Virginia Tech Men's Basketball Stock Report After Syracuse Win

The Hokies improved to 4-3 after taking down Syracuse Wednesday night.

Jan 21, 2026; Syracuse, N.Y.; Virginia Tech forward Tobi Lawal (1) reaches for a loose ball during the second half against Syracuse. | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Last night's men's basketball game between Virginia Tech and Syracuse was a chaotic and at times, turbulent affair. However, the Hokies held on to claim their fourth ACC win of 2025-26 in a tightly-knit 76-74 contest.

For the seventh time in the last eight games, a Virginia Tech men's basketball game was decided by a possession or went to overtime. The Hokies' Wednesday tilt comes as an asterisk, though; Syracuse's Naithan George buried a triple at the horn to shave the margin to two. Still, the Hokies held a nine-point lead with 1:02 to play but allowed Louisville to cut the deficit to a two-point game. Virginia Tech committed a pair of turnovers on inbound sequences; however, forward Tobi Lawal hauled in an offensive board, off wing Neoklis Avdalas' free-throw miss, with five seconds to play, sealing the Hokies' victory.

Virginia Tech now improves to 15-5 and perhaps more crucially, it snagged its second Quadrant 1 win of the season, joining its 95-85 triple-OT victory over then-No. 21 Virginia on Dec. 31. The Hokies will need Syracuse to stay in the NET rankings' top-75; the Orange sit at No. 75 in the NET as of this morning. Virginia Tech is now No. 6 in the ACC standings, four spots ahead of Louisville, its next opponent.

I believe that Virginia Tech's stock is trending upwards but that it simultaneously enters perhaps its most difficult stretch of the season yet. Per Ken Pomeroy's metrics, four of the next five opponents that the Hokies play possess a 75% win probability or higher, meaning that Tech stacking up wins that it's expected to capture is paramount for its NCAA Tournament hopes. In Thursday's Bracketology update from ESPN's Joe Lunardi, Virginia Tech is in as the No. 68 and final team in the provisional March Madness field, jumping Texas.

Virginia Tech bumps Texas, among other things... pic.twitter.com/J8nyKnBqQX

— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) January 22, 2026

Virginia Tech's win yesterday was spearheaded by sophomore guard Ben Hammond. The point guard from Manassas, Virginia started in his third straight contest yesterday and poured in 24 points, four rebounds, four assists and six steals in the Hokies' road win over Syracuse. Alongside fellow guard Jaden Schutt, Hammond is the only Hokie player to suit up for every game this season. Over 20 games, the sophomore has averaged 12.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.9 steals a night on 43/85/37 splits from the field.

Virginia Tech's contest against No. 23 Louisville tips off on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 3:30 p.m. ET; fans can tune into the game on The CW Network.