Game Preview: Virginia Tech (16-7) vs Maryland (16-9)

         Virginia Tech will try to extend its home winning streak to 9 Tuesday evening and get an important tiebreaker over the visiting Maryland Terrapins.  The Hokies can move to 7-4 with two winnable road games approaching, but must first get by Jordan Williams and the 7th place Terps.  Can the Hokies avenge a last season’s heart-breaking 104-100 double-overtime loss, or will Maryland deal a crushing blow to Tech’s NCAA hopes for the second year in a row?

Starting Lineups
Virginia Tech						Maryland
Pos.	Player	Ht.	Cl.	PPG	RPG	Player	Ht.	Cl.	PPG	RPG
G	Green	6’4”	So.	10.6	2.3	Bowie	6’2”	Sr.	9.6	3.2
G	Delaney	6’3”	Sr.	19.0	3.2	Howard	6’3”	Fr.	5.1	1.5
G/F	Bell	6’7”	Sr.	6.9	5.4	Mosley	6’4”	Jr.	8.6	3.9
F	Allen	6’7”	Sr.	13.7	10.2	Gregory	6’7”	Sr.	8.4	5.9
F	Davila	6’8”	Jr.	7.7	5.4	Williams	6’10”	So.	17.1	11.8

Game notes:

• Sophomore center Jordan Williams ranks 3rd in the nation with 11.8 rebounds per game, and 2nd the nation with 20 double-doubles.

  Team	VT	MD
  ACC Record	6-4	5-5
  RPI	66	89
  PPG	72.0	77.6
  Opp. PPG	61.7	64.1
  Reb. Margin	+2.7	+5.3
  Turn. Margin	+2.1	+2.6
  FG%	46.5%	47.5%
  Def. FG%	40.3%	39.0%
  3PT%	33.4%	34.3%

• Maryland ranks 10th in the nation with 17.3 assists per game.
• Jeff Allen is averaging  20.2 points and 13.2 rebounds per game over the last 5 games.
• Maryland remains 3rd in the nation in defensive efficiency, giving up only 86.3 points per 100 defensive possessions.  The Hokies rank 21st, giving up 90.5 points.
• Virginia Tech has not lost inside Cassell Coliseum in over 2 months.

Flashback: The Hokies stormed out to a quick 12-0 lead on January 20th and never looked back, winning 74-57 and handing the Terps their most lopsided defeat (at least for a couple weeks) in the Comcast Center.  Virginia Tech held Maryland’s Jordan Williams to just 2 points in the first half and shot 53.6% from the field, including a 12-of-16 performance from point guard Erick Green.

     Maryland is led by star center Jordan Williams, who can terrorize opponents in the paint when given the opportunity.  At 260 lbs, Williams is a beast in the post and Tech will need to deny him the ball as often as possible like they did in College Park.   The Terps also have a legitimate scoring threat off their bench in 6-6 senior wing Cliff Tucker.  Tucker is the team’s leading 3-point shooter (37.2%) and second leading scorer with 10.6 points per game.  Freshman Pe’Shon Howard is now a regular starter and is averaging 11.3 points per game since entering the lineup.

     I’m going to go out on a limb and say tomorrow’s game will fall somewhere between the 17 point clinic Tech put on in College Park and the 104-100 double-overtime thriller that the Hokies lost to Maryland last season in Blacksburg.  The first four minutes will go a long way towards determining who will dictate the style of this game.  Will the Hokies be able to force Maryland into taking jump shots away from the basket or will the Terps control the tempo and let Jordan Williams go to work?  Maryland is actually playing better defense away from home, holding opponents to just 36.5% shooting from the field, so I wouldn’t expect more lights out shooting from the Hokies like we saw in the January meeting.  The good news for Tech is that Greivis Vasquez won’t be there to drop 41 points again, and Jeff Allen is in the midst of a career month, so I give a small home edge to the Hokies.

Prediction: Hokies 71 Maryland 67

Also see:

• The Key Play: Maryland (Game 2) Preview