Virginia Basketball at Virginia Tech Game Preview, Score Prediction

Virginia hits the road on Saturday for third time in the last four games as the Hoos battle the Hokies in round two of the Commonwealth Clash in Blacksburg. The Cavaliers are on a seven-game winning streak and are hoping to complete the season-sweep over Virginia Tech and continue to put pressure on Clemson at the top of the ACC standings. Virginia Tech, meanwhile, is currently 11th in the ACC with a conference record of 3-8 and quickly running out of time to get the season turned around. The Hokies desperately need a big win over their sixth-ranked in-state nemesis in order to get things going in the right direction. 

Read on for a full preview of Virginia at Virginia Tech, including details on the game, an opponent scouting report, game notes, and a score prediction. 

Game Details

Who: Virginia Cavaliers (17-3, 9-2 ACC) at Virginia Tech Hokies (13-9, 3-8 ACC)

When: Saturday, February 4th at 12pm ET

Where: Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia

How to watch: ESPN2

How to stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)

How to listen: SiriusXM 81, SXM App 81 | Virginia Sports Radio Network - click here for affiliates

All-time series: Virginia leads 97-58

Last meeting: Virginia defeated Virginia Tech 78-68 on January 18th in Charlottesville.

Opponent Scouting Report: Virginia Tech

2022-2023: 13-9, 3-8 ACC
Notable results: North Carolina 80-72 W, at Wake Forest 77-75 L, Clemson 68-65 L, NC State 73-69 L, at Syracuse 82-72 L, at Virginia 78-68 L, at Clemson 51-50 L, Duke 78-75 W, Syracuse 85-70 W, Miami 92-83 L

A little over two weeks ago in Charlottesville, Virginia took down Virginia Tech 78-68. The offenses for both teams executed at a high level, with the Cavaliers and Hokies each having their entire starting fives score in double figures. The two teams combined to turn the ball over just 13 times and both teams shot around 50% from the floor. Virginia Tech knocked down 12 threes, but Virginia dominated in the paint 36-22 and got to the free throw line much more than the Hokies. The real difference-maker in the game was the performance of Kihei Clark, who dropped 20 points and five assists and played highly disruptive defense against Sean Pedulla. 

That game was Virginia Tech's sixth loss in a row at the time. The Hokies have gone 2-2 since then and are playing much better basketball overall. Virginia Tech nearly knocked off Clemson on the road in the next game, suffering a painfully-close 51-50 loss, and then picked up back-to-back quality home wins against Duke and Syracuse before losing a 92-83 shootout on the road at No. 23 Miami on Tuesday. As Virginia should know quite well having played Virginia Tech just a couple of weeks ago, the Hokies are a much better and much more dangerous team than their poor record suggests. 

Sean Pedulla is the quarterback of the offense, averaging a team-leading 15.7 points and 4.1 assists per game. But, he did not have his best game against Virginia on January 18th and hasn't shot the three particularly well lately, with his season average dropping to just 33.3% from beyond the arc. If the Hokies want to pull the upset over the Cavaliers on Saturday, that effort will likely have to start with a much better performance from their sophomore point guard this time around. 

Hunter Cattoor has been shooting the lights out since he returned from an elbow injury to play in the first game against UVA. Cattoor is shooting 48.7% from beyond the arc over the five games since his return and has 19 three-pointers during that stretch. 

Joining Cattoor and Pedulla at guard is 6'5" junior Darius Maddox, who is averaging 8.5 points and 3.2 rebounds per game and led the Hokies with 13 points in the game at Virginia. Maddox has missed the last two games as he deals with a family situation and Virginia Tech head coach Mike Young reported on Friday that he is still unsure if Maddox will play against UVA on Saturday. 

Virginia Tech has an experienced and talented front court pairing of Grant Basile and Justyn Mutts. A 6'9" graduate transfer from Wright State, Grant Basile is averaging 14.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and is able to stretch the floor, shooting better than 37% from three. He had 12 points in the first game against UVA. The 6'7" forward Justyn Mutts is shooting 40.0% from three, averages 12.7 points per game, and is the team's leading rebounder at 7.4 boards per game. As Virginia continues to rely heavily on its small-ball lineups, the play of Ben Vander Plas and Jayden Gardner against Basile and Mutts will be critical in this matchup. 

Virginia Tech runs a tight seven-man rotation with 6'4" freshman guard MJ Collins and 6'10" junior center Lynn Kidd as the only two players who get consistent minutes off the bench. Collins had eight points in the first matchup with Virginia. If Maddox doesn't play, expect Collins to get extended minutes. 

The Hokies have dealt with injuries all season. Highly-touted freshman Rodney Rice has played just one game this season, as he missed the first two months with an injury and then broke a finger in practice after making his collegiate debut in the game before. Hunter Cattoor, the MVP of the 2022 ACC Tournament, missed time with an elbow injury, but is back and playing well. If Darius Maddox plays on Saturday, Virginia Tech will essentially be at full health against Virginia. 

Game Notes

• Virginia holds a 97-58 all-time record vs. Virginia Tech in a series that dates back to the 1914-1915 season. 
• Virginia Tech leads 32-23 against Virginia in games played in Blacksburg and the Hokies have won each of the last two games at Cassell Coliseum.
• The Cavaliers are looking for their first two-game season sweep over the Hokies since registering sweeps in consecutive seasons in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. 
• Virginia has won seven of the last ten meetings with Virginia Tech.
• Tony Bennett is 18-8 all-time against Virginia Tech as a head coach. 
• Virginia currently leads the 2022-2023 Commonwealth Clash 5.0-1.5 over Virginia Tech. The winner of Saturday's game will receive a half-point in the Commonwealth Clash.
• Kihei Clark is 24 assists away from surpassing John Crotty for most career assists in UVA basketball history.

Prediction

This will be a challenging game for Virginia to win. The Hokies are in desperate need of what would be a season-changing victory, adding another layer of motivation for a team that already badly wants to defeat their in-state rivals. Playing at Cassell Coliseum also presents its own challenges, as the Cavaliers haven't won in that building since 2020. Expect a loud and hostile environment on Saturday, giving the Hokies a true and effective home-court advantage. 

With that said, the Hoos have found their groove during this seven-game winning streak, displaying an impressive level of versatility and adaptability in finding different ways to win in seemingly every game. Additionally, the Cavaliers should have no problem matching the intensity of the Hokies as they look to complete the season-sweep over their in-state rivals for the first time since 2020. Virginia's adjustments on the offensive end and the switch to a heavy dose of small-ball lineups have paid massive dividends for the Cavaliers, who are playing their best basketball of the season and are certainly the hottest team in the ACC over the past few weeks. Once again, Virginia will make the necessary key plays down the stretch to earn a close and hard-fought victory over Virginia Tech on the road. 

Score prediction: Virginia 70, Virginia Tech 67

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