NIT Preview Paw Prints: Virginia Tech Hokies

Cincinnati has not played the Hokies since 1991.

Author:
Russ Heltman
Mar 14, 2023 8:15 AM EDT

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CINCINNATI — It's NIT time for the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Wes Miller's team is playing in the event for the first time since 2010 as they welcome Virginia Tech into Fifth Third Arena for a 9 p.m. tip on Wednesday night.

Cincinnati has never won the event in team history.

Doing so would cement this season as a relative success, given the win total and talent improvement from a year ago. The Bearcats are slight favorites over the Hokies in a season with at least one more game inside Fifth Third Arena.

The Bearcats are ranked 54th on KenPom, while the Hokies enter ranked 81st. Here's the preview of Cincinnati's 31st matchup against Va Tech.

NolleyIT

Dec 29, 2022; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats guard Landers Nolley II (2) reacts after a play against the Tulane Green Wave in the first half at Fifth Third Arena. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports — © Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

Two years later, Landers Nolley II (16.6 Pts, 5.6 Reb, 2.6 Ast) is back in a similar spot with a new team. The guard led Memphis to the 2021 NIT title, earning Most Outstanding Player honors in the process.

Now, Nolley gets to try and run back that success, all while tipping things off against another one of his old teams. He spent the opening two years of his college career in Blacksburg, where he also appeared in the Maui Invitational, just like this season.

It's been a full-circle experience in that way for Nolley, who is leading the team in scoring on career shooting highs. Cincinnati will need him to be his usual self if it wants to win five more games en route to a title. Nolley has oddly performed his worst at home this season.

"Worst" is relative, given Nolley still averages 15.6 points and 5.4 rebounds at home, but his field goal % mark drops over 4% compared to road/neutral outings.

Cincinnati needs Nolley to take advantage of a lacking Hokies defense.

The senior should have success against the 139th-ranked adjusted defense nationally.

Balling Basile

Mar 7, 2023; Greensboro, NC, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies forward Grant Basile (21) shoots as Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Marcus Hammond (10) and guard Dane Goodwin (23) defend in the second half at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports — © Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Wright State transfer Grant Basile (16.4 Pts, 5.3 Reb, 1.7 Ast) was one of the big prizes from the portal last season. Adding him hasn't led to much ACC success for the Hokies, but it's not due to lacking production from the forward.

At 6-foot-9, Basile is a prototypical college big man that can work inside out with a nice three-ball to stamp things (39.% from deep on 4.9 attempts per game).

He is the top weapon UC needs to stop and has been playing great—as of late. Basile is shooting 54% from the field and 42% from outside over the Hokies' last six games. Defensive rim protection isn't a big worry out of Basile (16 blocks since Dec. 17).

Clamping his outside shot and forcing Va Tech's passing guards to score is the right formula for UC.

Hokies Road Woes

Mar 7, 2023; Greensboro, NC, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies forward Justyn Mutts (25) with the ball as Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Matt Zona (25) defends in the first half at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports — © Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Virginia Tech has been horrific on the road this season. Playing in environments like the one on Wednesday night has not gone well as they enter 2-9 on the road.

The only two wins came against Notre Dame and Lousiville—the two worst teams in the ACC. Five of the team's six losses by seven-plus points this season have come on the road.

It's been a nagging problem as UC boasts a 15-3 mark at Fifth Third Arena, with all three losses coming against top-20 teams on KenPom. Two players who will try to flip that trend for Va Tech are Justyn Mutts (13.2 Pts, 7.4 Reb, 4.7 Ast) and Sean Padulla (15.2 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 3.8 Ast).

The former is Va Tech's best playmaker at a solid 6-foot-7, 230 pounds. He has a case to be the team's top player overall, boasting a 56% FG mark (fourth in ACC) and a 27.4% assist rate (seventh in ACC). Oh, and he can also impact the game defensively (1.5 steals per game, 4th in ACC).

Keeping the ball away from Mutts should lead to more shots for Padulla, who is shooting 41.8% from the field. That's the struggling road player Cincinnati should funnel things toward. Padulla has made just 36% of his shots away from home.

Cincinnati tips off the game at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The game is available via fuboTV—start your free trial here.

Make sure you bookmark All Bearcats for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more.

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