In their eyes, there is only one. “The University”, a place where learning and Zima can not just coexist, but foster an environment of pretentiousness and self-entitlement that is unparalleled. John Paul Jones Arena is the site of today’s matchup between the Hokies and the Wahoos, where Virginia Tech will look to take a winning record against uVA inside their own arena. The Hokies have an NCAA bid on the line, and can take a stranglehold on 4th place in the ACC standings with a win. But more importantly, we need to remind Thomas Jefferson why he gave the Founding Fathers a bad name (H/T @VTuba).
| Starting Lineups | ||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | Virginia | |||||||||
| Pos. | Player | Ht. | Cl. | PPG | RPG | Player | Ht. | Cl. | PPG | RPG |
| G | Green | 6’4” | So. | 11.0 | 2.3 | Evans | 5’11” | So. | 5.8 | 2.6 |
| G | Delaney | 6’3” | Sr. | 19.1 | 3.3 | Zeglinski | 6’1” | Jr. | 6.6 | 2.9 |
| G/F | Bell | 6’7” | Sr. | 7.3 | 5.5 | Farrakhan | 6’4” | Sr. | 13.1 | 2.8 |
| F | Allen | 6’7” | Sr. | 13.8 | 10.2 | Harris | 6’6” | Fr. | 10.4 | 3.8 |
| F | Davila | 6’8” | Jr. | 8.0 | 5.4 | Sene | 7’0” | Jr. | 4.0 | 5.4 |
Game notes:
- Virginia has failed to score 60 points in 4 of their last 6 games.
- The Hoos three-point field goal percentage of 38.3% is good for 31st nationally.
- Jeff Allen ranks 15th in the nation and second in the ACC with 10.2 rebounds per game.
- Malcolm Delaney needs 5 assists to move past Jamon Gordon into 2nd place in the Tech record books.
- Virginia Tech is 16-0 when scoring 62 points or more this season.
| Team | VT | VA |
|---|---|---|
| ACC Record | 7-4 | 3-8 |
| RPI | 57 | 150 |
| PPG | 72.8 | 61.8 |
| Opp. PPG | 62.5 | 63.0 |
| Reb. Margin | +2.7 | -2.0 |
| Turn. Margin | +2.3 | +0.9 |
| FG% | 46.5% | 41.7% |
| Def. FG% | 40.7% | 44.2% |
| 3PT% | 33.8% | 38.3% |
Flashback: Virginia jumped out to an early 8 point lead and never trailed, handing the Hokies a stunning loss at home for the first time since 2006. The Hoos rode the momentum of a red hot Mike Scott, who torched Tech for 21 points and 13 boards. The Hokies would cut the lead to 2 with 20 seconds remaining, but a 3-pointer from Dorenzo Hudson missed to give Virginia a 57-54 win.
The two teams that show up in John Paul Jones Arena on Saturday will both be a shell of what was in early December. For the Hokies, the 8-man rotation that is missing Dorenzo Hudson has reeled off 13 victories in just 16 tries. Virginia, however, hasn’t been quite as fortunate, losing 8 of their last 10 without forward Mike Scott. The Hoos are left with a four guard lineup, led by senior Mustapha Farrakhan. While the Wahoos are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the league, they’ve been outrebounded by double digits in four ACC games, including the last three straight.
Virginia will look to rely on its defense in hopes of knocking off the Hokies for a second time this year. The Hoos would have no shame (big surprise) keeping this game in the 40s if they can. If Virginia continues to shoot poorly, expect Jeff Allen to go Pac-Man on the boards once again. The Hokies are a much more efficient team on offense than they were in the first matchup, which should help give the Hokies an advantage inside-out. Tech’s starting guards had 2 assists to 5 turnovers in the December matchup, but since then Delaney and Green are averaging 8.4 assists to just 3.6 turnovers per game. In the last 5 games the Hokies are averaging 79.6 points per game while UVA has managed just 57. The Hokies are the better team all-around and barring a sudden shooting slump, should be able to handle UVA in just about every facet of today’s game.
Prediction: Hokies 75 Virginia 61
Also see:
- The Key Play: Virginia (Game 2) Preview
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