A tribute ceremony for Terry Holland, the legendary former University of Virginia men’s basketball coach and director of athletics who died in February, will take place Saturday at 2 p.m. at John Paul Jones Arena.
Speakers will include current UVA men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett, alumnus and Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari and University of Miami men’s basketball coach Jim Larrañaga. Holland’s family members will also speak.
Ralph Sampson, a three-time national player of the year under Holland at UVA, and ESPN college basketball analyst Seth Greenberg, a former assistant coach under Holland at UVA, will moderate the ceremony.
The event is open to the public.
Holland coached Virginia from 1974 to 1990, retiring as UVA’s all-time winningest men’s basketball coach with a 326-173 record. In January, Bennett surpassed Holland’s record with congratulations from Holland’s family.
Holland guided the Cavaliers to a pair of Final Four berths (1981 and 1984), three consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season titles (1981-83), two Elite Eight appearances (1983 and 1989), one ACC Tournament championship (1976), one National Invitation Tournament crown (1980) and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He earned ACC Coach of the Year honors in 1981 and 1982.
Holland later returned to UVA to serve as the school’s athletics director from 1994 to 2001. He was instrumental in the creation of JPJ Arena.
In addition to Carlisle, other Wahoos who played under Holland and will be featured in Saturday’s service include:
- Jeff Jones.
- Wally Walker.
- Marc Iavaroni.
- Jimmy Miller.
- Bryant Stith.
- Jeff Lamp.
- Bobby Stokes.
Val Ackerman, a standout women’s basketball player at UVA from 1977 to 1981 and now the commissioner of the Big East Conference, also will speak.
JPJ Arena doors will open at 1 p.m. for the event. The University’s clear bag policy will be in effect. Parking is free at the JPJ lots adjacent to the building and at the McCue Center. There will be no concessions sold during the ceremony. Bruce Hornsby, a three-time Grammy Award winner and one of Holland’s favorite musical artists, will perform at 1:30 p.m.
The tribute, beginning with Hornsby’s performance, will be streamed live on VirginiaSports.com and on the Virginia Cavaliers Facebook page.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested memorial contributions should be made to Holland’s tribute within the Alzheimer’s Association to help raise awareness and find a cure for the disease.
Holland lost his battle with Alzheimer’s on Feb. 26. He was 80 years old.
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December 18, 2024
