2023-24 Hokie Hoops Statistical Notes: Volume the Ocho

The Men's Team

In the last edition, I was broken as a Hokie fan. I didn't see much hope for us having a chance at winning many, if any, in this frame.

I apologize to this team for my melancholy.

Yes, they only went 2-2 during this window, but damn was it nice to almost break the record for biggest blowout win of UVA. Likewise, the win over FSU showed a resilient team that can score by the bunches, as did the loss against UNC.

Additional congratulations go out to Coach Young for getting his 88th win as a Hokie coach, matching Don DeVoe for 7th All-Time.

Scoring

The Hokies were nothing if not balanced in scoring this frame. Pedulla led the team with 15.75 ppg, but he was joined in double figures by Kidd (11.25 ppg), Cattoor (11 ppg), and Nickel (10.5 ppg). Following closely were Collins (9.5 ppg) and Poteat (9 ppg). 6 players averaging a total of 67 ppg isn't a bad place to be.

The drop off was pretty severe though. Beran got 4.75 ppg, followed by Young (2.75 ppg). Rechsteiner and Camden rounded out the scorers with 1 ppg and 0.7 ppg, respectively.

Rebounding

While the scoring is there, the rebounding still isn't. The rebounding is balanced, but few and far between. Kidd led the way with just 6.5 per, followed by Pedulla (5.75), Poteat (4.25), Beran (3.75), Collins (3), Cattoor (2.75), and Nickel (2.25) averaged at least 1 per half. Wessler (1), Young (0.75) and Camden (0.3) provided the rest. That's just over 30 rebounds per game. That just doesn't cut it.

Assists/Turnovers/Steals

Sometimes when you call someone out, they do what you want. Pedulla did just that in the ATO margin, finishing with a margin of 17:6, adjusted to a legendary 17:1, when turnovers are adjusted by steals. Collins also went off for an ATO of 14:7 and 14:3 adjusted. Nickel went 8:3, adjusted to 8:0. Even Cattoor did well at 8:3; 8:2 as well.

Good things tend to happen when you protect the ball. As a whole, the team went 55:30 and 55:13 adjusted. That's better than 4:1.

Experience/Depth

Collins accrued the most minutes over the window with 34 per game. Also in the 30+ club were Cattoor (30.75) and Pedulla (30.25). Nickel (28.75) and Beran (21) were the sole members of the 20 minute club, while Kidd (19.75) and Poteat (18.25) were the only others getting major minutes. Young put in 9.5 per, while Rechsteiner managed 5, Wessler got 3.5, and Ward and Venable got 1 each. The Hokies are a 7.5-deep team.

Next Window

This will be the last edition before the end of the regular season.

We start on the road at Syracuse. The Orange are 6th in the ACC in scoring at 76.3 ppg, not much above the Hokies' 74.2. In conference, however, the Hokies remain consistent in their scoring, while Syracuse drops to just below the Hokies. Defensively, the Hokies are significantly better, holding their opponents to 73.9 ppg, while Syracuse is allowing a poor 78.9 ppg. The Hokies shoot better, and hold their opponents to a lower percentage (Syracuse is the worst in the ACC). Tech is in the top 3rd in the ACC in shooting the long ball, Syracuse is 3rd from worst. Tech is middle of the pack at defending the 3, while Syracuse is worst. This is the only team that the Hokies rebound better than, while Syracuse gives up more than anybody. The only place Syracuse has the advantage is in steals, where the Orange lead the ACC with 9.35 per game, more than double that of the Hokies.

Next, the Hokies welcome the Demon Deacons, who obliterated the Hokies earlier this season by 23 in Winston-Salem, the Hokies first ACC loss of the season.

Then, the Hokies travel west to Louisville, the Hokies' first ACC win of the season.

The Hokies then head into Senior Night vs Notre Dame, who beat the Hokies in South Bend by less than 10.

Prediction

I have a faint hope of 3-1, with the lone loss being to Wake. However, heading to New York always makes me nervous. So I'll go ahead and call 2-2.

The Women's Team.

Fun fact I didn't know about the Hokies until today: 14-0 in the last two Februaries. This time, that undefeated streak led to an ACC regular season crown, the first for either Tech basketball team.

