ESPN BPI Has Georgia Tech Women's Basketball As Favorite vs Virginia Tech Today

Can the Hokies propel themselves firmly into the NCAA Tournament today?

Mar 9, 2024; Greensboro, NC, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Maddy Westbeld (21) shoots the ball over Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Anna DeWolfe (13) during the second half at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: David Yeazell-Imagn Images | David Yeazell-Imagn Images

For Virginia Tech women's basketball, Thursday marks the beginning of what they hope can be a strong bid for the NCAA Tournament.

A recent ESPN Bracketology update has the one-time ACC champion Hokies on their "first four out" list, with Megan Duffy's squad looking to make one final push.

Virginia Tech finished the regular season 18-11, including a 9-9 mark in conference play. The Hokies are on a rocky 4-6 trek over their last 10, raising many questions about whether this team is ready.

The maroon and orange side was gutted after former head coach Kenny Brooks departed from Blacksburg last spring, causing high-profile names like Georgia Amoore, Clara Strack, Clara Silva and others to join the Kentucky Wildcats with Brooks.

However, the Hokies were forced to rebuild, and they did. Star senior player Carleigh Wenzel (14.9), Carys Baker (12.9), Rose Micheaux (12.3) and Matilda Ekh (12.2) have all tallied over 10 points per game this season, marking a squad with a diverse set of scorers.

The Hokies are 11-12 against the Yellow Jackets, including a 6-4 record over the last 10, highlighted by a double-overtime 105-94 win in early January that shocked the ACC landscape. That victory handed Georgia Tech its first loss of the season, with the Yellow Jackets ranked No. 13 in the nation at the time.

Megan Duffy's first year as Hokies head coach has gone more than just "according to plan." While there is an obvious drop-off in record between Duffy's first year and Brooks' last, she has smoothly rebuilt this young team. If she can get the Hokies into their first NCAA Tournament under her leadership, it would be a remarkable start.

The Hokies are listed as heavy underdogs to get through to the third round of the ACC Tournament. ESPN's BPI (description of BPI is listed below), gives the Hokies just a 34.2% chance of advancing to the next round. For Tech, and their multiple scoring outlets, Thursday will have to be one of their biggest games yet.

"The Basketball Power Index (BPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of performance going forward. BPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Strength of Record (SOR) is a measure of team accomplishment based on how difficult a team's W-L record is to achieve. Game predictions account for opponent strength, pace of play, site, travel distance, day's rest and altitude, and are used to simulate the season 10,000 times to produce season projections. Numbers update daily."

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