Game Time: 2:15 p.m.
Location: KFC Yum Center: Louisville, Ky.
Television: The CW
Announcers: Thom Brennaman (play-by-play) and Brian Oliver (analysis)
Favorite: Louisville by 10.5
Series: Louisville leads, 37-12
Last Meeting: Louisville won 71-66 on Feb. 25, 2025 in Blacksburg
Series History:
Projected Starting Lineups:
Louisville
- G Adrian Wooley (6-4, 200, So.)
- G Isaac McKneely (6-4, 195, Sr.)
- G Ryan Conwell (6-4, 215, Sr.)
- F J’Vonne Hadley (6-7, 210, Sr.)
- C Sananda Fru (6-11, 245, Jr.)
Virginia Tech
- G Ben Hammond (5-11, 170, So.)
- G Jailen Bedford (6-4, 190, Sr.)
- F Amani Hansberry (6-8, 240, Jr.)
- F Neoklis Avdalas (6-9, 215, Fr.)
- C Christian Gurdak (6-10, 260, Fr.)
Statistics:
Injury Reports:
Virginia Tech’s Season to Date:
Relevant Videos:
About Virginia Tech:
On the heels of its first losing season in a decade, Mike Young appears to have a Virginia Tech squad capable of making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022. The Hokies enter Saturday’s game at Louisville with a 15-5 overall record and a 4-3 mark in ACC play, but both those totals could be gaudier.
VT’s three conference losses — to Wake Forest, Stanford and SMU — have come by a combined five points and all on buzzer-beating game-winners.
The problem with Virginia Tech’s resume at the moment is its lack quality victories. The Hokies posted decent non-conference wins over Providence, South Carolina, Colorado State and George Mason, but their lone Quad I win at the moment remains a triple overtime home triumph over arch-rival Virginia on New Year’s Eve. Overall, VT is 1-3 in Quad I opportunities and 6-2 in Quad II games. That resume is just enough for Joe Lunardi to currently have Tech in as the last team in the field of 68.
Young received a boost in NIL funds after a 13-19 campaign were he openly talked about the program not having the money necessary to acquire the talent needed to compete. He used that money to field a roster that, while not boasting the talent of a team like Louisville, has the type of players that at least give Young a chance.
VT’s most notable import is 6’9 freshman forward Neoklis Avdalis from Greece. Young uses Avdalis — who leads the team in assists at 5.1 apg and is second in scoring at 13.7 ppg — as a point forward. He has tremendous court vision and a super smooth offensive game, but he’s not a tremendous athlete and he enters the weekend in a bit of an outside shooting slump. After lighting it up from the outside early in the season, Avdalas is just 7 for his last 37 from three and is shooting 21.1 percent from three in road games. He can be turnover prone from time to time and is averaging 2.5 per contest.
Despite those deficiencies, the upside with Avdalis is apparent and was on full display during the two 30+ point performances he gave earlier in the season.
The team’s leading scorer and second-leading rebounder is junior forward Amani Hansberry (15.5 points, 8.6 rebounds), who is having the best season of his college career to date after starting at Illinois and playing last season at West Virginia. The 6’8 Hansberry is a throwback physical forward who does the bulk of his damage around the rim or in the mid-range. He’ll take a couple of threes a game when he’s left all alone, but that’s not his strength.
Of note is that Hansberry had one of the best games of his sophomore season against Louisville. He scored 19 points in WVU’s overtime loss to the Cards in last year’s Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal. Fellow small ball power forward J’Vonne Hadley can exact some revenge with a better performance on Saturday.
Tobi Lawal, the only double figure scorer on last year’s Virginia Tech team, has been plagued by a foot injury for most of the season but seems to be playing at or near 100 percent now. He’s still coming off the bench at the moment, but will likely play 30+ minutes on Saturday. The 6’9 London native doesn’t have the skills to completely take over a game on offense, but he’s an athletic freak who can really hurt you in a variety of ways. Lawal excels at getting to the free-throw line, an area where Louisville has clearly not been great at times this season.
