Hammond leads Virginia Tech against No. 23 Louisville after 24-point performance

Published Jan. 23, 2026 4:43 a.m. ET
Associated Press

Virginia Tech Hokies (15-5, 4-3 ACC) at Louisville Cardinals (13-5, 3-3 ACC)

Louisville, Kentucky; Saturday, 2:15 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Virginia Tech visits No. 23 Louisville after Ben Hammond scored 24 points in Virginia Tech's 76-74 victory over the Syracuse Orange.

The Cardinals have gone 9-2 at home. Louisville ranks ninth in college basketball with 27.6 defensive rebounds per game led by Ryan Conwell averaging 4.4.

The Hokies are 4-3 in ACC play. Virginia Tech averages 82.0 points while outscoring opponents by 7.9 points per game.

Louisville makes 46.9% of its shots from the field this season, which is 3.9 percentage points higher than Virginia Tech has allowed to its opponents (43.0%). Virginia Tech has shot at a 45.8% rate from the field this season, 6.5 percentage points above the 39.3% shooting opponents of Louisville have averaged.

The Cardinals and Hokies face off Saturday for the first time in ACC play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Aly Khalifa is averaging 3.8 points for the Cardinals. Conwell is averaging 18.0 points over the last 10 games.

Amani Hansberry is averaging 15.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.6 steals for the Hokies. Hammond is averaging 15.3 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cardinals: 6-4, averaging 82.6 points, 36.1 rebounds, 16.4 assists, 6.3 steals and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.2 points per game.

Hokies: 7-3, averaging 82.0 points, 33.8 rebounds, 13.3 assists, 7.0 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 74.5 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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