Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 19, 1993 TAG: 9301190059
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Medium
JONES NOT IMPRESSED BY RANKING
Virginia coach Jeff Jones has said all season that a core of teams stand alone in men's college basketball.He still doesn't believe UVa is in it.
Nevertheless, the Cavaliers moved up to seventh in The Associ- ated Press poll on Monday, two weeks after making their first appearance at No. 25.
"Right now I don't think we're the seventh-best team in the country," Jones said. "I don't think we're a Top 10-type team. I think there's a small group of teams at the top; then there's a whole bunch of teams jockeying for position [beneath them]. I think we fall somewhere in that group."
Virginia, which moved up from 14th largely on the strength of a 77-69 victory at Duke, had not been ranked as high as seventh since the end of the 1982-83 season, when the Cavaliers were fourth.
"You might as well enjoy it," Jones said. "We're not going to get bent out of shape and try to convince people that we aren't [No. 7]. My reaction was one of amusement."
UVa is the only unbeaten team in Division I at 11-0, which may be the reason the Cavaliers received three first-place votes, none from the two AP voters in Virginia.
Virginia was 10th in the USA Today/CNN coaches' poll, with two first-place votes.
"I have a hard time believing there are people who seriously think we are the best team in the country," Jones said. "That's not to take anything away from our team because the players have worked very hard, but there's no reason yet to get caught up in all the hype."
The Cavaliers, a preseason choice for sixth place in the ACC, had performed in relative obscurity before ending Duke's 36-game home winning streak on Sunday.
"It hasn't been a bad thing," Jones said. "We've been allowed to develop at our own pace without having to worry about a lot of outside expectations."
Sixth man Doug Smith, one of the heroes of Sunday's game with 14 second-half points, said he didn't know who voted in The Associated Press poll, didn't know when it came out and couldn't name the six teams in front of the Cavaliers.
For the record, Kansas moved into first with 45 first-place votes, followed by Indiana, North Carolina, Kentucky, Michigan and Duke.
"Hopefully, we'll still feel like underdogs," said Smith, who won't have to worry about that Wednesday night when the Cavaliers meet heavily favored North Carolina. "We don't feel we've gotten a lot of respect; we really feed off that."
Jones said he realized the impact national rankings could have on television appearances and recruiting.
"I don't think it's anything that can be measured," he said. "It's not something that pays dividends overnight. I do feel, the longer you stay in there, the more positives come about."
The Cavaliers had lost 19 of their previous 21 games with Duke, which shot 36.8 percent from the field Sunday. Virginia shot 41.2 percent and committed 20 turnovers, although the Cavaliers stood out in other areas, particularly in outrebounding the Blue Devils 53-37.
"There's no question that was not a great game by either team," Jones said. "We're not fooling ourselves into thinking Duke played as well as they could and we beat them at their place.
"They were a little bit tired and had a bad shooting night. That's the realistic part of it. It still doesn't take away from the victory."
\ SEATING PLAN REVEALED: Virginia athletic director Jim Copeland held a news conference Monday to introduce a new seating policy for basketball games that he will try to pitch to contributors in meetings around the state this week.
Copeland said the plan, which involves moving the court at University Hall, was aimed at improving the atmosphere and giving the Cavaliers more of a home-court advantage. However, the plan met with mixed reviews from the media, who repeatedly asked Copeland about no-shows.
"This plan does not directly affect the no-shows," Copeland said. "The major problem is atmosphere. The no-shows are only part of that. I think the atmosphere will be improved by a lot of things."
The court, which runs from East to West, will be shifted to a Northeast-to-Southwest position. Also, the student section will be divided in half, with some of the seats on the floor, directly behind the baskets.
Contributors will be allowed to choose their seats on the basis of priority points, which accrue based on the size of their contributions. Copeland said it is hoped the plan will help raise contributions from the current $3.8 million level to the $6 million that will be needed to sustain the department by the year 2,000.
"I think there's some good things to come out of it," said Jones, who provided some input. "My strongest reaction is that at least we're being aggressive and moving forward."