GAME NOTES: The Virginia Tech Hokies pay a visit to the Bryce Jordan Center to take part in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge against the Penn State Nittany Lions.

This marks the first true road game of the season for Virginia Tech. The Hokies enter this contest seeking a third straight win after cruising past Morgan State, 83-63, in their final game of the Cancun Challenge on Sunday. Following this tilt, the Hokies will return home for their next five games.

Meanwhile, Penn State is aiming for a fifth straight victory. The Nittany Lions have been idle since last Friday's 88-80 win at Bucknell, a game in which they never trailed.

Virginia Tech has won six of the seven all-time meetings with Penn State.

The Hokies sprinted out of the gate against Morgan State, as they shot a blistering 59.3 percent from the floor in the first half while knocking down 8-of-11 3-point tries. Defensively, they held Morgan State to 26.3 percent shooting from the floor in the opening frame to build a 15-point lead at the break. Junior guard Adam Smith went on to score a game-high 22 points off the bench, highlighted by 6-of-10 accuracy out on the perimeter. Smith is averaging a team-best 14.3 ppg for the Hokies, who are shooting a healthy 51.4 percent as a team.

Fellow reserve Joey van Zegeren was 6-of-8 from the field against Morgan State and finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and six blocks. Devin Wilson (10 points, seven rebounds) and Ahmed Hill (12 points) also reached double figures in that contest.

Penn State is led by D.J. Newbill, who is averaging 23.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per tilt. A 52 percent shooter from the floor and a 57 percent shooter from the perimeter (12-of-21), the senior guard entered the week atop the Big Ten and third in the country in scoring. Shep Garner (10.3) has also been efficient from distance (15-of-29), while Brandon Taylor (9.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.7 bpg) and Ross Travis (6.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg) take care of business down low.

Newbill led all scorers with 28 points to go along with six boards in last Friday's road win over Bucknell. It was Newbill's fifth consecutive game with 20 or more points and 25th of his career. Travis joined him in double figures with 14 points and five rebounds on 6-of-7 shooting, while Taylor (eight rebounds) and reserve Geno Thorpe scored 12 apiece. The Nittany Lions shot 55.6 percent from the floor and made 8-of-15 threes for the game. They went on a late 12-4 run to pull away.

Tech's four-guard lineup may struggle on the glass against the longer Nittany Lions, who can also hit from outside.