The Northwestern Wildcats will travel to Cassell Coliseum to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies. The game starts at 7:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Dec. 1 and can be seen on ESU and ES3.
The Hokies beat UAB 82-77 on Saturday. With 15 points and 10 rebounds, Zach LeDay recorded his fourth double-double this season. The Wildcats are coming off a 90-63 win against New Orleans on Saturday. Scottie Lindsey shot 9 for 12 and led in scoring with 26 points.
The odds for Virginia Tech and Northwestern are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is 144 points. The Hokies are attempting to build on their records of 4-2 Straight Up (SU) and 2-2 Against The Spread (ATS). Virginia Tech has gotten to the free throw line often this season. They average 22 made free throws per game, which is 14th-best in Division I. The Hokies have a distinct advantage on the boards in this matchup. They are the 15th-ranked rebounding team in Division I, averaging 44.8 per game, while the Wildcats rank 241st in the nation with 35.3 per game.
As for their opponent, the Wildcats have records of 0-3-1 ATS and 5-1 SU. The Wildcats are an excellent long-range shooting team with 60 three-point shots made (10.0 per game), ranking 33rd in Division I. The Wildcats are one of the top teams in the country at finding the open man with an average of 17.5 assists per game.
Virginia Tech and Northwestern will be facing off for their first head-to-head game in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – NW, ATS Winner – NW, O/U – Over
Notes
Virginia Tech is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
Virginia Tech is 7-18 SU in its last 25 games.
Virginia Tech averages 79.7 points per game (ranked 93rd). Northwestern, on the other hand, allows 69.0 points per game (ranked 135th).
Ranked 50th, the Northwestern Wildcats have an offensive rating of 116.2. The Virginia Tech Hokies rank 140th with a defensive rating of just 99.3.
Virginia Tech has an average field goal percentage of 46.4%. Northwestern is undefeated (1-0) when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Virginia Tech Hokies rank higher based on their field goal percentage (105th) than their effective field goal percentage (175th). The Northwestern Wildcats rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (40th) than their field goal percentage (69th).
Northwestern ranks 30th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.52. Virginia Tech is ranked lower at 259th with an A/TO of .88.
Ranked 15th in the nation, Virginia Tech averages 44.8 rebounds per game. Northwestern ranks lower at 241st with 35.3 RPG.
Northwestern ranks 277th in offensive rebounds, while Virginia Tech ranks at 42nd in defensive rebounds.
Opponents have had an average turnover percentage of 17.4% when playing Northwestern this season. Virginia Tech is undefeated this season (4-0) when its TO% is 17.4% or higher.
