No. 4 Virginia at Virginia Tech, 9 p.m. ESPN2
The Cavaliers opened ACC play Saturday, cruising to a 77-66 home victory over Notre Dame. Virginia went on a 21-4 run in the first half, grabbed a double-digit lead, and never looked back. The Cavaliers led by 13 three times in the first half, 36-24 at the half, and the Fighting Irish never got closer than 10 the rest of the contest. Malcolm Brogdon led the way for the Wahoos with 24 points, Anthony Gill had 21, and Mike Tobey, who has all of a sudden come to life, had 15 points the game after recorded a career-high 16 vs. Oakland.
Tonight's opponent is the Hokies, who are coming off an OT home win over N.C. State:
Record: 9-5, 1-0
Scorers in double figures: Junior guard Seth Allen (14.6), junior forward Zach LeDay (14.2), sophomore guard Justin Bibbs (11.9)
Leading rebounders: LeDay (9.6), Allen (3.4)
Assist leaders: Junior guard Devin Wilson (3), freshman guard Justin Robinson (2.9), Allen (2.1)
Notable: The Hokies are missing a valuable piece of their rotation. Freshman forward Chris Clarke has played well in his first year (10.5 ppg, 7.4 rpg), but he broke his foot late in December and is out indefinitely. Sophomore guard Jalen Hudson (7.6), freshman forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. (6.5), and Robinson (6) all average at least 6 ppg and more than 10 minutes per game.
Best win: Saturday at home, 73-68, over N.C. State in OT. The Wolfpack was 10-3 heading into the game.
Worst win: 71-62 in the second game of the year at home over Jacksonville State, which is now 5-12.
Other wins: VMI, North Carolina A&T, UAB, Arkansas Pine-Bluff, Radford, Lamar, Grambling State
Best loss: 81-79 OT home loss to Northwestern in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. The Wildcats have not had a tough schedule, but they are 13-2. The Hokies have losses to ranked foes Iowa State and West Virginia, but those contests weren't close.
Worst loss: In the season opener, Tech lost, 85-82, at home to Southwestern Athletic Conference school Alabama State, which is now 5-8.
Other losses: Iowa State, West Virginia, Saint Joseph's
What Virginia Tech does well: They can score and coach Buzz Williams wants his team to get up and
down the floor. The Hokies rank 107th in the country in scoring at 77.4 points per game. They are tied for 45th in rebounds per game as well, with 40.6 per game. They rank 90th in rebounding margin.
What Virginia Tech does poorly: Shoot. The Hokies rank 127th in field goal percentage (44.9), 281st in free throw shooting (65.3), and 216th in 3-point percentage (33). They also aren't adept at moving the ball crisply, ranking 269th in assists per game and 214th in turnovers per outing.
On paper, this should be a blowout. But Tech has played Virginia extremely close in Blacksburg the past two seasons, when the Cavaliers went on to ACC regular-season championships and back-to-back years of 30 victories. The Hokies held double-digit leads in both games. Virginia won two years ago, 57-53, and last year, 50-47. Hopefully, Virginia's offense is good enough this year to the point that the kind of funks that can allow for upsets to happen, don't happen this time. Still, a few things to keep an eye on: Tech is a bad 3-point shooting team, but Bibbs (56.9 percent) is far and away its best marksman, and it only takes one guy going off for the complexion of the game to change. Bibbs missed a 3 at the buzzer last year that would have sent the game into overtime. Allen has a real ability to slash the lane and draw fouls. He is a transfer from Maryland and has yet to reach the level he did as a sophomore with the Terps. Two years ago, he had 20 points in Maryland's win over UVa. Also, it is worth noting that the Hokies' foes this year are shooting 40 percent from the field and about 31 percent from beyond the arc. Those aren't good stats, and bode well for Tech, but I think we should keep in mind that the schedule the Hokies have played has been sub-par. LeDay, a transfer from South Florida, has been a very nice addition to the Hokies. His rebounding ability does worry me. Against Cal, Virginia had a tough time on the boards. Second chances for the Hokies could be just what they need to stay in this contest.
