Hokies Look to End Regular Season Strong as UNC Comes to Town

Topher Wagner

February 28, 2021

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Virginia Tech looks to end the regular season strong going into the ACC Tournament as it returns home to face UNC on Sunday afternoon.

Following a brutal regular season stretch, the Hokies are one of the hottest teams in the nation, winning six consecutive ACC games to propel themselves firmly into the March Madness discussion. On Sunday, Tech will return home to wrap up the regular season as they face a scrappy Tar Heels team that is also hot, winning four of five games.

Virginia Tech ends its regular season slate at home after a six-point win over Clemson. While the star duo of Elizabeth Kitley and Aisha Sheppard shined again 24 and 27 points respectively, they also turned the ball over a combined 12 times. In order to finish the regular season with a win, Sheppard will have to be more careful with the ball facing a solid UNC defense.

While the Hokies have been the hottest team in the ACC, the Tar Heels aren’t far behind. Following their four-point loss to Tech a month ago, the Heels have improved to 12-9 on the year behind solid defense that has only allowed their opponents to reach 70 points once in the last three games.

In the most recent loss to Virginia Tech, UNC blew a late fourth quarter lead as Kitley dominated to the tune of 27 points and eight rebounds.

North Carolina finds themselves on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament and a win over the red hot Hokies would go a long way in improving its resume going into selection Monday.

This will be the 30th all-time meeting between the ACC foes with North Carolina holding a 19-10 lead. However, Tech has won a program-best four straight against the Tar Heels dating back to last year. Unfortunately for the Hokies, they are just 5-7 at home against North Carolina, so the Heels certainly hope to stay hot on the road to pull off the upset.

Virginia Tech Key to the Game: Win the turnover battle

In their game against Clemson, the Hokies escaped with a win despite turning the ball over a total of 19 times as a team. While the Tigers weren’t able to take advantage of the Hokies’ mistakes, the Tar Heels’ defense has been stout recently and won’t let Tech get away with that kind of a performance again. Sheppard must especially settle down coming off of an eight-turnover game.

North Carolina Key to the Game: Guard the three-point line

In the early matchup between the teams this season, Tech won in large part because of its three-point attack. The Hokies hit 12 three-pointers as North Carolina could not defend the deep-ball throughout the game. After a game in which UNC held Georgia Tech to just 30% shooting from deep, it looks to replicate that defensive performance against the Hokies.

Virginia Tech Player to Watch: Aisha Sheppard

Sheppard has had a phenomenal senior year, helping the Hokies turn their season around as she’s put up nearly 20 points per game. Against Clemson, Sheppard went off, putting up 27 points and hitting six three-pointers. Despite this great showing, she also turned the ball over eight times and nearly allowed Clemson to come back late. She’ll have to bounce back against the Tar Heels’ defense to keep the winning streak going.

North Carolina Player to Watch: Petra Holesinska

In the last game against Tech this season, Holesinska dominated with 21 points off the bench and helped the Heels nearly pull off the win. Holesinska is coming off a solid game where she put up 13 points as a starter and will need to step up with a similar effort to end the Hokies’ winning streak.

Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 69, North Carolina 62

As two of the hottest teams in the ACC, the Hokies and Heels both look to end the regular season on the right note and improve their resume with selection Monday on the horizon. In what should be a tight game throughout, it will be a low scoring affair with both defenses drastically improving from the past few games.

However, even though Carolina’s defense has gotten a lot better, Tech simply has too many hot shooters to slow down. Kitley and Sheppard have been dominant all season long and that won’t change in Sunday’s game. Virginia Tech will win its seventh straight game and end the regular season on a high note, 69-62.