BLACKSBURG — Virginia Tech men's basketball returns home to Cassell Coliseum on Monday night to renew its New River rivalry with Radford, as head coach Mike Young is poised to coach his 600th career game.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Monday, November 15 | 7:00 p.m. ET
Cassell Coliseum (Blacksburg, Va.)
vs. Radford (1-1, 0-0 Big South)
Series: Hokies lead series 9-2
Game Notes: Virginia Tech | Radford
TV Broadcast
ACCNX
Play-by-Play: Evan Hughes
Analyst: Mack McCarthy
Local Radio
Virginia Tech Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Jon Laaser
Analyst: Mike Burnop
THE SERIES
- Virginia Tech has a 9-2 advantage in the all-time series with Radford.
- The two sides are meeting in back-to-back seasons for the third time in series history.
A WIN WOULD...
- Be the Hokies' fourth straight in the series, which started in 1987-88.
- Put Tech at program win No. 1,498.
- Move the Hokies to 3-0 for the fourth consecutive season.
WHO TO WATCH
- Hunter Cattoor was lights out in Annapolis on Friday, going for a career-high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting.
- He dialed up five 3-pointers for the second time in his career (UMES - 12/29/19).
- Through two games, Cattoor leads the Hokies in field-goal percentage at 64.3 percent, which is impressive considering 10 of his 14 attempts have come from beyond the arc.
CLOSING IN ON 600
- Mike Young, who is in his 20th season as a college head coach, is one game away from reaching 600 games coached as the head whistle.
- He has compiled a 332- 267 (.554) career ledger as a head coach.
RADFORD REUNION
- It will be a Radford High School reunion of sorts Monday night when Radford first-year head coach Darris Nichols squares off with fellow Bobcat grad Mike Young for the first time. Young was present for Nichols' introductory press conference at the Dedmon Center on April 21.
- The two were on the same sideline for the 2013-14 season at Wofford where Young was the head coach and Nichols was an assistant coach. The Terriers who were picked to finish sixth in the league by the coaches that season, secured 20 wins and a Southern Conference Tournament championship, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In that NCAA Tournament game, Nichols was on the opposite bench from his former head coach at West Virginia, as Beilein's Michigan team topped 15th-seeded Wofford.
- In addition to Darris, older brother Shane Nichols has Coach Young and Radford ties as well. Shane played for Young at Wofford (2005-08) before joining his staff as an assistant coach (2010-12). Shane was on staff when the Terriers won the SoCon title and advanced to the 2011 NCAA Tournament.
- Radford University Director of Athletics Robert Lineburg is the cousin of Mike Young.
- All four (Young, Nichols brothers and Lineburg) are in the Radford High School Hall of Fame.
FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
- The Hokies are currently fourth in the ACC in free-throw percentage at .750. They're averaging 12 free-throw attempts per game.
- Keve Aluma leads the league in free throw percentage at 100 percent accuracy (min. 10 attempts).
UP NEXT
Virginia Tech will welcome St. Francis (Pa.) into Cassell Coliseum on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 8 p.m. The Hokies defeated the Red Flash, 75-37, in their only previous meeting in 2018.