No. 12 Virginia goes for sweep of Virginia Tech (Feb 12, 2017)
Just a little over a week ago, Virginia routed in-state rival Virginia Tech by 23 points, the most lopsided margin in the series since 1991.
The Cavaliers' win over the Hokies was their ninth in the last 10 meetings ahead of the two team's second matchup of the season on Sunday at Blacksburg, Va..
Virginia Tech has lost two games in a row after falling to Miami by six points on Wednesday night. No. 12 Virginia has alternated wins and losses over their last five games but is coming off a 71-55 drubbing of No. 4 Louisville on Monday.
Guard London Perrantes enters the game averaging a team-high 12 points and four assists as the Cavaliers are once again doing it on both ends of the floor with stellar defense and solid outside shooting.
Virginia ranks first nationally in scoring defense, allowing only 54 points per game. Virginia Tech scores at a 79 points per game clip but was held to 48 in the first meeting.
"It started bad and it stayed bad," Virginia Tech head coach Buzz Williams said after the first meeting.
The Hokies boast five players scoring in double figures for the season, led by forward Zach LeDay at 15.7 points per game.
In the first meeting, however, Virginia Tech managed to put only two players in double figures and shot only 35 percent from the field, including a dismal 3 for 20 from beyond the 3-point line.
Virginia will once again try to tame the Virginia Tech zone defense after shooting 46 percent in the first meeting.
The Cavaliers' game against the Hokies is the second of a four-game stretch in which Virginia will face three top 20 teams.
Although Virginia Tech is not ranked, Cassell Coliseum's elite atmosphere will provide a challenge for Virginia who fell to the Hokies in Blacksburg last season.
Despite the difficulty of winning on the road in the ACC, Virginia has disproven that theory over the last few seasons, as the Cavaliers are 23-10 in their last 33 road conference games.
Although they rank second in the country in fewest turnovers per game, Virginia has committed 29 in their last two games after averaging only nine per game for the season.
After Monday night's win over Louisville, in which the Cavaliers coughed the ball up 14 times, Virginia head coach Tony Bennett knew that was something they needed to cut down moving forward.
"We have five days to practice before we play again," Bennett said. "We have to correct those mistakes and get back to taking care of the ball. Our schedule doesn't get any easier so we need to clean that up."
Sunday night's game in Blacksburg will mark the fourth sellout of the season for Virginia Tech and should provide an electric atmosphere for a Hokie team trying to recover from two straight loses.
The teams tip off at 6:30 p.m.
