HOKIES PUT FIVE-GAME WIN STREAK ON THE LINE IN A VISIT TO CLEMSON

Topher Wagner

February 25, 2021

CLEMSON, S.C. — Riding a program-best five-game ACC win streak, Virginia Tech looks to close out the season hot in its last regular season road game in a visit to Clemson on Thursday.

Over the last month, the Hokies have been playing as good as any team in the country. Following its 1-7 skid, Tech has won five in a row, jumping from a mere bubble team to firmly in the NCAA Tournament discussion.

While the star duo of Aisha Sheppard and Elizabeth Kitley have been the leaders of this resilient Hokies squad, breakout performances from Georgia Amoore and Cayla King have also helped fuel this run. Tech’s previous game against Syracuse was a perfect example of that, as four starters topped double digits and a balanced scoring attack led to another win.

To keep the streak going, the Hokies will need their role players to continue to play at a high level against Clemson.

For the Tigers, the last month could not have been more different than their ACC counterparts. Clemson comes into this clash on a four-game losing streak, including a loss to UNC where they coughed up a whopping 24 turnovers. In that contest, leading scorer Delicia Washington continued her strong season with 15 points, but a lack of help from her teammates to make plays doomed the Tigers.

If Clemson wants to end its skid, it’ll have to settle down on offense against a Virginia Tech team with a penchant for scrappy defense.

This will be the 24th matchup in this tight series with Virginia Tech trailing 12-13. Tech won the last game against Clemson last season, but is 5-6 all-time when playing the Tigers on the road. Clemson certainly hopes it can utilize its home-court advantage to pull off the upset.

Virginia Tech Key to the Game: Stay hot from three

All season long the Hokies have been a three-point oriented team, as they are able to flip a switch and score in bunches once they get hot from deep. In its last game, Tech hit 10 three-pointers on 41% shooting as the deep-ball was its primary offensive catalyst.

However, Clemson has shown that it can defend the three-point line well at times as it held UNC to just 25% from deep last game. If the Hokies want to win their sixth straight, they will have to continue to nail their three-pointers because going cold could doom them versus the Tigers.

Clemson Key to the Game: Minimize turnovers

In the Tigers’ loss to UNC, they turned the ball early and often which ended up being the difference in what was a 13-point loss. Unfortunately for Clemson, it now faces a Virginia Tech squad that forced 16 turnovers of its own last game. Gabby Elliott especially needs to bounce back as she lost the ball four times against UNC.

The Hokies know how to capitalize with a high rate of points off of turnovers, so Clemson will need to cut down on its giveaways or this game will get out of hand fast.

Virginia Tech Player to Watch: Georgia Amoore

On its hot streak, one of the major players to step up for Virginia Tech has been Amoore. The freshman has come into her own in the second half of the season, doing a fantastic job running the offense against a full-court press in multiple games while hitting clutch three-pointers as she has thrived from beyond the arc.

While all of the focus is on Sheppard and Kitley, Amoore is a player that Clemson needs to watch out for. If Amoore continues to excel on offense like she has of late, it will be difficult for Virginia Tech to lose.

Clemson Player to Watch: Gabby Elliott

Despite the Tigers’ recent losing streak, Elliott has been one of the bright spots for Clemson this season. The freshman is second on the team in scoring with nearly 14 points per game and has been one of the better three-point shooters for the Tigers this year.

However, she is coming off of one of her worst performances of the season after scoring just eight points while turning the ball over four times in Clemson’s last loss. The guard cannot replicate this disappointing performance and must be at her best for Clemson to try to upset Virginia Tech.

Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 79, Clemson 60

On its recent win streak, the Hokies have dominated with an explosive three-point offense, while Kitley has continued to bully opponents in the post en-route to a fantastic sophomore season. Tech’s defense has also looked drastically improved in recent weeks as its perimeter defense has prevented a strong outside attack while forcing important turnovers to stop its opponents from setting up a consistent offense.

The Tigers have lost several tight games because of an undisciplined defense and inconsistent play from some of their top scorers. Turnovers have also remained a large problem for Clemson, which is a bad matchup facing a Hokies’ team that has proved to be aggressive on defense.

Despite Virginia Tech being forced to travel on the road for this game, they match up very well with Clemson and simply have too much firepower for the Tigers to keep up. As the hottest team in the conference, the Hokies will win their sixth straight ACC contest in dominant fashion, 79-60.