.
Guard Isaac McKneely has decided to hit the portal, though, it was also pointed out by On3’s Joe Tipton that there’s still a chance that McKneely would ultimately end up returning to Virginia basketball.
McKneely was a bright spot in a disappointing Virginia season. He led the Hoos in scoring with 14.4 points per game on the strength of his excellent touch from behind the arc. He shot just 43.9 percent from the field but his 42.1 percent success rate from deep pushed his effective field percentage to 58.5 in addition to his solid 60.9 true shooting percentage.
McKneely was a four-star recruit by Bennett but only played two seasons under the former Virginia basketball head coach, who stunningly decided to retire from coaching in 2024. Through three seasons and 98 games played for the Hoos, McKneely averaged 11.1 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists.
McKneely, who has one more year of eligibility, got several offers as a four-star talent before choosing to take his talents to Charlottesville. Among the other programs that extended him offers were the Illinois Fighting Illini, Kansas State Wildcats, NC State Wolfpack, Virginia Tech Hokies, Wake Forest Demon Deacons and West Virginia Mountaineers.
Virginia basketball now has four players entering the transfer portal since the start of March, per 247Sports. Andrew Rohde, Dai Dai Ames and Blake Buchanan are the other three.
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