Virginia Tech (10-3, 1-1) at No. 19 UVa (10-2, 2-0)

2 p.m., RSN

Despite already having a pair of conference wins under their belt, the Cavaliers open up conference play in earnest tomorrow afternoon when in-state rival Virginia Tech comes to town. UVa has 18 games remaining this season, all coming against conference foes. The Hokies have been much more competitive with the Hoos of late, though they are in a transition year. Buzz Williams bolted for Texas A&M after leading the Hokies to the Sweet 16 appearance last March and Tech hired Wofford’s Mike Young to replace him.

Thus far, the returns have been good for Young and Co. After being picked to finish near the bottom of the ACC standings, Tech is 10-3 coming to Charlottesville and finished non-conference play with a 9-2 mark. Their signature win came over Michigan State in the Maui Invitational before losing three straight games, their only setbacks of the season thus far. The Hokies won their season opener at Clemson to start 1-0 in ACC play but dropped a home game to Duke in early December to even the ledger.

As of today, Virginia Tech has the profile of a borderline NCAA Tournament team. The Hokies rank 60th in KenPom heading into Saturday’s contest and are decent on both ends of the floor. On offense, they rank 38th nationally in efficiency and do a great job avoiding turnovers. Tech’s turnover rate is third-lowest in the nation, which bodes well for against a stingy UVa defense. Virginia Tech’s offense is heavily reliant on making 3-pointers and so far this season, the team has done a great job knocking down those shots. Tech scores nearly 44 percent of its points on 3s, and its 39.4 percent average from beyond the arc is 10th best nationally. Expect a low possession game at JPJ, with Tech ranking near the bottom nationally in tempo and UVa dead last.

On defense, the Hokies rank 84th nationally in efficiency. In all three of their losses, they allowed 77 points or more and lost each by 13 points or more. Tech’s defensive numbers are solid in many areas but not really elite in many. The Hokies are disciplined and don’t foul, ranking second nationally in free throw to field goal attempt ratio. Just as Tech leans on 3s on offense, opponents do the same against them: 42 percent of opponents’ points have come on made 3s, the second highest average nationally.

Virginia Tech has a new coach and a roster that features a number of players in key roles that may be unfamiliar to Cavalier fans. Chief among them is redshirt freshman guard Landers Nolley, who has become his team’s go-to option after sitting out last season due to an academic issue. Nolley is averaging 17.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, leading the team in both categories. He is also an excellent 3-point shooter, making 43.5 percent of his attempts so far this year. The 6-foot-7 rookie is going to be a tough matchup for the Wahoos, and will likely draw Braxton Key quite a bit in this game. Freshman guard Nahiem Alleyne is second on the team in scoring at 10.2 points per game, though he hasn’t been as consistent as Nolley. After scoring 22 in a win over Chattanooga last month, Alleyne has scored just 10 points total in the three games that followed. The matchup between Wabissa Bede and Kihei Clark should be a good one. Bede initiates Tech’s offense, averaging 6.4 assists per game. He has also nearly doubled his points per game average, becoming a more reliable scorer this season.

Tech was a guard-heavy team under Buzz Williams, and once again this year doesn’t have the biggest frontcourt. The team’s only player listed as a forward that is a major contributor is 6-foot-5 P.J. Horne, who is smaller than Nolley. Virginia should have an advantage in the frontcourt, though that has been the case in most games this season and the Cavaliers haven’t always been able to take advantage.