Virginia Tech (24-8) is the No. 4 seed in the East Region in the NCAA Tournament. They’ll take on No. 13 seed Saint Louis (23-12) on Friday in San Jose, California at approximately 9:57 eastern time on truTV. This is Tech’s highest ever seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The Billikens (23-12) were a 19-12 basketball team and the No. 6 seed in the Atlantic 10 Tournament last week before a dramatic run saw them crowned Champions of that tournament over the weekend. Saint Louis knocked off four teams in the tournament, three of which were seeded higher.
vs. No. 11 seed Richmond: 71-68
vs. No. 3 seed Dayton: 64-55
vs. No. 2 seed Davidson: 67-44
vs. No. 4 seed St. Bonaventure: 55-53
Saint Louis is coached by former Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford. They upset the Hokies 77-71 last season in the 2k Classic in Madison Square Garden, and Buzz Williams will be sure to remind his team of that in the days leading up to the game.
The Billikens are 0-2 against ACC competition this year, falling to Pitt 75-73 in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn back in November, and later losing to Florida State 81-59 on December 22. They have been a strong defensive team all season, though they have struggled on the offensive end of the court.
Offensive Efficiency (Pomeroy): No. 202
Effective FG%: No. 322
Offensive Rebound Rate: No. 13
3-Pt. %: No. 327
2-Pt. %: No. 285
FT %: No. 352
Turnover rate: No. 214
As you can see, Saint Louis has struggled to shoot the ball this year, and they rank next-to-last among all Division I teams in free throw shooting. However, their offensive rebound rate has been impressive.
Defensively, the Billikens are tough.
Defensive Efficiency (Pomeroy): No. 46
Effective FG%: No. 26
Opp. Offensive Rebound Rate: No. 51
3-Pt. %: No. 32
2-Pt. %: No. 48
Turnover rate: No. 117
Saint Louis ranks No. 103 nationally in the NET rankings, while Virginia Tech is No. 11. The Billikens have wins over No. 57 Seton Hall, No. 64 Butler, No. 87 Oregon State, No. 69 Dayton and No. 75 Davidson. However, they also have losses to No. 143 Southern Illinois, No. 170 Duquesne, No. 194 Richmond, No. 137 Rhode Island, No. 171 Saint Joseph’s and No. 118 St. Bonaventure.
6-6 senior guard Javon Bess leads Saint Louis in scoring. He averages 15.4 points per game. He shoots 40% from the field and 33.9% from three-point range.
If the Hokies beat Saint Louis, they’ll take on the winner of No. 5 seed Mississippi State (23-10) and No. 12 seed Liberty (28-6). That game would be played on Sunday in San Jose. If Tech makes it through both of those games, their likely opponent in the Sweet 16 would be No. 1 overall seed Duke in Washington, DC.
Click here for the official NCAA Tournament bracket.
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Not saying it will happen, but we have a good shot for 2 wins, and then who knows.Duke (if they or we get that far) will be favored, but it is March madness!
Did we ever find out exactly what JR did to his foot. Broken bone, bad sprain, etc.?
Would have preferred to be in the Gonzaga or UVA region to have a better shot at an upset there but no complaints here. Thrilled to see the seeding and hoping BW can get his first tournament win or even 2. I also wonder how much JR will be able to contribute the first weekend.
Someone help me here but in seeing all the upsets that happen in conference tournaments and past NCAAT I don’t recall VT ever pulling off a significant upset in post-season play. We always play at or below expectations and never above. I know we won the Metro waaaay back which I think was a surprise so maybe that’s one. And the same with football (other than beating UT in 1995).
Weary of SLU; they were pretty rough on Tech last year at MSG.
Wary. “Weary” means tired.
I love the seed and the region. I hope we get a shot at Duke though I’m not looking forward to facing Zion Williamson. I hope the team is locked in and plays to their potential. Getting a bunch of positive comments on ESPN. These players and Buzz are easy to root for. Let’s go…
if we can hit our 3’s like we can, zion or no, we will a tough out for that nba team. everybody seems to shoot their 3’s better with 5 on the floor…crazier things have happened. go 🦃🦃🦃
Why is the East Bracket playing in California?
The East bracket represents where the regional final (sweet 16 and elite 8) is played. In this case that is in Washington, DC. They have 8 sites for the round of 64 and 32 and those are played across the country regardless of where the regional final is being played. In addition to VT’s pod being played there San Jose is also hosting 4,5,12 and 13 seeds of the South region.
NCAA changed the format several years ago to a “pod” system.The goal is to try and get the higher seeds closer to home. Look at the Columbia, SC site that has 2 No.1 seeds in Duke and Uva. There is not a set “regional” site until the Sweet 16.
I understand what you are saying but how are Virginia Tech, SLU, Miss State and Liberty getting closer to home? Seems more like the goal is creating a windfall for the airline industry.
Not sure if I’m the only one, but I really like our bracket.
Let’s Go Hokies!
THIRD TIME’S THE CHARM!!! (Unless it is not.)
LET’S GO HOKIES!