Three Takeaways From Virginia Tech Women's Basketball's Non-Conference Schedule

Josh Poslusny breaks down three takeaways from Virginia Tech' non-conference slate. Read more below.

Virginia Tech Women's Basketball team prior to tip-off vs Radford in 2025. | Virginia Tech Athletic

Virginia Tech Women's Basketball's non-conference slate has come to a close at 11-3 after a dominant 79-47 win over their New River Valley foes. We learned a lot about this team's makeup and what they are and are not good at, so let's jump into three takeaways.

No. 1: This is an elite defensive team.

Virginia Tech has allowed just 55 points per game with a shooting percentage of 35.3% while allowing opponents to shoot just 31.3% from beyond the arc. They are the sixth-scoring defense in the ACC and fourth in opponent field goal percentage. With that, they are fifth in assist-turnover ratio, third in turnovers forced, and second in turnover margin. 

This team gives opponents trouble on defense, allowing just 70 points once, and that was to ACC foe Duke. Against the power-conference opponents that they've played, the Hokies have allowed an average of 63.8 points per game.

No. 2: This team struggles offensively.

While elite on the defensive side of the floor, they are far from that on the offensive end. They are 13th in the ACC in shooting percentage and eighth in scoring. They sit second-to-last in three-point percentage. 

This team struggles offensively because it can't stretch the floor. They have just one common contributor shooting at least 29% from three: Carys Baker, who is shooting a strong 38%.

They're able to make up for their poor offensive performances by taking care of the ball, which leads to more shots up and more shots through the basket. They rank sixth in team turnovers with 13.4 per game. 

No. 3: This is a solid rebounding team.

While the margin and overall numbers suggest Virginia Tech is a middle-of-the-pack team in rebounding, it is third in the conference in offensive rebounds, which is a huge difference-maker in many games. 

The reason they aren't higher in the overall numbers is that they allow a lot of offensive rebounds, which the team's elite defense is able to mitigate.

Rebounding is make-or-break for this team. In their three losses, they have been outrebounded by an average of 12 per game, including a loss to BYU in which the rebounding was even. 

In their wins, they outrebounded opponents by nearly 11, a clear trend that helps Virginia Tech win games. If they can tighten up their box-outs and rebounding on defense, this team could be very successful. Now is the time to do it with the Christmas break in full swing.