Kenny Brooks also earned his 178th win as a Hokie, putting him 100 behind Carol Alfano's record. Amoore broke the career assists mark. Kitley recorded her 8th 30-point game of the season (she had 4 for her career before this year), and for the 7th game in a row somebody got a double-double. On the season the Hokies have 29 double doubles (Kitley 19, Amoore 9, Summiel 1)

Scoring

A recent infographic I saw showed that, among the top 10 teams in the AP poll, Virginia Tech was the 2nd most reliant (behind Iowa) on their top 2 scorers for % of team points. That factor held true in this frame, as Kitley averaged a stellar 29.5 ppg, joined in the 20+ club by Amoore (20.25 ppg); and that was against 4 teams with a combined record of 69-44. However, the only other player in double figures was Matilda Ekh with 10.75. That being said, getting 60 from just 3 players is muy bueno.

No other Hokie averaged more than a basket per half, led by King's 4.5, followed by Strack's 3, Wenzel's 2.5, Summiel's 1.75, and Baker's 1.5.

Rebounding

Kitley, once again, shows out with an average of a double-double, pulling down 11.5 per over this four game set. Summiel also hit the boards hard, pulling down another 8.75. Strack grabbed 3.75, followed by the guard combo of Ekh (3.5), Amoore/King (3.25) and Wenzel (2.25). Baker pulled down the remaining rebound of the window.

Assists/Turnovers/Steals

As a team, the Hokies were a little sloppy, managing a 65:55 ATO margin, adjusted down to 65:43 with steals. Once again, Amoore is showing she deserves to be in the conversation for best PG in the country, putting up a stellar 7 assists per game, to just 5 turnovers. Cayla King also spread the love, accounting for 10 assists to just 3 turnovers, adjusted down to a 10:1 when steals are factored in. Of all the Hokies who played, only Kitley had more turnovers (7), than assists (6) when adjusted for steals.

Experience/Depth

Nine* Hokies saw playing time, led by, let's be honest, the greatest player in Tech history in Liz Kitley (38.25 mpg), and the 2nd greatest player in Tech history in Georgia Amoore (37 mpg). Ekh accrued another 34, and King saw 31.75 per, while the least utilized starter (Summiel) averaged 25.5. Strack was the first off the bench with 15.75 mpg, followed by Wenzel (12.25). Baker has provided a few minutes here and there, for 5.25 per game. Suffren saw a few seconds of the UNC game, allowing Amoore to come off on Senior Night.

Next Window

It will be mid-March before we see the Hokies in Cassell again, as the Hokies hope to keep their 2 year long unbeaten February streak intact on Leap Day in South Bend. This is a very even matchup as neither team has an advantage in scoring offense nor defense. Both shoot well and defend well. Both shoot from range well and stop opponents from hitting from range. Both shoot well from the line. Both rebound well and keep opponents off the glass. Tech has the advantage in ATO margin, but are absolutely blown away in AATO thanks to the 318 steals by Notre Dame on the season (top 10 in the nation). The Irish are led by the ACC's top scorer and #2 Assister in Hannah Hidalgo. The biggest advantage for the Hokies would be not letting the Irish go to their bench. In the 5 losses the Irish have had in conference, they've played 7 or fewer players in all of them. In fact, those 7 are the only players with more than 113 minutes played on the season. Our 5-player bench is fresher, as our entire bench has 1350 minutes played, while their 2 major bench players have a combined 1075 minutes. In those conference losses, they were absolutely reliant on their starters scoring everything, as the bench accounted for less than 5 points per game in those losses. The two teams will be roughly evenly matched in height except in 1 guard position where either Ekh or King will have a 4 inch advantage over KK Bransford.

Our last game of the regular season will see us return to the Commonwealth to square off in Charlottesville. I expect this to be a tough fight as the Hoos will be having their Senior Night, and with 7 on their roster (ESPN) listed as SRs, they're gonna have some fire in them.

After that, we are off to the ACC Tournament as the #1 seed, where we will face off against the winner of the 8/9 matchup. Right now, that would be between Miami and UNC.

Moving on we would get the winner of the #4/#5 game, which would be either Louisville or Notre Dame as the standings currently sit.

The ACC Championship game follows, and if we see chalk in the tournament, we will square off against Syracuse.

Prediction

The February streak continues into 2025.

Go to sleep, little sister.

Exit Light

Enter Night

Hokies Head to the Dance as a #1 seed again.

4-0