Four Things to Watch in Virginia Tech Basketball’s Exhibition Matchup Against Duquesne

Staff writer Josh Poslusny gives readers four things to watch entering Saturday's exhibition.

Feb 15, 2025; Blacksburg, Va.; Virginia Tech forward Tobi Lawal (1) shoots the ball as Virginia forward Elijah Saunders (2) defends. | Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

As Virginia Tech men’s basketball heads into its exhibition contest against Duquesne, fans will get their first real glimpse of a team that looks significantly different from last season. Head coach Mike Young’s roster features a mix of promising freshmen, key transfers and experienced returners. While the result won’t count in the standings, this matchup offers an early measuring stick for what’s to come in the 2025-26 campaign, which starts for the Hokies on Nov. 3 against Charleston Southern.

Here are four things to watch as the Hokies take the floor against Duquesne.

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No. 1: Debut of incoming transfers

Few things generate more intrigue in an exhibition than the opening look at new faces. Virginia Tech added three transfers and six freshmen in the offseason, reshaping the rotation with both size and versatility.

Virginia Tech basketball has nine newcomers in this matchup; the standout is Neoklis Avdalas. Avdalas is a 6-foot-9 guard-wing hybrid from Greece that will start immediately for Virginia Tech. While nobody knows exactly where Avdalas will fill into the 2025-2026 Hokies lineup, he already knows where he feels the most comfortable.

“I would say the point guard position,” Avdalas said. “But, for sure, I think I'm positionless. I can play a lot of positions. I feel like point guard is a position that I would like to see myself in the next [few] years."

Young also has his feelings about the uber-talented Avdalas.

"Avdalas and his ability to see over things, the best part of his game, I think, is his passing,” Young said. “He is an elite passer and a willing passer. If anything through the 20 practices we've had with him, I've found myself encouraging him to shoot more than any other part of his game. He's defending well. He's very capable."

On top of Avdalas, there's Amani Hansberry, the West Virginia transfer. Last year in Morgantown, the then-sophomore averaged 9.8 points and 6.5 rebounds. He was graded as a four-star in the transfer portal and should be Tech's starting five.

"I mean, he's versatile, he's a Swiss Army knife,” said forward Tobi Lawal at the team's media day about Hansberry. “That's what I call him. There's nothing on the court that he can't do. Playing with someone like that makes it easy, especially when you understand that he can do everything.

"So, he just takes the load off of everyone else. Like if you need him to get the rebound and push and initiate offense and connect, he can do that. If you need him to pick and pop, he will light up a shot. He can do that. If you need him to make a pass, he can do that… so it just takes a load off everyone and makes it easier to play in the flow."

Then, there's Izaiah Pasha, who transferred in from Delaware. Last year, Pasha was the CAA Rookie of the Year after averaging 12 points, four rebounds and four assists in 34 contests. Mike Young has stated that Ben Hammond will start at point guard, but Pasha should be an immediate-impact impactful player off the bench.

Jailen Bedford rounds out Tech's transfer class. Bedford is a journeyman who has played at UNLV, Oral Roberts and Trinidad State College in Colorado.

Bedford brings a lot to the table as a veteran basketball player, but what stands out above the rest is his defense.

“Defense. That's what Coach says. I take pride in that, and all the coaches that I played for, they take pride in that as well,” Bedford said during the ACC Tipoff. “I'm going to come in and give you my all as well as being versatile, three-level scorer, shooting the ball, play making. I'm getting better at that, and I want to improve as well as my IQ. I feel like playing for these type of coaches, they have a really good development plan, and this is all coming together."

Antonio Dorn is the last ‘transfer’ to mention here, but he is definitely not the least. Dorn is a German center who comes in at an intimidating 7-foot-0, 230 pounds. Dorn enters as somebody who will likely play a large role off the bench behind Hansberry and Lawal in the frontcourt. Dorn brings an abundance of experience, being a 22 year-old sophomore, eligiblity-wise. Though he has never played a collegiate minute, he spent time in Germany's second-tier professional league before Virginia Tech came into the picture.

No. 2: Virginia Tech’s 3 point shooting.

Of everything that looks good about this team, Mike Young has stated time and time again that his main concern is the team’s ability from beyond the arc.

“Yeah, I've got really good players. I've done it throughout my career with a number of guys that could really shoot it,” Young said. “We shoot the ball well. I don't think it's going to be an Achilles' heel. We don't knock the bottom out of it like some teams that I've had. I said the other day, we're going to have some games when we make 12 [threes]. We're going to have some games [that] we make six. But defensively, in other areas, we're going to be much improved. And I don't have a lot of heartburn about it.”

Young is somebody who has lived and died by the three for most of his career, but that seems to be changing. Avdalas was a strong shooter overseas, Schutt was among the most streaky shooters in the league last year, but when on, the guard was a force. In addition, Bedford connected on 35% of his long range shots last year at UNLV.

Other than that, you struggle to find great shooters on the team. Pasha was 33% last year at Delaware. Hammond hit 50% of his last year, but he took just 1.2 attempts per game. Lawal took a big step forward shooting as well, hitting 37% of his threes, but he also shot just two per game. 

While Young doesn't "have a lot of heartburn about it", it is certainly something that fans should pay attention to in this upcoming exhibition matchup.

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No. 3: Is there a cohesive offensive identity?

Every new season brings questions about offensive identity; this one is no different. The Hokies have traditionally worked under Young’s motion-heavy, spacing-oriented system that centers around the three, but with new personnel, will that remain the foundation?

With Avdalas and company capable of creating off the dribble, the offense could lean more on guard penetration and kick-outs. How well Tech shoots from three will be another early indicator, especially with Schutt and Bedford expected to contribute on the perimeter.

Transitions and turnovers will also tell the story, something the Hokies struggled with immensely last year. During the 2024-2025 season, Virginia Tech was second-worst in the ACC in both turnover margin and assist to turnover ratio. If the Hokies look comfortable pushing the pace and keeping the ball moving, it’s a sign the offense is ahead of schedule. If not, growing pains might linger into November. 

No. 4: What does the point guard rotation look like?

A lot of the turnover issues that I just mentioned had a lot to do with the lack of point guards on the roster. Mike Young preaches that he wants to have 2.5 point guards each year, and he hasn’t had that due to various unfortunate issues that happened just before the season. 

With a deep backcourt and several players capable of playing multiple positions, the Hokies have flexibility. Keys to watch within the larger rotation question are how well the team communicates, who takes charge in key moments and which combinations seem most comfortable together.

“So, we've got Ben Hammond who's really playing well," Young said. "Izaiah Pasha, transfer from Delaware who's playing good basketball, and Neo. I think I've got three. Not two and a half, three. And I think if that's the biggest problem I've got, I'm okay.”

Last year, Virginia Tech was forced to rotate Hammond, then a true freshman, and Brandon Rechsteiner. The latter produced a turbulent campaign, averaging seven points and accumulating over two turnovers a tilt. Rechsteiner has since transferred to Colorado State.