At noon, Virginia Tech (13-5, 2-3) hosts Notre Dame (10-7, 1-3) in Cassell Coliseum.
This might become a familiar phrase for down the stretch of the season: this is in a must-win game for the Hokies.
Tech has a modest 2-3 record in conference play, but has lost all three games to three pointers within the final six seconds. This late-game misfortune was capped off by Boopie Miller’s unbelievable half-court buzzer-beater, thwarting the Hokies opportunity to get a massive Quad 1 road victory at SMU on Wednesday.
As one of just five non-Quad 1 games remaining on its schedule, Virginia Tech can’t afford a loss - specifically on its home court.
Last season, Virginia Tech won the only matchup between these teams, 65-63, behind a 15-point double double from Tobi Lawal.
Let's take a look at today’s keys to the game:
Pace of Play:
It's not often we say this, but Virginia Tech wants to play at a faster pace than Notre Dame. Tech averages 82 points per game, compared to just 73 for the Fighting Irish who play at one of the 50 slowest paces in the country.
While Mike Young’s offense remains methodical, his team is willing to run behind point guards Neoklis Avdalas and Ben Hammond. Particularly with Tobi Lawal and his freakish athleticism back in the fold, the Hokies present a legitimate threat in transition.
Will it come down to the wire, again?:
All but one ACC game has ended a one possession game for the Hokies. The exception? A 10-point triple-overtime win over Virginia.
Virginia Tech is a tournament-level basketball team that currently finds itself on the wrong side of the bubble due to an inability to put games away. It had a 13-point blown lead with just over three minutes left in the loss to Stanford. It led by four points and had the ball with eight seconds left in a loss to SMU. It also had a late lead in the Wake Forest loss a couple weeks back.
While it's true, Virginia Tech has gotten very unlucky in the final minutes - and specifically at the buzzer - it needs to put teams away to not put itself in that scenario every game. If there’s any game to get on track and win convincingly, it's a home game against Notre Dame.
Matchup of the Game: Jalen Haralson vs Neoklis Avdalas
This game provides an interesting matchup of two freshmen standing at above 6-foot-7 at the guard position.
Haralson has stepped up in a big way for the Irish since Markus Burton went down with an ankle injury about a month ago. He is averaging over 17 points per game over the last eight games and has hit double-figures in every game since the season opener.
Avdalas, meanwhile, is coming off a good performance against SMU, but has struggled to find his three point shot during ACC play. As a guard that lacks the speed and (currently) the strength to get to the hoop at will, Avdalas relies on his three point shot to open up the rest of his offense.
When the shot is falling, like it was in the Providence game, he’s as good as anyone. When the shot isn’t falling, he still impacts the game as a passer and mismatch threat on the interior, but he’s not the go-to scorer that the Hokies sometimes need.
The better player in this matchup could decide whether Virginia Tech runs away with this game or if Notre Dame can keep it close and keep the Hokies yet another scare.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 77 Notre Dame 69
Avdalas will get back on track from behind-the-arc and the Hokies will continue moving the ball as they did against SMU to claim their first semi-comfortable win of ACC play, 77-69.