Gut feeling: Virginia wins by 5-10 points.
The Cavaliers opened ACC play Saturday, cruising to a 77-66 home victory over Notre Dame. Virginia went on a 21-4 run in the first half, grabbed a double-digit lead, and never looked back. The Cavaliers led by 13 three times in the first half, 36-24 at the half, and the Fighting Irish never got closer than 10 the rest of the contest. Malcolm Brogdon led the way for the Wahoos with 24 points, Anthony Gill had 21, and Mike Tobey, who has all of a sudden come to life, had 15 points the game after recorded a career-high 16 vs. Oakland.
Tonight's opponent is the Hokies, who are coming off an OT home win over N.C. State:
Record: 9-5, 1-0
Scorers in double figures: Junior guard Seth Allen (14.6), junior forward Zach LeDay (14.2), sophomore guard Justin Bibbs (11.9)
Leading rebounders: LeDay (9.6), Allen (3.4)
Assist leaders: Junior guard Devin Wilson (3), freshman guard Justin Robinson (2.9), Allen (2.1)
Notable: The Hokies are missing a valuable piece of their rotation. Freshman forward Chris Clarke has played well in his first year (10.5 ppg, 7.4 rpg), but he broke his foot late in December and is out indefinitely. Sophomore guard Jalen Hudson (7.6), freshman forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. (6.5), and Robinson (6) all average at least 6 ppg and more than 10 minutes per game.
Best win: Saturday at home, 73-68, over N.C. State in OT. The Wolfpack was 10-3 heading into the game.
Worst win: 71-62 in the second game of the year at home over Jacksonville State, which is now 5-12.
Other wins: VMI, North Carolina A&T, UAB, Arkansas Pine-Bluff, Radford, Lamar, Grambling State
Best loss: 81-79 OT home loss to Northwestern in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. The Wildcats have not had a tough schedule, but they are 13-2. The Hokies have losses to ranked foes Iowa State and West Virginia, but those contests weren't close.
Worst loss: In the season opener, Tech lost, 85-82, at home to Southwestern Athletic Conference school Alabama State, which is now 5-8.Other losses: Iowa State, West Virginia, Saint Joseph's
What Virginia Tech does well: They can score and coach Buzz Williams wants his team to get up and
down the floor. The Hokies rank 107th in the country in scoring at 77.4 points per game. They are tied for 45th in rebounds per game as well, with 40.6 per game. They rank 90th in rebounding margin.
What Virginia Tech does poorly: Shoot. The Hokies rank 127th in field goal percentage (44.9), 281st in free throw shooting (65.3), and 216th in 3-point percentage (33). They also aren't adept at moving the ball crisply, ranking 269th in assists per game and 214th in turnovers per outing.
On paper, this should be a blowout. But Tech has played Virginia extremely close in Blacksburg the past two seasons, when the Cavaliers went on to ACC regular-season championships and back-to-back years of 30 victories. The Hokies held double-digit leads in both games. Virginia won two years ago, 57-53, and last year, 50-47. Hopefully, Virginia's offense is good enough this year to the point that the kind of funks that can allow for upsets to happen, don't happen this time. Still, a few things to keep an eye on: Tech is a bad 3-point shooting team, but Bibbs (56.9 percent) is far and away its best marksman, and it only takes one guy going off for the complexion of the game to change. Bibbs missed a 3 at the buzzer last year that would have sent the game into overtime. Allen has a real ability to slash the lane and draw fouls. He is a transfer from Maryland and has yet to reach the level he did as a sophomore with the Terps. Two years ago, he had 20 points in Maryland's win over UVa. Also, it is worth noting that the Hokies' foes this year are shooting 40 percent from the field and about 31 percent from beyond the arc. Those aren't good stats, and bode well for Tech, but I think we should keep in mind that the schedule the Hokies have played has been sub-par. LeDay, a transfer from South Florida, has been a very nice addition to the Hokies. His rebounding ability does worry me. Against Cal, Virginia had a tough time on the boards. Second chances for the Hokies could be just what they need to stay in this contest.
Gut feeling: Virginia wins by 5-10 points.
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