The No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers (13-3, 5-2 ACC), one of the NCAA’s top scoring defenses, welcome the Virginia Tech Hokies (11-6, 1-5 ACC) on Wednesday.Virginia Tech was beaten by the Syracuse Orange 82-72 at JMA Wireless Dome on Wednesday, their fifth straight loss.
Grant Basile was a top performer in defeat with 26 points and 10 rebounds. The Hokies remain 12th in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia won their third in a row on Saturday at Donald L. Tucker Center, beating the Florida State Seminoles 67-58. Armaan Franklin had 20 points and seven rebounds to lead the team.
The Cavaliers slipped to fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The teams are meeting for the only time this season. Virginia Tech and Virginia split their matchups last season, taking one apiece. The Hokies earned the win in the last meeting 62-53 at Cassell Coliseum in February 2022. Keve Aluma led the Hokies with 24 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks.
Jayden Gardner had 17 points and 14 rebounds in defeat. The Hokies have been led this season by Sean Pedulla, who is averaging 16.8 points per game. Pedulla also has dished 4.4 assists per game. Meanwhile, Justyn Mutts is grabbing 7.5 rebounds.
Franklin (11.9 ppg), Kihei Clark (11.0), and Gardner (10.3) have powered the Cavaliers’ offense. Gardner also has posted 4.9 rebounds per game, while Clark has recorded 6.0 assists per game, 10th-most in the country. The Cavaliers are one of the top scoring defenses in the nation, ranking 11th with 59.4 points per game allowed.
The Hokies have struggled in recent trips to John Paul Jones Arena, losing eight of the last 10. Virginia Tech is 5-5 in the last 10 games with an average margin of +5.3 (71.4-66.1). Virginia has gone 7-3 over the last 10, scoring 65.2 points per game on average while holding opponents to 59.4 (+5.8 margin). The Cavaliers are averaging 69.5 ppg for the full season while allowing 59.4.
HOKIES HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Lynn Kidd: 13.6 | 10.3 | +3.3
Hunter Cattoor: 2.2 | 11.6 | -9.4
Points per game:
Hunter Cattoor: 1.0 | 7.4 | -6.4
Rebounds per game:
Lynn Kidd: 6.4 | 4.1 | +2.3
Assists per game:
Justyn Mutts: 4.8 | 3.6 | +1.2
CAVALIERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Armaan Franklin: 22.8 | 17.4 | +5.4
Jayden Gardner: 9.6 | 15.6 | -6.0
Points per game:
Jayden Gardner: 6.8 | 10.3 | -3.4
Rebounds per game:
Armaan Franklin: 5.8 | 4.3 | +1.6
Jayden Gardner: 2.4 | 4.9 | -2.5
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
Virginia -5.5 (-105)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
