Brown Auto's 2002 Tent Event is this weekend! Brown of Charlottesville gives you two great ways to save on a factory-certified, pre-owned cars! Come into Brown's 2002 Tent Event at the Used Car Super Center on Route 29 and get $2002 off any used car at Brown's Super Center, and make no monthly payments till August 2002! Select from great used car name brands like Honda, Toyota, Mercedes, Chrysler, Dodge, Subaru, and Saab, many with dealer and factory warranties that only franchised dealerships can offer. Drive home in a certified used vehicle now through Sunday only at Brown's Super Center on Route 29 North by Golden Corral. The 2002 Tent Event -- no payments till August! Sale ends Sunday.

And don't forget to tell them TheSabre.com sent you!

Virginia Basketball signee Derrick Byars has been invited to play in this year's Capital Classic game at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C.

Byars, a 6-6 swing forward from Ridgeway High in Memphis, Tennessee will play for the U.S. All-Stars. Over the years, the U.S. All-Star team has fielded some of the greatest names in professional basketball - players such as Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson to name a few.

The U.S. All Stars will play the Capital All-Stars in the first game of a double-header at 6:30 PM on April 11th, followed by the Red vs. White game at 8:30 PM. The Red vs. White all-star teams are made up players from around the country. There will be a number of ACC recruits filling out the rosters of those teams. Reserve your Cap Classic tickets by calling TicketMaster at 202-432-SEAT (202-432-7328), or picking up your tickets in person at the MCI Center box office. Tickets for the double-header are $17.50, $22.50 and $30.00 depending on seating location.

Byars' team, Ridgeway, is currently participating in the Tennessee Class AA State Championship. Ridgeway won today's quarterfinal game over McMinn Central by a score of 68-38. Byars scored 12 points and pulled down 5 rebounds in only 23 minutes of play. Ridgeway dominated the contest from the opening tip, running out to a 24-7 first quarter lead, and finishing the half, 37-12.

Ridgeway (35-4) advances to Friday's semifinal game against Dyer County (30-3) on the campus of Middle Tennessee State. Game time is 6:16 EST. You can listen to the game online here. The winner advances to the state finals on Saturday to face the winner of Marshall County (29-4) and Austin East (26-10). Game time for the State Championship is 6:00 PM EST.

Hungry for more basketball recruiting?

Men's Basketball closes season with NIT loss

The men's hoops team bowed out of the first round of the 2002 National Invitational Tournament last night with a loss to South Carolina, 74-67. The Cavs were led by junior center Travis Watson, who led the team with 26 points and 13 rebounds. The Cavs played tough in the first half, but their defense let them down yet again, allowing the Gamecocks to shoot 61 percent from the floor in the second half. The loss caps off a disappointing season for the Cavaliers, who were most certainly thinking NCAA Tournament at the beginning of the season.

Virginia will have some work to do in the off-season to right the problems with this season's team. Rumors are spreading about the possibility of transfers from several players, although sources tell me that only one or two of those players are likely to transfer.

Virginia looked to struggle with leadership this year. Seniors Adam Hall and Chris Williams were UVa's only senior scholarship players, and neither of them were ever considered vocal leaders on the team. UVa will look to rising seniors Roger Mason, Travis Watson and Majestic Mapp (if healthy) to provide leadership next season. They also add veteran transfers Todd Billet and Nick VanderLaan to the mix, so leadership should not be an issue in 2002-03.

Virginia should also consider taking on tougher opponents early next season. Their approach of taking on mediocre programs for 2001-02 backfired when they didn't fair well in the ACC (7-9 regular season with a first round ACC Tourney loss). The ACC is one of the toughest conferences in the country, yet Virginia only played two out of conference teams that made the NCAA Tournament field this year (Missouri and Michigan State), and the game against the Spartans didn't even count. This not only hurts Virginia's RPI, it doesn't prepare them for the physical nature, as well as the talent, of ACC competition.

Granted, it's tough to know that preseason Top 25 teams like Georgetown and Missouri will not live up to their billing. Perhaps a preseason tournament would have helped their cause. Virginia needs to take measures to ensure they have a quality out of conference schedule next season if they want to have any chance at making a run in the ACC and the Big Dance.

More honors for Women's Basketball

Freshman Brandi Teamer already has ACC Rookie of the Year and second team All-ACC honors for her performance this season. Tuesday she was named State Player of the Year by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Head Coach Debbie Ryan took Coach of the Year honors. Ryan is celebrating her 25th season with the Cavaliers. Ryan has a career record of 561 wins and 208 losses. She has taken her teams to 19 consecutive NCAA Tournaments. 12 of those trips include advances to the Sweet Sixteen, with seven of them in the Elite Eight, three in the Final Four and one in the National Championship game against Tennessee in 1991.

Ryan's 2001-02 squad takes on #9 seed Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Tournament this Saturday, March 16th at 11:00 AM EST. The game is scheduled to be televised by ESPN2. The winner will face the winner of top seed U-Conn and 16-seed S. Francis on Monday, March 18th at 9:00 PM on ESPN. All three contests will take place at U-Conn's Gampel Pavillion.

To learn more on their season, please check out the feature on UVa Women's Basketball in the March 2002 issue of the Sabre Newsletter (Friday release date).

National Football Foundation to host Football 101 for women

Charlottesville, VA - The Central Virginia Chapter of the National Football Foundation will be hosting a Football 101 seminar for women on April 17, 2002 at the Alumni Room in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The program will begin with an optional open practice at the McCue Center from 4:30 to 5:15. Transportation to the stadium from the McCue Center will not be provided. Registration will take place at Scott Stadium from 5:15 to 5:30 and will be followed by dinner and instruction on football equipment, offensive and defensive strategy as well as talks from guest speakers from the surrounding community.

The 2002 Virginia Football Camp website is now live. Day camps and overnight camps are available, as well as one-day-only camps. If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this year's camp, please refer to the following link for details.

The Virginia Football Camp

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