Boston College (9-9, 1-6 ACC) at Virginia (8-10, 1-6 ACC)

7pm, ACCN

It’ll be a battle in the ACC basement on Tuesday night in Charlottesville, when two 1-6 teams square off. Boston College is in town, and like Virginia, are looking to get back on track after a rough go of it in league play. UVa comes home after a rough road loss to Louisville, their fifth-consecutive loss, looking to move up in the conference standings and avoid missing the ACC Tournament. BC is in a similar spot, losers of four straight, including a couple of blowouts last week, falling by 18 at Notre Dame and getting demolished by Duke at home, 88-63. Boston College’s only ACC win to this point was a New Years’ Day triumph over winless Miami.

Virginia and BC last met in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals, with UVa holding off the Eagles in overtime to move on to the next round, and sending Boston College to the NIT. Now, both programs are playing with much-lower stakes, barring the two coaches, who are trying to make an impression and stay in their respective roles. Earl Grant has shown flashes during his time in Chestnut Hill, but a rough season could put him in some danger. Ron Sanchez looks like a longshot to get the Virginia job on a permanent basis, but if he has any chance, there needs to be an immediate and dramatic turnaround, starting with this game.

For the first time since December 22nd (American) UVa will play a team ranked lower than the Hoos currently are in Kenpom. Boston College enters Tuesday’s game ranked #202 in efficiency 68 spots behind the Hoos, and dead last in the ACC.

The Eagles have been relatively average on offense, and haven’t scored more than 71 points since beating Miami on New Years’ Day. BC ranks 190th in offensive efficiency, and rank 265th in effective field goal percentage. Boston College has done a decent job from beyond the arc at 34.5 percent, but rank 306th nationally in two-point field-goal percentage. BC does avoid costly live-ball turnovers, ranking 83rd in steals allowed.

Defensively, BC has had even more struggles, ranking 228th nationally in defensive efficiency. The Eagles don’t force many turnovers, ranking 310th in turnover rate. While the Eagles have done a good job preventing steals, they also never force them, ranking 345th in steal rate. BC also allow opponents to shoot 52.1 percent and 35.4 percent from three, ranking outside the top-200 nationally in both categories. BC does do a solid job around the glass, ranking 74th in offensive rebound rate allowed and 100th in block rate.

Donald Hand Jr, Guard

BC’s leading scorer is the son of former Cavalier guard Donald Hand. The Virginia Beach native has taken on a much larger role this year, scoring 14.7 points and grabbing 6.8 rebounds per contest. Hand is shooting 36.7 percent from three this year, and 90.2 percent at the line. The redshirt sophomore has scored in double figures in the last three games, and has four 20+ point games, mot recently going for 20 at Syracuse on the 11th.

Chad Venning, Forward

A 6-foot-9 senior, Venning comes to BC after two years at Morgan State, and two more at Saint Bonaventure. Venning has made an immediate impact with the Eagles, and is currently second on the team in scoring at 12.7 points per game. Venning does most of his damage in the paint, and went 7-for-11 on two point tries on Saturday against Duke, going for 19 points in the losing effort.

Elijah Strong, Forward

Another player that has taken on a much larger role this season, sophomore forward Elijah Strong is third on the team in scoring at 10.5 points per game. The 6-foot-8 sophomore from Charlotte played in 19 games last year with just one start, averaging 6.8 minutes per contest. This year, he’s started all 17 games, playing 26.3 minutes per game, and shooting 34.8 percent from three. Strong had two double-doubles this season, including a 25-point, 13-rebound game against Temple.

We’re definitely in “show me” mode with this UVa team at this point, as they’re reeling with five straight losses. But as much as the Hoos have struggled, BC has been just as bad or worse. The Eagles have lost four in a row, and have just one win over a top-100 Kenpom team, a two-point win over Boise State back in November. And with this game in Charlottesville, logic says we have to go with the Hoos. Nothing can be taken for granted with the way UVa is playing at the moment, but this is about as winnable a game as the Cavaliers will have the rest of the way.