Last season, Virginia Tech didn’t pick up a Quadrant 1 win until the dramatic 71-70 victory at Miami on Feb. 26. Tech ended up with four – the others came against Notre Dame, North Carolina and Duke in the ACC Tournament in a span of three days. Would four Quad 1 wins along with their other metrics have been enough to get Tech an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament? We’ll never know due to the automatic bid from winning the ACC Tournament.

I think it would have been close either way, and I’d prefer to not live on the edge like that this season. The ACC had a down year in the computer rankings last year thanks to their performance in non-conference games. As a result, there were fewer opportunities for Quad 1 wins once conference play opened. It’s important for everyone involved that ACC teams do better against their non-conference opponents this season.

Outside of their own non-conference games, that’s out of the Hokies’ control. The only thing they can control is getting off to a better start this time around, and when they do get a chance to pick up a key win, they need to take advantage of it. Who are the programs most likely to end up being a Quad 1 opponent?

We’ll throw out the Lehighs and Grambling States of the world who have no chance to be Quad 1 opponents. We’ll focus on the Charleston Classic and the other big-name opponents on Tech’s schedule. Here they are, followed by their final Ken Pomeroy ranking for each of the last five seasons (most recent season listed first). Whether the game is home, away, or on a neutral court is designated in parentheses…

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