The team was led by head coach Tony Bennett in his ninth year, and played their home games at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In a year with low expectations from the press, the Cavaliers began unranked but ascended all the way to the No.

The Cavaliers won the ACC tournament by handily defeating Louisville 75–58, Clemson 64–58, and North Carolina 71–63 in the championship game.

[6] The Cavaliers finished the 2016–17 season 23–11, and 11–7 in ACC play to tie Duke for fifth place.

They defeated Pittsburgh in the second round of the ACC tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to Notre Dame.