HOKIES HOOPS CENTRAL: Virginia Tech (9-3) At Wake Forest (8-3) 2PM ESPN2

HOKIES HOOPS CENTRAL: Virginia Tech (9-3) At Wake Forest (8-3) 2PM ESPN2

Morning shootaround ✅ pic.twitter.com/9gL2OomN7d— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) December 30, 2023

Virginia Tech (9-3)
At Wake Forest (8-3)
December 30th, 2023
Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum
2 p.m. ET
ESPN2
Virginia Tech Sports Network

ESPN+/ACCNX
Play-by-Play: Connor Onion
Analyst: Dan Bonner

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

Current Spread: Wake -3.5
Over/Under: -143.5

Litmus Test to end the Year
The Hokies pick back up in ACC play with a trip to Wake Forest to try to close out 2023 strong. The Hokies turned Kidd loose on American right before Christmas and cruised to a 77-55 win. This will be Wake's first ACC game this season.

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons squad comes in 8-3. This will be the 72nd meeting between the Hokies and Wake Forest. The Hokies are 38-33 but looking to end a two game skid to the Deacs.

The Demon Deacons have been coached by Steve Forbes since 2020. Wake Forest is his third head coaching job. He also spent time as an assistant at eight different programs since 1989. The Demon Deacons come in 8-3. Notable wins over Florida and Rutgers. Their losses were to Georgia, LSU in overtime and Utah. They come into this game having won six straight following a 91-68 win over Presbyterian.

Wake Forest returnees Cameron Hildreth and Andrew Carr are major contributors. The Deacons also got transfers of two former Gonzaga players Hunter Sallis and Efton Reid, with Sallis starting and Reid playing significant minutes when he plays. Other transfers include Kevin Miller from Central Michigan, who has become a starter due to injuries, and Abramo Canka, a lengthy international guard who has played sparingly since coming from UCLA.

Wake lost Jao Ituka and Damari Monsanto to injury, both of whom averaged double-digit scoring last season. The Monsanto injury was a huge loss as he was expected to lead this team. These injuries likely relegate Wake to the middle of the pack in the ACC. With these two playing, Wake may have been competing for top spot. As it is they still have four guys averaging over 15 points a game.

Wake returned four of their top five scorers but only two have played. They have three freshman newcomers this season. Guards Parker Friedrichsen and Aaron Clark and Wing Marqus Marion join the Deacons this season. Friedrichsen and Marion have both played in every game this season, both getting about seventeen minutes per game.

The Demon Deacons have four players averaging more than 30 mpg and three more that regularly average at least 15 mpg. The starting five are Sallis, Hildreth, Miller, Carr and Keller. Friedrichsen and Marion are the two primary subs off the bench.

Forbes focus is transition opportunities and high energy defensive play. His teams focus on defending corner 3-pointers, gap defense, rim protection and off-ball screen coverage using a variety of zone to collapse on the paint. So far opponents have shot 32% from outside. They focus on defensive rebounds to limit second chance opportunities and look for quick outlook passes to beat the defense back up the court.

Offensively, the Demon Deacons are looking to beat opponents up the floor and take a significant number of transition perimeter shots. So far through 11 games they are shooting 23 threes per game, shooting just over 37%. Sallis and Friedrichsen combine to attempt nearly ten threes per game. They also employ dribble penetration to draw the defense which allows multiple lob passes to Carr and Keller for quick hitters underneath. They use a variety of perimeter screening actions to create separation.

just another one for everyone to enjoy 😬#GoDeacs 🎩🏀 pic.twitter.com/JuVD3iqD4J— Wake Forest Men's Basketball (@WakeMBB) December 24, 2023

Demon Deacons Backcourt
Hunter Sallis
23 JR G 6-5 175
18.0 Pts, 2.7 Reb, 2.2 Ast

Kevin Miller
0 SO G 6-0 165
17.2 Pts, 2.8 Reb, 4.3 Ast

Cameron Hildreth
2 JR G 6-4 195
15.8 Pts, 4.2 Reb, 3.3 Ast

Parker Friedrichsen
20 FR G 6-3 195
5.7 Pts, 1.7 Reb, 0.9 Ast

Demon Deacons Frontcourt
Andrew Carr
11 SR F 6-9 210
15.5 Pts, 7.6 Reb, 1.0 Ast

Zach Keller
25 SO F 6-10 228
2.9 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 0.1 Ast

Efton Reid
4 JR C 6-11 238
7.0 Pts, 8.0 Reb, 0.5 Ast

Marqus Marion
1 FR F 6-8 210
1.6 Pts, 3.2 Reb, 0.2 Ast

What to expect from Wake Forest?
The Demon Deacons will run a constant three guard/two forward set looking to push the pace. They are led in scoring by their starting guard trio of Sallis, Miller and Hildreth. These three and Friedrichsen combine to take over 17 of the teams' 23 attempts from outside. That said, the Deacs only get 27 points from outside of 81 points per game. Sallis though doesn't hesitate to take it right to the rim and has blow by speed on dribble penetration combined with the physicality to go up against big bodies.

we'll see where that one ranks by the end of the year 🤐 pic.twitter.com/OjPFuxHJPG— Wake Forest Men's Basketball (@WakeMBB) December 23, 2023

Carr inside picks up quite a few off-side baskets when defenses over commit. Having four scorers in double digits though can be a two-edged sword when its needed every night. The rest of the roster only adds 15 points per game.

