Virginia Tech -- Sunday, Feburary 20th, 12:00 PM, Cameron Indoor Stadium

For information regarding Virginia Tech's players, please see the previous Virginia Tech preview.

Last Meeting: 1/16/11: Duke Cruises Past Va Tech, 57-43

Current Records: Duke 23-3 (9-2 ACC), Virginia Tech 11-15 (1-10 ACC)

Current Rankings: Duke #5, Virginia Tech unranked

DWHoops File Photo by Orin Day

Virginia Tech Head Coach Beth Dunkenberger

Since They Played Duke:: The Hokies are 2-6 since they faced the Devils, part of a long, painful season for them. This includes double-digit blowout losses to Virginia, Georgia Tech, UNC and NC State. The Hokies were within 5 points of both Boston College and Wake Forest, and managed to beat Clemson on the road in their best showing of the year along with a very bad Longwood team.

The Stakes: For the Hokies, it's pretty much just playing for pride at this point--and possibly for Beth Dunkenberger's job. For Duke, they find themselves once again trying to find answers to a mystifying loss while dealing with a flu that's weakened the team. If there's one team in the league that can help you feel better about your own situation, it's the Hokies. That said, while Beth Dunkenberger's team never quits and forces you to beat them. They simply haven't had enough talent to beat good teams or even mediocre teams. Their victory over Clemson was a huge step for this club, a must-win that vindicated their presence in the ACC this year.

Not much has changed for the Hokies in terms of personnel. Shanel Harrison is leading the team in scoring at 12 ppg and Alyssa Fenyn is putting up 10 ppg. VT only scores 55 ppg in conference play while giving up close to 70 ppg, they're -6 on rebounds, and they turn the ball over 20 times a game. However, they play hard and will look to grind Duke with tough defense and by attacking the basket. The Hokies have a history of sticking around in some games longer than they have any right to, and the Devils have to guard against complacency. There's no such thing as an automatic win, only a chance to prove one's talent, efficiency and effort. Duke has the obvious edge in talent, but how efficient they are and how much effort they exert is up to them. The Devils need to treat this and every game as one-and-done, do-or-die basketball. If Duke is serious about winning the ACC, this game will be the first step in proving just how serious.

Low energy from the Devils.