Where U of L seems to have a pretty sizable advantage over VT is in the backcourt.
Sophomore Ben Hammond (12.3 points/3.1 assists) has emerged as the team’s primary point guard. The 5’11 Virginia native is a solid ballhandler and can be a playmaker if needed. He picks his spots from the outside and enters the weekend having knocked down 18 of his 36 three-point attempts. Hammond is also the team’s most pesky defender and is coming off a game against Syracuse where he recorded six steals, tied for the most ever by a Virginia Tech player in an ACC game.
Jailen Bedford, who arrived in Blackburg after one year stints at Old Dominion and UNLV, is the team’s best on-ball defender. He’s sort of a jack of all trades but master of none on offense. He’ll shoot from the outside whenever he’s open. Jaden Schutt, who plays starter’s minutes off the bench like Lawal, has scored just 5 points in the last two games, but is (in my estimation at least) the team’s most dangerous perimeter threat.
Virginia Tech played at the slowest pace in the ACC last season out of necessity. Young knew he didn’t have the talent needed to compete, so he opted to try and play games with as few possessions as possible. Now, they’re back up to playing at a pace that puts them in the top half of the conference.
The one thing that the Hokies do better than anything else is defend the perimeter. They’re limiting opponents to 29.4 percent shooting from three, which is 20th-best in the country. Like teams that have had success against Louisville already this season, VT will try and run U of L’s shooters off the three-point line and force them to make plays closer to the basket. This will be another nice litmus test of Pat Kelsey’s ability to adjust and solve problems in-season.
Notable:
—Louisville had won 17 consecutive games over Virginia Tech before a loss in Blacksburg four seasons ago. The Hokies had previously not defeated the Cardinals since Feb. 13, 1991. U of L snapped a four-game losing streak to VT in their only meeting last season.
—Virginia Tech is 4-9 against Louisville as ACC foes and 3-19 when the Cardinals are ranked in the AP poll.
—Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey is 1-1 in games against Virginia Tech, but 1-0 against the Hokies at U of L.
—Virginia Tech head coach Mike Young is 4-3 in games against Louisville.
—Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey and Virginia Tech head coach Mike Young have squared off four times before, with Young winning two of those battles at Wofford while Kelsey was the head coach at Winthrop. The coaches are both 2-2 against the other.
—Louisville is 19-5 in home games against Virginia Tech.
—Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey is 170-66 (.720) all-time in conference play as a head coach.
—Virginia Tech is 12-38 all-time in games played in the state of Kentucky.
—Virginia Tech is 1-0 in games against ranked opponents so far this season, knocking off then-No. 21 Virginia in triple overtime back on New Year’s Eve.
—In wins this season, Virginia Tech is averaging 15.2 assists and 9.7 turnovers. In its five losses, those figures are 12.4 and 12.0.
—Over the last eight seasons, only two Mike Young team have ranked outside the top 65 in the nation for turnovers per game. The Hokies are currently 26th in the country in turnover percentage.
—Virginia Tech is 2-2 in true road games so far this season.
—Louisville is 0-8 under head coach Pat Kelsey when trailing by 5 points or more at halftime.
—Louisville has had four games of at least 24 assists, the first time since 2010-11 that the program has had multiple games of 24+ assists; the Cardinals had five games of at 24+ assists that season.
—Louisville has hit the 100-point mark five times in a season for the first time since 1976-77. The record for most 100+ point games in a season at U of L is six.
—Louisville is 40-0 under head coach Pat Kelsey when leading with five minutes to play. The Cardinals are also 0-12 under Kelsey when trailing with five minutes to play.
—Louisville is 14-0 over the past 11 seasons when limiting opponents to no more than one three-point field goal.
—Louisville is 121-0 all-time when scoring 100 or more points in non-overtime games.
—Louisville has won 167 consecutive games when holding an opponent under 50 points.
Ken Pomeroy Prediction: Louisville 86, Virginia Tech 74
