GAME NOTES: In game three of a five-game homestand, the Virginia Tech Hokies welcome the The Citadel Bulldogs to Cassell Coliseum for a non-conference matchup on Saturday afternoon.

After starting the season at 4-4, the Bulldogs were wholly defeated in their conference opener last Thursday night in a 67-48 loss to the Chattanooga Mocs. The Citadel is now a game under .500 (4-5) heading into its matchup with the Hokies.

Following a road loss to Penn State and a home loss to Radford, the Hokies got their first win in December with last Sunday's victory over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs, 65-55, at the Coliseum. The win improved Virginia Tech's record to 5-4.

This bout marks the 19th meeting between the two squads, with the Hokies dominating the series, 16-2. The last time the teams met was way back on Feb. 16, 1966.

The Bulldogs' P.J. Horgan came close to a double-double in the loss to Chattanooga, as he finished with 17 points, nine rebounds, and an impressive six blocked shots. Reserve Jake Wright also contributed to the scoring with 15 points of his own. Defensively, The Citadel allowed the Mocs to shoot 50.9 percent from the field, and convert 50 percent of their 3-point attempts. The Bulldogs were also outrebounded 34-22, and were outscored 32-22 in the paint. The Citadel shot a sub par 40 percent from the field, and only went 13-of-21 at the foul line.

Horgan is currently the second-best scorer (13.8 ppg) and leading rebounder (6.8 rpg) for the Bulldogs this season. Pacing The Citadel in scoring is Ashton Moore, who is averaging 16 ppg. Despite ranking first in the Southern Conference in field goal percentage (.467), the Bulldogs are next-to-last in the points per game (64.6). The discrepancy between the two statistics could be due to the fact that the Bulldogs have only attempted 443 field goals this season, the second-lowest among all SoCon squads. Luckily, the Bulldogs have been playing solid defense, yielding a mere 59.9 ppg, which ranks them second in the conference.

Christian Beyer was one rebound away from a double-double in the Hokies' recent victory over Alabama A&M, as he logged 13 points and nine boards. With 11 points, Justin Bibbs finished the night as the only other player to score in double figures. Offensively, the Hokies shot well, connecting on 48.1 percent of their tries from the field. On defense, Tech was able to force 18 turnovers which it converted into 30 points. Alabama A&M was held to just 37 percent shooting on its field goal attempts, including a 5-of-23 mark from beyond the arc. The Hokies also won the points in the paint battle, outscoring Alabama A&M, 36-26.

Bibbs is currently the Hokies' top scorer with 12.2 ppg. Other top scorers for Virginia Tech include Adam Smith (12.1 ppg) and Joey van Zegeren (10.4 ppg). Similar to The Citadel, the Hokies have the third-best field goal percentage in the Atlantic Coast Conference (.490), but are 13th in the scoring offense (67.9 ppg). The discrepancy is also due to the fact that the Hokies have the second-lowest total of field goal attempts (461). Virginia Tech has however, shot 42.1 percent from 3-point range, the highest percentage in the ACC. On defense, the Hokies are holding the opposition to 61.9 ppg, and are only letting teams convert 39.9 percent of their total shots.

In their first game in over 48 years, expect these squads to play conservative offense and tough defense. It will likely be the Hokies' 3-point shooting that helps them pull away and secure a victory.