Maryland

Who: Virginia Tech Hokies (12-8, 1-4 ACC) @ Maryland Terrapins (12-7, 2-3 ACC)

When: Saturday, January 28 @ 2:30 p.m.

TV: ACC Network (Tim Brantt and Mike Gminski)

Where: Comcast Center (17,950), College Park, MD

The Opponent: Fresh off another excruciatingly close loss to a big-name non-conference foe, the Hokies jump back into league play with a trip to Maryland. The Terps are under the direction of first-year head coach Mark Turgeon, who came to UMD after four years (and four NCAA Appearances) at Texas A&M.

Maryland was a rather large question mark in that people don’t really know what to expect after the resignation of Gary Williams after last season. And in some cases, they really are still an unknown. This game can be viewed almost as another non-conference game because the Hokies have never faced a Mark Turgeon-run team. This won’t be the same Maryland team as the last 20 years or so.

Apparently, there's a lot of news to catch up on and discuss. I didn't think spending the last week in June unplugged from Interwebs would put me behind the eight-ball. I was wrong.

The Hokies' future schedules got a lot sexier. Some foreplay, the University of Maryland has moved its 2014 game with Tech to M&T Bank Stadium, the home of Baltimore Ravens. I traveled to Byrd in 2009 and enjoyed the trip. I Metro'd there and back, appreciated the character of the stadium, as well as its cheeseburgers and tailgating, even though that just involved a pole and a 24-rack. It's a total speculation, but the ACC could use it as its Labor Day Weekend television obligation for ESPN. Either way based solely on location it will be a higher profile game, which bodes well for attracting elite recruits from Maryland. I know Hokie Nation will fill up M&T, but do consider this, from my experience in '09 Byrd's atmosphere wasn't anything threatening, in fact lifeless would be an accurate description. Even though the game will be played at a neutral site, it may turn out to be a tougher venue, because the buzz and hype will do a better job to attract those Terps who normally spend Saturday on the couch. All things considered, I think it's a positive move for Tech.

Trailing by one with just over five minutes to go, Malcolm Delaney and Erick Green went on a 9-0 run over the next four minutes to help push the Hokies past Maryland 91-83 on Tuesday night at Cassell Coliseum. Delaney and Green combined for 42 points as the Hokies won for the 13th time in their last 16 games to improve to 17-7 on the season and 7-4 in the ACC, a full game ahead of Boston College and Clemson for fourth place in the ACC.

Neither team had led by more than five in the second half before the 9-0 run from Tech. Delaney hit two free throws to give the Hokies their first lead at 77-76 to start the run, and then hit a jumper with 4:36 left to put the Hokies up three. After a missed three-pointer from Maryland, Green nailed a three-pointer from the wing as the shot clock expired to put the Hokies up 82-76 with 3:24 to play. Delaney added two free throws with 1:14 left to give Tech their largest lead of the second half at 84-76.

Who: Virginia Tech Hokies (16-7, 6-4 ACC) vs Maryland Terrapins (16-9, 5-5 ACC)

When: Tuesday, February 15 @ 8:00 p.m.

TV: ACC Network

Where: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, VA

The Opponent: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Bubble Battle Part II. The Hokies took Bubble Battle Part I back on January 21 against the Terps 74-57 and have won four of six since. In what is sure to be a wild environment, the Hokies have the potential to dampen Maryland's NCAA tournament chances and solidify fourth place in the ACC with a victory in Blacksburg tonight

The Terps have won five of seven since playing the Hokies, but are coming off a 76-72 loss at Boston College on Saturday. Maryland is one game back of Tech, but sits in seventh place as Boston College and Clemson stand in between the two at 6-5 in conference play. Obviously, this game has massive implications on how the conference race will shakeout in the final three weeks.

Raise your hand if you saw this one coming. Don't lie, nobody saw this coming. Erick Green had a career game, scoring 24 points as the Hokies rolled over the Maryland Terrapins 74-57 Thursday night. The 17-point defeat was the worst for Maryland in the nine years in the Comcast Center and the biggest margin of defeat at home since an 18-point loss to Duke at Cole Field House in 1999.

Green was fantastic in every aspect of the game. The sophomore was an astounding 12-of-16 (75%) from the field and was hitting shots from wherever he wanted to when he wanted to. The coming-out party also included four steals and two assists. Since moving into the starting lineup, Green has hit double figures in every game, averaging 14 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals per game. Not to mention the Hokies are 8-1 in those games.

Who: Virginia Tech Hokies (11-5, 2-2 ACC) @ Maryland Terrapins (11-6, 1-2 ACC)

When: Thursday, January 21 @ 9:00 p.m.

TV: ESPN2

Where: Comcast Center, College Park, MD

The Opponent: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Bubble Battle Part I. In what is sure to be the first of many key ACC contests, the Hokies travel to College Park to take on the bubblicious Maryland Terrapins tonight. Needing a solid road win, Tech (ranked 75th in the RPI as of Wednesday night) would get a resume booster by beating the Terps (No. 90 RPI) in the Comcast Center.

Maryland’s 11-6 record is a tad deceiving as the six losses have come to Pittsburgh, Illinois, Temple, Boston College, Duke, and Villanova. Four of those teams are currently in the top 25 and UMD has not lost by more than nine to any of them. The Terps are a much better team at home (9-1) than they are away from College Park (2-5). However, the lone home loss was to ACC foe Boston College.