HOKIES HOOPS CENTRAL: American (5-6) at Virginia Tech (8-3) 5PM ESPN+/ACCNX

By: ltrepeter2000

HOKIE HOOPS WIZ

on December 21, 2023, 10:37 AM | 11 comments

Home finale of 2023 💪🆚 American🕔 5PM📺 ACCNX🎟️ https://t.co/WdZ541twS9 #StoneByStone x #Hokies pic.twitter.com/m6B05tSag4— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) December 21, 2023

American (5-6)
At Virginia Tech (8-3)
December 16th, 2023
Cassell Coliseum
5 p.m. ET
ESPN+/ACCNX Network
Virginia Tech Sports Network

ESPN+/ACCNX
Play-by-Play:
Analyst:

Local Radio
Virginia Tech Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Zach Mackey
Analyst: Mike Burnop

Current Spread: Hokies -18.5
Over/Under: -141.5

𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡 🗣️Get your @HokiesMBB and @HokiesWBB tickets for $10 each before tomorrow's doubleheader! 🎁https://t.co/WRN8Dn15XE pic.twitter.com/vPMxXzS3YV— HokieSports (@hokiesports) December 20, 2023

Double Header Fun
The Hokies look to add on to its six-game winning streak at Cassell Coliseum with American coming to Blacksburg. The Hokies Ladies play at 2pm and the Men at 5pm today. The Hokies last time out put the clamps on Vermont and cruised to a 73-51 win.

The American Eagles squad comes in 5-6 and in second place in the Patriot League. This will be the first meeting between the Hokies and American since 2002, a 69-61 Hokies win. The Hokies are 4-2 all time with games going back to 1938, a 29-23 loss in D.C.

The Eagles are coached by first year head coach Duane Simpkins. American is his first head coaching job. He spent twelve seasons as a coach at several top ranked high school programs in the D.C. area before taking an assistant job at UNC Greensboro and then George Mason. The Eagles (318th RPI) opened their season with two losses to Villanova and William and Mary. They beat Siena and NJIT soundly. They then lost to Georgetown, beat Mount Saint Marys and Hood College to close out November. In December, the Eagles lost to SFPA and St Joes. They beat VMI 77-69 in their latest game.

American returned four of their top five scorers and have a strong core of leaders with five seniors on the roster. They have three freshman newcomers this season. Gibraltar Coleman, Greg Jones and Matthew Mayock come in with Mayock starting and Jones has played in every game.

The Eagles have seven players averaging more than 20 mpg and two more that regularly average at least 10 mpg. The starting five are leading scorer Forward Matt Rogers, with guards Ball, Stephens and Donadio with Freshman Forward Mayock.

Simpkins is using a combination of zone and man-to-man focused on denying the perimeter and looking to create transition opportunities. They are small but extremely quick. They struggle rebounding but definitely try to force the pace. So far they haven't really been able to deny the perimeter, with opponents have shot 35% or higher in eight of eleven games.

Offensively, the Eagles are looking to get up and down while shooting a ton of shots from outside. Simpkins had this to say "We want to make sure we're contesting 3-pointers and not allowing teams to shoot over 33 percent from three, while getting up 32 to 33 threes a game ourselves." So far through 11 games they are shooting 28.5 threes per game.

Eagles Backcourt
Elijah Stephens
1 JR G 5-9 165
11.6 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 5.4 Ast

Geoff Sprouse
12 SO G 6-0 180
10.0 Pts, 2.5 Reb, 1.5 Ast

Lorenzo Donadio
8 SR G 6-4 190
9.2 Pts, 4.5 Reb, 2.5 Ast

Colin Smalls
3 SR G 6-2 185
5.9 Pts, 2.3 Reb, 0.6 Ast

Lincoln Ball
4 SR G 6-6 215
4.6 Pts, 6.3 Reb, 2.3 Ast

Eagles Frontcourt
Matt Rogers
15 SR F 6-9 220
15.8 Pts, 6.4 Reb, 1.0 Ast

Matt Mayock
33 FR F 6-7 191
7.1 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.8 Ast

Jermaine Ballisager-Webb
22 SO C 7-0 240
6.5 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 0.3 Ast

Greg Jones
23 FR F 6-6 195
2.5 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.5 Ast

What to expect from American?
The Eagles will run a pretty constant three guard/two forward set looking to push the pace. They are led in scoring by Forward Matt Rogers who is still a threat to shoot outside. They have six players averaging at least three attempts per game from outside.

Expect a smaller squad overall on the floor for American, with Cattoor and Pedulla set to have a height advantage on both primary guards. While its smaller the starters are experienced but seem to be adjusting still to Simpkins scheme still.

The Eagles manage to win the rebounding battle overall most games but by far not dominant. They will risk chasing offensive boards and often are caught by teams going the other way. It leads to odd man rushes and higher foul numbers overall.

Assists are a key factor for this team to be successful. They average assists on over two thirds of their baskets.

The Hokies
The Hokies should be able to create turnovers and get out in transition in this game. The key will be finishing those opportunities. Teams have averaged nearly eighteen points in transition on American this season.

On defense, the Hokies need to force American off the perimeter. Limiting their outside shots destroys their primary game plan. Keeping them to a methodical half-court offense will be another big component to winning this game.

This likely is a big game for the outside shooters. Cattoor, Young and Nickel all could reach double-digits. There still is a question on whether Collins will play due to his knee although he is no longer shown on the SCACCHoops injury report.

Kidd should add to his double-double total in this one if the Hokies are going to be successful.

ACC double-double leaders 📈1️⃣ A. Bacot (UNC) 5 Q. Post (BC) 53️⃣ N. Omier (Miami) 44️⃣ @lynnkidd20 3 K. Filipowski (Duke) 3 pic.twitter.com/32ABcllpBX— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) December 18, 2023

In Closing
Hold American from getting in rhythm on the perimeter and slow the pace of their offense. Protect the ball to keep the Eagles from getting quick transition opportunities.

This game should look very similar to the Vermont game especially if the Hokies are able to maintain the same level of defensive pressure.