136 assists already this season! That means @HarrisTeeter will donate $1,360 to a local food bank thanks to the Deacs' passing!To learn more & to win free groceries through the Big Four Grocery Assist Sweepstakes, visit https://t.co/HpsTtnfaxm pic.twitter.com/6XlRLj0oki— Wake Forest Demon Deacons (@DemonDeacons) December 27, 2023

Efton Reid seems to be playing a much more significant role since his return and Young likely counters him inside with Poteat, he has played starter level minutes in three of their last four games after sitting out their first seven. As seen below he is a shot blocker, so Hokies have to find a way to counter this. Reid and Carr both average 2 blocks per game but Reid had five against Presbyterian.

𝐄ffective.fun fact: most blocks by a Deac in a single game since 2019 🖐️ @efton15 |#GoDeacs 🎩 🏀 pic.twitter.com/iR6Py5nsIY— Wake Forest Men's Basketball (@WakeMBB) December 23, 2023

Wake plays a very disciplined style of defense and has not been called for twenty fouls in any game this season. Typically, when a team relies on its starters so much, you might expect fouls to be a limiting factor but only Carr and Reid are averaging over two fouls per contest. They create 13 turnovers per game and turn that into about 15 points per contest.

This will be a much taller starting five than the majority of the Hokies opponents so far this season. Carr and Keller being on the floor together may force Young to adjust his lineup. He may rely on Beran to counter Keller considering he is not much of a scoring threat so far this season.

The Demon Deacons are relatively equal in the rebounding side, although its more focused on defensive opportunities. Offensive rebounds are very limited, and second chance opportunities have only led to four points per game so far.

The Hokies

Back to league play 🔥🆚 Wake Forest📍 LJVM Coliseum🕑 2PM ET📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/K3nRag09pq— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) December 30, 2023

Pedulla will likely play but he is shown on the SCACCHoops injury report as questionable. Not sure the Hokies can afford to have him out against Wake with how strong the guard rotation is for Wake. Hopefully a good sign he is the Gameday Tweet player as seen above.

This game should give a much better idea of what we can expect from Kidd against an ACC caliber center as he battles down low against Carr. Kidd has a couple inches on Carr and both are athletic more than big body guys.

On defense, the Hokies need to force Wake Forest 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.

Who can be the X Factor for the Hokies? They need at least one player to have a big game considering how balanced Wake is across their starting five. The Hokies have shown a willingness to go inside but need a much more productive version of that if they are going to be successful.

worth the price of admission 🍿👀#StoneByStone x #Hokies pic.twitter.com/aQdXKL9mjC— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) December 24, 2023

In Closing
Who scores more from outside? Wake has not faced a team as good at defending the perimeter as the Hokies. Both teams, however, have a big averaging double-digit points which gives flexibility in terms of scoring.

The Hokies and Wake use very similar strategies in terms of possessions, aiming to get defensive rebounds and turn them into open perimeter looks first and inside opportunities as they present. The speed and way they go about it are vastly different but seem to lead to very similar results. This game unfortunately will be in the long line of who shoots better from outside wins most likely although Wake is much more comfortable scoring inside than are the Hokies. The free throw line shouldn't play a significant role for either side.

Both teams seemingly match in terms of size and athleticism. The difference may come down to who dictates the style of play more. Wake wants fast possessions, lots of points and quick transition from defense to offense. The Hokies prefer a methodical approach on both ends and limiting possessions.

price increases officially begin tomorrow, Dec. 29 🎩🎟️: https://t.co/zNHP7DAILk pic.twitter.com/1vU5Ihy4kT— Wake Forest Men's Basketball (@WakeMBB) December 28, 2023

Trying to entice everyone with that Bojangles Gift Card.

What kind of crowd can we expect? The student section will likely be nearly empty but Wake usually draws a local crowd pretty well and with the amount of Hokies in the Winston-Salem area it could be a pro-Hokies crowd. Not having a crowd affects teams differently (see Hokies last year in Boston College) so which team is motivated may go a long way to deciding the outcome. Just look at Bowl Season for football.

If you have the time, grab this deal below and get out to support both the Hokies basketball teams in key matchups early in January. Hokies men face a currently 11-1 Clemson squad and Hokies Ladies face a 10-1 Miami team. They need a full house for these games.

Spend NYE with us and get your 4 pack of tickets to @HokiesMBB against Clemson for $40 or $20 for @HokiesWBB against Miami!— HokieSports (@hokiesports) December 28, 2023