Virginia Tech Men's Basketball's Stock Report After Win Over Notre Dame

The Hokies sit at an even .500 one-third into their 2025-26 ACC slate.

Jan 17, 2026; Blacksburg, Va.; Notre Dame guard Brady Stevens (0) shoots a shot as Virginia Tech forward Amani Hansberry (13) and guard Jailen Bedford (0) defend. | Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

Virginia Tech men's basketball worked its way back to .500 in league play after taking down Notre Dame in a relatively comfortable 13-point victory on Saturday. The Hokies have split their first six ACC games, beating then-No. 21 Virginia, California and the Fighting Irish while losing to Wake Forest, Stanford and SMU. The three losses all came by one possession and all three came via game-winning three-pointers knocked down with 6.5 seconds or less.

we do this for 𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧

🤝 @BburgFirstMain pic.twitter.com/NlMTvFjgim

— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) January 19, 2026

The Hokies' (14-5, 3-3 ACC) victory over the Fighting Irish was the first time since Dec. 14 — vs. Maryland Eastern Shore — that a Virginia Tech men's basketball game was decided by more than a possession in regulation. Prior to Saturday, the Hokies' last six games were either decided by three or fewer points in regulation or headed to overtime. In that stretch, Virginia Tech endured three game-winning triples from their opponents, narrowly avoided a fourth triple with Cal's Justin Pippen missing a potential game-tying look at the horn and sent its other two contests, coming against Elon and No. 21 Virginia, into overtime. The Hokies this season stand an unblemished 4-0 in extra-period contests, having taken down the Phoenix, Cavaliers, in addition to South Carolina and Providence earlier this season.

For the Hokies, who were picked No. 12 in the ACC preseason media poll, it's been a fruitful season. They've already exceeded last season's win total of 13 and look set to potentially capture their first 20-win campaign since the 2021-22 campaign. That year, Virginia Tech captured the ACC Tournament in Brooklyn, New York, earning an automatic berth to that year's NCAA Tournament.

Now, Virginia Tech finds itself at No. 54 in the NET and No. 57 in KenPom; following its next game against Syracuse on Wednesday, the Hokies will enter a difficult slate where they possess a 24% win probability or fewer against four of their next five opponents.

Still, I believe that Virginia Tech's stock is trending upwards, though claiming a victory against Syracuse this week will be critical. The Orange sit at No. 75, the last team designated in Quad 1 for a road game. The Hokies will need to beat Syracuse, while simultaneously hoping that the Orange perform well enough in their other games to be designated a Quad 1 on the Hokies' slate at year's end. Syracuse ranks as the No. 68 team on KenPom at the time of writing.

Virginia Tech will next take on Syracuse in Syracuse, New York on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 9 p.m. ET. Fans can tune into the game on the ACC Network.