Coming into the season, the ACC was looking pretty strong with the likes of Duke, Louisville, North Carolina, Virginia and others near the top of the conference.
But one team, Virginia Tech, was in the discussion of those second-tier teams of the ACC conference that could be one to watch. Now, after this weekend, the Hokies sit near the top and could be a dangerous team to make a deep run at being a top-tier team in the conference.
The Hokies sit at 12-1 on the season with solid wins over Nebraska, Michigan, Ole Miss, and now No. 5 Duke; their only loss so far was a three point loss to Texas A&M. With a 1-0 record to start ACC play, one starts to look down the road at how many more games the Hokies can win.
On the schedule as of today, Virginia Tech has six remaining games against ranked opponents. They have already defeated Duke, which they play only once this year, and play Louisville, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Florida State only once as well. The only ranked team on their schedule that the Hokies play twice is Virginia in early February.
So why is this year any different? One can simply look at the stats of this season compared to others and the one factor that stands out is the offensive power the Hokies have this season compared to past seasons.
In the past few years, Virginia Tech has had talent that could compete but never had a full roster that could create trouble of opponents. They have had the likes of Erick Green (2012-2013 averaged 25.0 points per game) and combinations such as Zach LeDay and Seth Allen last year. This year though seems to be different, with LeDay leading the way with 16.1 ppg, while Ahmed Hill is averaging 15.1, Justin Robinson 11.5, Seth Allen 11.2, Chris Clarke 11.0, and Justin Bibbs at 8.6 ppg.
As a team, the Hokies are averaging nine points more than they did last season (84ppg compared to 75 last season). The shooting percentage, the three point consistency, and points per game have all risen this season from last, while continuing to create havoc on the defensive end (68 points allowed this season).
There still will be questions surrounding the Hokies and they still will have to answer the bell against opponents they might be expected to defeat now. Last year, Virginia Tech started the ACC play 4-1, then went 1-7 in their next eight, followed by finishing the season winning five straight ACC games. Can the consistency be there this season?
If it is, the Hokies could have a huge say in how the ACC finishes the season and might find their name near the top of the conference.
