Virginia women's basketball: Leading scorer Mikayla Venson leaves program before start of NIT

The Virginia Women's Basketball program announced earlier today that Sophomore Mikayla Venson—the team's leading scorer at 15.1 points per game—was leaving the women's program.

The timing of this announcement is interesting, given that the season isn't over. The Wahoos will face Virginia Commonwealth University on Thursday.

Head Coach Joanne Boyle had the following to say about the departure:

"Mikayla has made a decision that she feels is in her best interest," said head coach Joanne Boyle. "Our focus is on moving forward to develop the student-athletes in our program and prepare to play VCU in the WNIT on Thursday. I will have no further comment on this matter."

This is a big loss for Virginia, as the team will now need to replace their top two scorers from this season. Their second-leading scorer, Faith Randolph, graduates this year. That leaves Breyana Mason as the leading returning Cavalier at 10.1 points per game.