The Virginia Tech Hokies (18-13, 8-12 ACC) and Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11-20, 3-17 ACC) hit the floor in the First Round of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament beginning on Tuesday. The Hokies come in as the ninth-seed, while the Irish are the 13th-seed in the bracket. Virginia Tech beat Notre Dame, 93-87, in South Bend in the lone matchup between these two schools during the regular season.
Game 3 of the first day of the ACC Tournament tips off at 7 p.m. EST inside Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. Virginia Tech opened as a seven-point favorite, and the over/under total is 144 points.
What to Know – Virginia Tech Hokies
Virginia Tech needs to go the distance in the ACC Tournament to capture a spot in the NCAA Tournament next week. The Hokies closed out the regular season with some momentum, winning their final two games of the year.
Offensively, Virginia Tech finished the year ranked seventh in the conference, scoring 74.4 points per game while connecting on 46.9% of their attempts from the field and 36.1% from beyond the arc. On defense, the Hokies were fourth in the league, holding opposing teams to 69.1 ppg, 44.0% shooting from the floor, and 33.5% from deep.
Against the spread, this season the Hokies are 13-17-1 and 1-3 ATS on a neutral floor. VT is 1-4 ATS over its last five games following an ATS victory.
What to Know – Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Fighting Irish turned in a down season, failing to post a winning season for the second time in three years. Without a tournament victory, Notre Dame will be absent from the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in five seasons.
ND’s offense wrapped up the season ranked tenth in the ACC in scoring, averaging 69.8 ppg behind 44.3% shooting from the field and 35.8% from three. Notre Dame’s defense was 1th in the league, surrendering 72.3 ppg, 45.8% shooting inside the arc, and 34.3% from the 3-point line.
Notre Dame owns a 9-21-1 record ATS while failing to cover the spread in both games played on a neutral court this year. The Fighting Irish are 1-4 ATS in their previous five matchups against the Hokies.
The Pick is In
Virginia Tech looked good closing out the regular season with dominating victories over Clemson and Florida State. The Hokies average margin of victory in the two wins was 19.5 points.
The Fighting Irish haven’t looked great all season with only three conference wins and just one victory during the month of February. Notre Dame has lost its last five meetings against Virginia Tech.
ND head coach Mike Brey intends to step down from coaching the Fighting Irish following 23 years at the helm. While the season hasn’t gone as expected, look for the Fighting Irish to lay it all out there for their head coach.
The Pick: Notre Dame Fighting Irish +7
