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Tale of The Tape, Predictions: Louisville vs. Virginia Tech
Jan 2, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Louisville Cardinals forward Sananda Fru (13) goes for a layup during the first half against Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Justine Willard-Imagn Images Justine Willard-Imagn Images

Louisville (13-5, 3-3 ACC) is set to face Virginia Tech (15-5, 4-3 ACC) on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 3:30 p.m. EST at the Petersen Events Center. Here's how the Cardinals stack up against the Hokies:

*Mobile users can scroll left and right on the tables below*

Rankings

Virginia Tech Louisville
AP/USAT NR/NR 23rd/21st
SOS 54th 40th
SOR 44th 35th
NET 49th 15th
RPI 25th 38th
BPI 71st 8th
KenPom 56th 16th
Torvik 53rd 14th
EvanMiya 58th 18th

Team Leaders

Virginia Tech Louisville
Points Amani Hansberry (15.5) Ryan Conwell (19.8)
Rebounds Toibu Lawal (9.3) Sananda Fru (6.9)
Assists Neoklis Avdalas (5.1) Mikel Brown Jr. (5.1)
Steals Ben Hammond (1.9) Ryan Conwell (1.4)
Blocks Toibu Lawal (1.5) Sananda Fru (1.2)

Scoring

Virginia Tech Louisville
Points Per Game 82.0 87.9
Field Goal % 45.8 46.9
FGM/FGA Per Game 28.2/61.5 29.4/62.6
Three Point % 23.6 35.1
3PTM/3PTA Per Game 8.1/23.6 11.9/33.9
Free Throw % 72.5 77.2
FTM/FTA Per Game 17.7/24.4 17.3/22.4

Rebounding

Virginia Tech Louisville
Rebounds Per Game 36.5 41.3
Off. Reb. Per Game 11.5 12.5
Def. Reb. Per Game 25.0 28.8
Rebound Margin 0.4 7.6

Defense

Virginia Tech Louisville
Opp. Points Per Game 74.1 69.6
Opp. FG% 43.0 39.3
Opp. 3PT% 29.5 32.1
Steals Per Game 7.2 7.3
Blocks Per Game 3.6 3.4
Turnovers Forced Per Game 13.2 12.6

Ball Handling

Virginia Tech Louisville
Assists Per Game 14.5 17.9
Turnovers Per Game 10.3 11.3
Turnover Margin 2.9 1.3
Assist/Turnover Ratio 1.41 1.58

Predictions

ESPN Prediction: Per ESPN's Basketball Power Index, the Cardinals have a 92.8 percent chance to win against the Hokies. Louisville has a BPI rating of 20.5 (8th overall), whereas Virginia Tech has a BPI rating of 8.4 (71st overall).

- KenPom Prediction: Per KenPom.com, the Cardinals have an 85 percent chance to take down the Hokies, with a projected final score of 86-74 in favor of UofL. Louisville has an adjusted efficiency margin of +26.10 (16th overall), whereas Virginia Tech has an adjusted efficiency margin of +14.32 (56th overall).

- Torvik Prediction: Per BartTorvik.com, the Cards have an 88 percent chance to take down the Hokies, with a projected final score of 87-73 in favor of UofL. Louisville has a "Barthag" of .9462 (14th overall), whereas Virginia Tech has a "Barthag" of .8096 (53rd overall).

- Personal Prediction: Louisville 88, Virginia Tech 77.

This article first appeared on Louisville Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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