The 2019-2020 basketball season was a transition year of sorts for Virginia. Coming off of the program’s first national title, the Cavaliers were tasked with replacing many of the key pieces from that title run while shifting to a new core group of players. To underscore the transitional nature of the season, they took a lot of momentum into a postseason that would never happen, cut short by the COVID-19 outbreak in March.
And all the while, UVa’s most-talented and accomplished player on the roster was sitting out. Sam Hauser joined the program last year after three successful seasons at Marquette with one year of eligibility remaining. Of course, he was forced to sit out due to the NCAA’s transfer rules as he waited his turn to take the floor again.
The year was far from a waste for the Wisconsin native, however. The now senior forward got to spend time working on his game and adjusting to the Virginia program while also helping his teammates every day in practice.
Hauser explained this week that he tried to make the most of his gap year as he prepared for one last ride in 2020-2021.
“Having a redshirt year, you have a whole year to work on your game,” he said Monday during media day, “and figure out what you need to fine tune and what you need to get better at. And I took that very seriously. I hope I can show everyone I’ve gotten better and that I’ve improved and that I’m more than just a shooter that I’m labeled as. I’ve taken that personally and I’m just really excited to showcase it.”
A proven commodity during three successful years at a very good Marquette program under his belt, Hauser started 97 of 101 career games at Marquette including every game in his sophomore and junior season when he was one of the team’s top offensive weapons.
He averaged better than 14 points per game in both seasons and showed improvement from each year to the next. As a junior, Hauser was a well-rounded player averaging 14.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per contest and was named Second-Team All Big East as a result. He was also a reliable shooter, making 40.2 percent of his 3-point tries, and 92.4 percent of his free throws.
While Hauser is an accomplished offensive player, like all newcomers at UVa his ability to defend will be the priority. Hauser knew that he would need to raise his game on that end of the floor when he arrived in Charlottesville and the work he has put in over his redshirt year should pay dividends this season.
“I think I’ve taken steps for sure,” Hauser said of his evolution as a defender. “Coming in I was okay and I think I’ve developed a little bit into a better defender and that’s credit to the work with coach Mike Curtis and Coach (Tony) Bennett as well. If I want to play here, I’m going to have to be able to play some defense, so I took that personally and individually to get better on it and I think I have.”
Hauser said he worked on more than just his game during his year off, however. Nearly every player that comes through the Virginia program either as a freshman or a transfer raves about the gains they make working with Curtis and players usually make significant transformations from the time they walk on Grounds to when they leave years later. Hauser and Curtis had specific goals in mind for how they could improve his athleticism and subsequently his complete game on the court.
“I think overall just trying to get more explosive and quicker, and try to get the most out of my body that I can,” he said. “A lot of it was having to eat better and trim off bad body fat and try to make it into lean muscle. That was a big emphasis to get faster and quicker and stronger, to be able to guard multiple positions more effectively, and obviously help my overall game.”
While he helped his teammates prepare for opponents they saw throughout last season, his teammates also helped him develop and adjust to life at Virginia. The veterans remaining from the 2019 title team helped Hauser understand what he needed to do to excel in the ACC.
“I think Mamadi (Diakite) and Braxton (Key), just having to compete with them every day last year really showed me what ACC ball is like and how physical it is,” Hauser said of those practices. “Going against those guys really got me better and I hope it got them better as well. I’m a competitor and I like to compete, and going against those guys was really fun last year.”
It is safe to say that the Hauser hype train has officially left the station. On Wednesday, Hauser was named to the preseason All-ACC team and received the second-most votes for preseason Player of the Year behind UNC’s Garrison Brooks. His presence also boosted the expectations for the team at large, with the Wahoos named preseason conference favorites for the first time in nearly four decades.
Still, Hauser knows he is going to need to prove himself in the nation’s premier basketball conference despite lofty expectations.
“The ACC is known as one of the best conferences in America and consistently is,” he said. “I think it’s a very physical conference, where the Big East is a lot faster, team’s play at a higher pace. There’s a lot of great players in the ACC and I just can’t wait to try to prove myself and show that I can play here and fit in, and hopefully be one of the best in the ACC.”
Hauser is not getting caught up in any preseason hype either and rather will put his focus towards whatever will help the team improve.
“It’s cool to get recognition,” he said, “but I’m just worried about what I can do to help the team in the best way. I try not to buy into the outside expectations, so I just stick with what the coaches want from me and what I want from myself.”
Virginia’s season opens up in two weeks, when the Wahoos take on Maine at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. The schedule ramps up from there, with a game against Florida on Black Friday and other challenging non-conference games to come before ACC play opens up on December 16th against Wake Forest.
There is one game that Hauser and many UVa fans alike have circled and it’s the December 9th matchup against Michigan State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. That game pits Hauser against his younger brother Joey, who transferred to MSU from Marquette at the same time the older Hauser headed to Charlottesville. The game will be the first ever between the two brothers and it’s safe to say both of them are looking forward to squaring off at JPJ.
“I was definitely excited to see that,” Hauser said of receiving word of the Challenge pairing. “I’ve never played against my brother. We’ve always been on the same team. The parents are excited, the whole family is excited. I’m curious to see who they’re going to cheer for that game and where they’re going to sit in the stands, so that will be really fun.”
With the season coming soon, Hauser can finally turn his attention to game action after more than a year away from a live contest. After months of hard work on the practice court and in the weight room, it’s time for Cavalier fans to see what Hauser can do in orange and blue.
“I can’t wait,” Hauser said of the season’s commencement. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been on the floor to play a game. I’m ecstatic. We need to have a good two weeks of practice leading up to those games but I’m excited to get back on the floor.”
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