Know Your Opponent: Virginia Tech

By Bobby Hundley

Virginia Tech (HokieSports.com)
Location: Blacksburg, Va.
Rankings: VT - No. 54 KenPom, NR AP; UNC - No. 8 KenPom, No. 10 AP
Records: VT - 13-6, 2-4 ACC; UNC - 16-4, 5-2 ACC
Carolina Series History (Last Meeting): UNC leads 67-13 (UNC 91, Virginia Tech 72, Jan. 26, 2017, Smith Center)

For the second straight season, Virginia Tech is one of the top shooting teams in the country. The Hokies excel at putting the ball in the basket from all over the court - they rank fourth nationally in 2-point FG% and 22nd in 3-point FG% for an effective rate that is better than every team in college basketball not named Villanova. The similarities don't stop there, as Tech is once again relying on a tight rotation and opting against offensive rebounds.

What's interesting is how just a slight turn in results has the 2017-18 Hokies facing a very different postseason outlook than last year's group. At this point in 2016-17, Buzz Williams' squad already had wins over NCAA tournament teams Michigan, Duke and Clemson, plus additional ACC victories over Syracuse and Georgia Tech. At 15-4 and 4-3 in the league on Jan. 22, the Hokies were basically able to play .500 ball over the final seven weeks to land in the field of 68.

Fast forward one year and at 13-6 and 2-4 with only one top-100 RPI win (Washington at MSG in November), Tech has it work cut out for it. It's not that the Hokies haven't been right there - they led in the second half at both Kentucky and Louisville - but with the home loss to Florida State on Saturday, they are now 0 for 5 against RPI top-50 teams.

Scoring-wise, VT is about as balanced as you can be, with the top six players on the team all averaging between 8.7 and 14.7 points per game. A whopping five of those six make at least 60 percent of their 2s, led by 6-10 sophomore Kerry Blackshear's 64.7 mark inside the arc. And the sixth of those is Justin Robinson, who is probably the hottest Hokie of them all. The junior point guard had a career-high 23 points at Louisville...and promptly topped that with 26 vs. Florida State a week later.

Ahmed Hill leads Tech in scoring and is having his best season in Blacksburg. The 6-5 junior is making 47 percent of his 3s and 64 percent of his 2s, making him a threat to score at any time. Hill, senior Justin Bibbs and freshman Nickeil Alexander-Walker are the team's volume outside shooters, combining for 278 of the Hokies' 423 attempts from deep.

Super sub Chris Clarke is VT's best rebounder, ranking second in the ACC in defensive rebounding percentage. He and Blackshear, the team's best man on the offensive glass, are also very adept at getting to the foul line, both ranking in the top five in the league in free throw rate.

Perhaps the biggest change from last year (other than the loss of Seth Allen and Zach DeLay to graduation) is that the Hokies are running like never before. Only Carolina, Duke and Florida State have been faster in terms of KenPom's adjusted tempo among ACC schools, and their average offensive possession time of 14.9 seconds is the shortest in the conference.

The double-edged sword of the modern ACC is that there are precious few nights off, and another highly talented opponent is always waiting in the wings. That may very well be to Virginia Tech's benefit in 2018, however, as the dangerous Hokies will have plenty of chances to log some postseason-worthy wins, starting Monday night with the Tar Heels.

Related Videos