Game Info: Saturday, December 21, 2024 - 12:00 p.m.
Location: The Palestra - Philadelphia, Pa.
TV: CBS Sports Network | Listen: sjuhawks.com | Live Stats: sjuhawks.com | Saint Joseph's Game Notes | Virginia Tech Game Notes | Tickets

Social Media
Twitter/X:@sjuhawks_mbb | Instagram:@sjuhawks_mbb
Tweet #THWND

Opening Tip
The Saint Joseph's men's basketball team pays its final game before Christmas as it takes on Virginia Tech in the Holiday Hoop Fest on Saturday, December 21. Tipoff from The Palestra is scheduled for noon.

Yes, It Is A Neutral Site Game    
Despite the game being played in Philadelphia at The Palestra, the game against Virginia Tech is not a home game for Saint Joseph's. The matchup is part of the Holiday Hoop Fest, which is organized by a third party, and is listed by the NCAA as a neutral site contest.

60 Is The New...    
The Hawks went 29-for-48 from the floor on Wednesday night against American. The 60.4 percent field goal percentage marked the first time St. Joe's cleared 60 percent since March 13, 2016 and is just the ninth such occurrence since 2005. It is also the third highest mark for an Atlantic 10 team this season against a Division I opponent with only George Mason (12/3) and Saint Louis (11/27) posting a better shooting mark.

20/20 Vision (Part I)    
In the win against American, both Rasheer Fleming (26) and Erik Reynolds II (23) topped the 20 point mark. It is the fourth time this season and the 20th time under head coach Billy Lange that the Hawks have had at least two players eclipse 20. In all four games this season, Reynolds has been one of the pair of players to reach the mark.

20/20 Vision (Part II)    
Coming into the season, Rasheer Fleming had two games in his career where he scored 20 or more points. In just December alone, he has hit the mark three times. He scored 25 against Princeton on December 3 and has put together back-to-back 26 point efforts against Charleston (12/10) and American (12/18).

Long Distance Dedication    
Saint Joseph's connected on half of its three-point attempts for the second time this season on Wednesday, going 8-for16 against American. The Hawks also achieved the feat against Texas Tech when it hit a season-high 12 triples. Erik Reynolds II led the way with a trios of treys.

The Cathedral Of College Basketball    
Sitting just five miles from Hawk Hill, the Palestra is the second oldest, continual use college basketball arena in the country. Saturday will be Saint Joseph's 468th all-time game at "The Cathedral of College Basketball," a name first given to the arena in 1939 by Philadelphia sports writer Dick Weiss. SJU played its first game at The Palestra on December 13, 1930, a 23-19 loss against homestanding Penn. St. Joe's owns a 303-164 (.648) all-time record at the arena Only Rose Hill Gym at Fordham, opened on January 16, 1925 predates The Palestra's January 1, 1927 inaugural game. Matthews Arena in Boston has been open since 1910, but college basketball was not played there until 1930.

Who's Next?    
With his 23-point effort against American, Erik Reynolds II enters the game against Virginia Tech with 1,784 points in 109 games, sixth on the Hawks' career scoring list. The top-five begins with Ahmad Nivens (2005-09) with 1,789. The senior from Temple Hills, Md. also comes into the game against the Hokies 10 three-pointers behind Pat Carroll (294 - 2001-05) for second and is 16 away from becoming just the second ever SJU men's basketball player with 300 or more threes. Langston Galloway (2010-14) owns that distinction at 343.

Scouting Report    
Virginia Tech enters the game 5-6 overall and is coming off an 80-72 win against Navy on Sunday. The Hokies have yet to win a game away from Cassell Coliseum as they are 0-3 in neutral site games and have yet to play a true road contest. They were picked 14th out of 18 teams in a high-powered ACC.

Tobi Lawal and Mylyjael Poteat led the offense at 10.8 and 10.6 points per game respectively. Coming in just below double figures is is Jaden Schutt, scoring 9.6 an outing. Lawal tops the squad at 6.1 rebounds a contest. Brandon Rechsteinerhas 39 assists.

One area where VT has done well is hold the opposition down from beyond the arc, ranking in the top-65 nationally and fourth in the ACC at 29.7 percent. It has also done an impressive job in outrebounding teams with a +5.1 rebounding margin and 12.36 offensive boards a game.

An area of concern for the Hokies is holding on to the ball as they rank in the bottom-30 nationally at 14.7 turnovers a contest.

Mike Young is in his sixth season as the head coach at Virginia Tech with a 97-72 record in Blacksburg. He has accumulated 396 wins in 23 years as a collegiate mentor with seven NCAA tournament appearances, guiding Wofford to the big dance five times, reaching the Second Round in 2019.

All-Time Series    
Saturday is the seventh all-time meeting between the Hawks and Hokies with the teams splitting the  previous six. SJU and VT have alternated wins and losses in the series. No team has ever won a road game in the matchup.

Last Time Against Virginia Tech    
Isaiah Miles had a career-high 36 points to go along with 15 rebounds and four blocks as Saint Joseph's downed Virginia Tech 79-62 on December 22, 2015 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn as part of the ACC-Atlantic 10 doubleheader. In addition to Miles' numbers, De'Andre' Bembry netted 22 with seven boards. The Hawks outrebounded the Hokies 48-32 in the contest.

Swiping Left    
It was another five block game for the Hawks against the Eagles. It is the sixth time this season they have swatted five or more shots in a game. The Hawks are averaging 5.3 rejections per game this season. That total is third in the Atlantic 10 and 23rd in NCAA Division I. It is the most for the program since the 2012-13 squad recorded 5.7 swats a game, led by 82 from C.J. Aiken. The Hawks rejected 12 Coppin State shots on November 26, a season-high. They also achieved double digits in the season-opener against Navy. Prior to the game against the Midshipmen,  SJU had not blocked 10 or more shots in a game since January 12, 2013 against Duquesne.

Delivering Like Saint Nick     
Xzayvier Brown, Derek Simpson and Erik Reynolds II each had six assists in the game against Charleston. It is the first time since at least the 2005-06 season that SJU had three individual players each record six or more dimes in a game. The Hawks had three players deliver five helpers in a contest six times in the span, most recently when  Chris Wilson (8), DeAndre' Bembry (5) and Halil Kanacevic (5) achieved the feat in an 84-75 win against Duquesne on January 15, 2014.

Up Next
The Hawks return to action and Hagan Arena on Saturday, December 28 when they host the Delaware State Hornets. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.