UVA’s Jacari White sidelined by broken wrist that requires surgery
Virginia guard Jacari White, the ACC’s most accurate 3-point shooter this season, is shelved indefinitely by a broken left wrist that requires surgery, Cavaliers coach Ryan Odom said Monday night.
Speaking to reporters after his 21st-ranked team defeated American University 95-51 at John Paul Jones Arena, Odom said White sustained the injury on an acrobatic, one-handed dunk midway through the second half Saturday against Maryland.
A 6-foot-3 transfer from North Dakota State, White was fouled on the play by Solomon Washington, fell hard to the floor and still made the free throw. The Cavaliers won 80-72 with White contributing 15 points in 22 minutes off the bench.
“He kept playing through the injury,” Odom said. “And then we learned shortly after, he looked at me and was like, ‘I got to come out’ with however many minutes left. Took him out, and then after the game, they x-rayed it and saw the unfortunate news there. But it’s his offhand, and so that’s the best news that we could get in a situation like this.”
White’s minutes Monday fell largely to Elijah Gertrude, who scored 11 points and assisted on three buckets in 16 minutes. He missed all of last season with a knee injury sustained in a scooter accident.
“The strength of this team is the depth that we have,” Odom said, “and you saw it tonight with Elijah getting in there and playing. And we have options, no different than we did when Devin (Tillis) was out to start the year. And so we’re confident overall in this group, and we’re confident in Jakari getting back. He’s going to have surgery (Tuesday) and then be able to still see his family for Christmas and come back and be with us.”
White is averaging 10.9 points per game and has made 30 of 60 attempts beyond the 3-point arc — his 50% accuracy leads the conference and was tied for ninth nationally through Sunday’s games.
Jacari White’s record-setting binge lifts UVA basketball team past Dayton
An integral piece of UVA’s reserve rotation along with fellow guard Chance Mallory, White broke out for the Cavaliers in their 86-73 win over Dayton at the Charlotte Hornets’ arena Dec. 6. He made all seven of his long-range shots and both of his attempts inside the arc to finish with 25 points, setting a school record for most made 3s in a game without a miss.
Led by Belgian import Thijs De Ridder, Virginia has nine players averaging 6-15 points per game, and entering Monday’s game was 14th nationally in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency metric. Moreover, the Cavaliers’ 39.7% long-range accuracy ranked 13th.
White scored 1,089 points in three seasons at North Dakota State while shooting 40.6% from deep. He averaged 17.1 points per game last season, earning second-team All-Summit League. He made the conference’s all-defensive team in 2023-24.
With a white band draping his shaved head, White has quickly become a UVA fan favorite, with his most ardent fans dubbing themselves the “Jacarmy.”
Virginia (11-1) does not play again until New Year’s Eve afternoon at Virginia Tech (11-2), the ACC opener for both.
David Teel, david.teel@virginiamedia.com
