Editor’s Note: Our series looking back at UVa’s season and breaking down the ins and outs of each player’s performances through the year as a whole moves along as we break down the numbers, discuss their successes and some issues, and then give a breakdown for what’s ahead.

Check out the initial features on second-year PG Kihei Clark, junior college transfer wing Tomas Woldetensae, and rookie guard Casey Morsell, and 7-footer Jay Huff.

Kody Stattmann went from seldom-used role player in his freshman season to a fairly significant contributor as a sophomore.

In his first year at UVa, Stattmann played just four minutes per game, appearing in 18 contests. In 2019-2020, he started several games and averaged 21.5 minutes per contest, appearing in 24 games of 30 games for the Wahoos. Stattmann missed a few games early in the season with an illness and was out of the lineup again in January as he battled back from a concussion.

Stattmann wasn’t a primary scoring option for Virginia this year, though he did show flashes from time to time. The Aussie averaged 3.6 points per game, shooting just 33.7 percent from the floor and just 26.9 percent from deep.

He had a pair of double-digit scoring efforts, coincidentally enough coming in back-to-back games against Virginia Tech and Boston College. The 11-point game at BC was a career high for Stattmann, who didn’t score more than six in a game for the remainder of the season.

While Stattmann didn’t have any clutch last-second shots or heroic performances single-handed, his 10-point, eight-rebound showing in a blowout win over Virginia Tech probably qualifies for his highest peak of the season.

He shot the ball a season-high 10 times in the win, and set a new career high in boards, which still stood at season’s end.

Stattmann was rewarded for his efforts with 39 minutes of game action in UVa’s next contest at Boston College.

Oddly enough, Stattmann’s top improvement area may just be what was considered to be a strength of his when he arrived on Grounds two years ago.

For him to continue to develop as a player and earn meaningful minutes against ACC competition, Stattmann will likely need to show improvement as an outside shooter. Like many others on the roster, he struggled in that area throughout the season. And perhaps not coincidentally, Stattmann saw his minutes decline down the stretch as playing time increased for fellow wing Tomas Woldetensae, who began to knock down his looks from deep.

Stattman had just two games on the season where he made multiple 3s, with two each against South Carolina and on the road at BC. He has other areas to focus on as he continues to get stronger and become a better all-around player, but the strengths of his game need to be actual, consistent strengths for him to play consistently next season.

Not to sound pessimistic, but it’s difficult to take what we saw from Stattmann this year and expect him to see a major uptick in playing time as a junior.

Some of the factors have little to do with Stattmann, as forward/wing Sam Hauser becomes eligible after sitting out following his transfer from Marquette, and two more wings, Jabri Abdur-Rahim and Carson McCorkle, join the program.

Hauser and Abdur-Rahim figure to be significant pieces on next year’s team, which leaves Stattmann, along with Woldetensae and rising sophomore Justin McKoy, battling for remaining minutes on the wing.

The good news for Stattmann is that he appears to be doing the right things. Despite a drop-off in minutes down the stretch, he was still trusted in big moments to enter the lineup and if nothing else try to get stops on defense.

While his role is going to take some time to sort out, odds are Stattmann will show some development from his second-year to his third, and perhaps he becomes a more consistent shooter and stays healthy.

While it’s unlikely that Stattmann suddenly becomes a star as a junior, especially with a more crowded and experienced roster around him, it’s never bad to have experienced depth options who can be trusted to perform at a serviceable level in Tony Bennett’s system when called upon.

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