Virginia Tech Hokies vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons Pick & Prediction MARCH 2nd 2024

Wake Forest, with its NCAA Tournament hopes at stake, travels to take on Virginia Tech in a Saturday evening Atlantic Coast Conference game in Blacksburg, Va.

Wake Forest (18-10, 10-7 ACC) is No. 27 in the NET rankings after beating then No. 8-ranked Duke at home last Saturday.

But on Tuesday, the Demon Deacons dropped to 2-8 on the road after losing 70-65 at Notre Dame.

“It’s been the same story for us pretty much on the road pretty much the entire year,” Wake Forest coach Steve Forbes said after the loss. “It was a tale of ineptitude in both halves, on one end of the floor.” Virginia Tech (15-13, 7-10), with a No. 59 NET ranking, has lost six of its last eight, including an 84-71 defeat at Syracuse on Tuesday.

Wake Forest has won five of its last eight and is looking for its first NCAA Tournament berth since a 95-88 loss to Kansas State in the 2017 First Four.

“(Forbes) has always had great guards, he’s had a bunch of them,” Virginia Tech coach Mike Young said. “They’re always physical, and they bully us — and I mean that very respectfully.”

Young’s Hokies will have to pay special attention to guard Hunter Sallis, who is averaging 18.3 points per game for Wake Forest after posting a 4.4 average over two years as a reserve at Gonzaga.

Sallis’ backcourt partner Kevin Miller averages 15.5 points, while forward Andrew Carr (13.6 ppg) and guard Cameron Hildreth (13.5 ppg) round out a quartet of double-digit Demon Deacons scorers.

Point guard Sean Pedulla leads the Hokies with averages of 15.7 points and 4.4 assists, with guard Hunter Cattoor (13.7 ppg) and center Lynn Kidd (12.9 ppg) as main scoring options. Kidd is the team’s top rebounder, averaging 6.5 per game.

Wake Forest has won the last three meetings, including an 86-63 victory Dec. 30 in Winston-Salem, N.C., behind Sallis’ game-high 20 points.

–Field Level Media