Hokie Hoops Statistical Notes: Volume 5

Now passing the 5/8th* point of the season, the Hokies tread water during their last tetraology, going 2-2 with 2 losses that they could have won, but that's basketball. In the ACC, Tech sits tied for 5th (still waaaaay above any of our reasonable expectations at season's beginning), 1 game back of Syracuse for 4th.

Scoring

Player Year Position Scoring
Team - - 71.35
Freshmen - - 53.17
Landers Nolley II r-Fresh G/F 17.9
Naheim Alleyne Fresh Guard 9.65
Tyrece Radford Fresh Guard 8.35
Jalen Cone Fresh Guard 8.05
PJ Horne r-Junior Forward 7.8

Now the top 4 positions and 5 of the top 6 are freshmen. Nolley has remained consistent at just shy of 18 ppg. Last edition's #6 Jalen Cone is now up to #4 in scoring. Hunter Cattoor is relatively close to jumping into the top 5, needing n+30 points to pass Horne, which would make all top scorers freshmen.

Rebounding
Radford is getting better at rebounding, up .3 rpg to 6.4. Nolley is the next best rebounder at 5.6 rpg, while starting PF Horne is sitting at 4.7 rpg.

Assists
Bede is still averaging 25 assists per four game window, putting him at 6.25 per game, good for top 20 nationally, 8th in P5 conferences, and 3rd in the ACC. I can't seem to find a good statistics database that sorts by it, but he has to be close to leading the nation in ATO margin with 3.91 assists to turnovers.

Experience/Depth
Young shook things up recently by starting Jalen Cone in a few games, but the overall trends remain the same, with the exception that, now, two Hokies are getting leaned on for more significant minutes. Nolley is up to 31.25 minutes per game, and Bede has also crossed that 30 mpg mark by 3 minutes on the season. Four more Hokies are in the twenty minute window. Cone and Wilkins getting more than 15 minutes per game. Ojaiko has slipped below my usual limit for significant contributor (10 mpg) by two minutes on the season.

Overall, Freshmen account for 128.77 minutes per game out of 200 potential.

Next Four
As I said last time, the Hokies could go anywhere from 0-4 to 4-0. This time, I have a harder feeling that 2-2 might be the best scenario.

The Hokies will travel the length of the US East Coast from Boston to Miami for what should be a win against a Hurricanes team that doesn't particularly defend nor rebound well, ranking 302nd and tied for 300th respectively.
They will be a persistent threat inside, with two regular contributors over 6-10.

Then the team will return to the Cassell to face a Top 5 Florida State team that has always given the Hokies fits. They score and defend well, but like the previous team, lack rebounding for such a tall team, sitting 271st nationally, despite having two 7-footers on the team, although both average less than 10 minutes per game.

Next, the Hokies will follow the Noles south, stopping in Atlanta to battle the bees (note: not the Battle of the Bees, that was something else). The Jackets are ineligible for the post season this year, and it seems that the ineligibility has taken the wind out of their sails, as they currently sit 322nd in scoring, 256th in rebounding, and 124th in defense.

Finally, at the end of this quadrathon, the Hokies will return home to play the Boston College Eagles who just defeated the Hokies up in Boston. Using point spread prognostications, the 5 point victory was only 2 points above a neutral court setting, whereas the Cassell's +3 rating would tend to indicate the Hokies will enact a similar margin of victory.

Quite frankly, I don't know what to expect, but I would like to see a win against Georgia Tech and a revenge win against BC. I think the Hokies can get the win against Miami, but I'm not counting on it, and until I see us win, I don't expect a win against FSU while they are coached by Leonard Hamilton.

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Pain is Temporary, Chicks Dig Scars
Glory is Forever, Let's Go Hokies!!

Please join The Key Players Club to read or post comments.

Pain is Temporary, Chicks Dig Scars
Glory is Forever, Let's Go Hokies!!

Please join The Key Players Club to read or post comments.

"Now Miami wants to talk about it." *Cue Enter Sandman*