Virginia Tech Hokies
2019-20 record: 16-16, 7-13 in the ACC
Head coach: Mike Young
Tenure at Virginia Tech: 2nd season
Career coaching record: 315-260
Home court: Cassell Coliseum
Starters: G Wabissa Bede, G Cartier Diarra, G Nahiem Alleyne, F Justyn Mutts, F Keve Aluma
Bench: G Tyrece Radford, G Hunter Cattoor, G Jalen Cone, F Cordell Pemsl, G Joe Bamisile, G Darius Maddox
Overview: The Hokies are coming off an up-and-down 16-16 season in Mike Young’s first year as head coach. Though top scorer Landers Nolley II transferred to Memphis, Virginia Tech returns three starters and added some talent from the transfer portal to fill out its roster. With the addition of transfer Cartier Diarra from Kansas State, the Hokies have significant depth at the guard position, allowing them to have a former starter and talented player in Tyrece Radford come off the bench.
Though Virginia Tech has several options at guard, the team will have to hope that transfers Justyn Mutts and Keve Aluma pan out to lead the frontcourt. Each player has respectable resumés, but it’s hard to expect that the pair will contribute much in terms of scoring. Thus, if the Hokies want to reestablish themselves back into the upper tiers of the ACC, the sophomore class with Nahiem Alleyne and Radford will need to improve on already-impressive freshman seasons. Though Virginia Tech may have a bit of a cap on its potential, expect to see improvement in the young team.
Team ceiling: Transfers Diarra, Mutts and Keve Aluma gel within Young’s system to bring a strong offense and an NCAA tournament appearance for the Hokies.
Team floor: The team struggles to get significant contributions from its big men, leaving the team one-dimensional and keeping the team near the bottom of the ACC.
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