NC State had its must-win game Wednesday against No. 16-ranked Duke.

The Wolfpack smoked the Blue Devils 84-60 at PNC Arena, and now need to show the win was a springboard to making a postseason run. NC State is off to a 12-4 start and 2-3 in the ACC.

Virginia Tech hosts NC State at 7:30 p.m. Saturday on RSN. The Hokies have lost their last three games, all in the ACC. Virginia Tech is 11-4 overall and 1-3 in the league.

Virginia Tech returns two starters from last year’s 23-13 squad that won the ACC Tournament and reached the NCAA Tournament.

However, senior wing Hunter Cattoor has been out the last two games with an elbow injury. That leaves Delaware senior transfer Justyn Mutts to anchor the squad inside. Wright State transfer Grant Basile and former Clemson transfer Lynn Kidd have joined him in the frontcourt.

Junior wing Darius Maddox and sophomore point guard Sean Pedulla lead the way on the perimeter until Cattoor and his deep shooting stroke returns.

Rankings

Virginia Tech is No. 40 in the NET rankings, and NC State is No. 37.

ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Hokies ranked No. 39 overall, and the Wolfpack are No. 41.

KenPom.com has Virginia Tech at No. 35, and NCSU checks in at No. 42.

RealtimeRPI.com has Virginia Tech ranked No. 45 in the country, and NC State is No. 47.

Shooting

Virginia Tech is averaging 74.7 points per game and shooting 46.7 percent from the field, 34.9 percent on three-pointers and 74.2 percent on free throws.

Mutts is one of three VT players to shoot over 40 percent on three-pointers, but wing Hunter Cattoor has missed two games. Mutts is 10 of 21 on three-pointers for 47.6 percent and senior post player Grant Basile is 31 of 76 from beyond the arc to 40.8 percent.

Rebounding

The Hokies are averaging 36.8 rebounds per game, and have a plus-2.7 rebounding margin.

Mutts leads the team with 8.2 rebounds a contest, and Basile is second with 5.5 boards per game. Maddox had a team-high 23 offensive rebounds, with three players grabbing at least 20 offensive rebounds.

Defense

Virginia Tech is allowing 64.2 points per game, and shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 31.3 percent on three-pointers.

Basile has a team-high 23 blocks and Mutts has 22 steals.

Depth

The injury to senior wing Hunter Cattoor has affected Virginia Tech's depth, but the Hokies had three players come off the bench in the loss against Clemson.

Freshman wing MJ Collins, freshman forward John Camden and Rice center transfer Mylyjael Poteat played against the Tigers.

The 6-9, 265-pound Poteat averaged 7.7 points and 4.2 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per game for Rice last year. The Burlington (N.C.) School standout is chipping in 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds in 11.6 minutes per game for the Hokies. He’s shooting 66.7 percent from the field.

Collins is from Clover, S.C., but finished up at Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy last year. He’s averaging 19.8 minutes per game, but is shooting just 29.8 percent from the field.

Freshmen Rodney Rice, Patrick Wessler and Darren Buchanan, haven’t played yet this season.

Virginia Tech sophomore point guard Sean Pedulla has improved as much as any player in the ACC this season.

The 6-foot-1, 195-pounder was the No. 146 overall player in the class of 2021 by Rivals.com, coming out of Edmond (Okla.) Memorial High. He picked the Hokies over Oklahoma State and Minnesota. He’s from the same hometown (but different high school) as NC State women’s basketball signee Laci Steele.

Pedula filled in off the bench last year and averaged 5.4 points in 12.9 minutes per game, and shot an impressive 44.7 percent on three-pointers. He has jumped up to 17.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game this season. He is shooting 45.1 percent from the field and 34.9 percent on three-pointers.

Pedula has been consistent and has reached double figures in every single game this season. He has scored 20-plus points in three games and hit at least four three-pointers in four contests. Pedula has found things tougher in the ACC, with his shooting percentage dipping to 34.8 percent in four games (23-of-66 shooting). Pedula recently had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists in a 68-65 loss vs. Clemson this past Wednesday.

NC State

PG — 1 Jarkel Joiner (6-1, 180, R-Sr., 16.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.8 apg, 1.2 spg)

SG — 0 Terquavion Smith (6-4, 165, Soph., 18.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.9 apg, 1.9 spg)

G — 14 Casey Morsell (6-3, 200, R-Jr., 13.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 0.9 apg, 1.3 spg)

PF — 23 Greg Gantt (6-8, 215, R-Jr., 1.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.5 apg)

C — 21 Ebenezer Dowuona (6-11, 225, Jr., 1.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.1 apg)

Virginia Tech

PG — 3 Sean Pedulla (6-1, 195, Soph., 17.1`ppg, 3.5 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.0 spg)

SG — 13 Darius Maddox (6-5, 180, Jr., 9.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.2 apg)

F — 25 Justyn Mutts (6-7, 220, Sr., 13.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.6 spg)

PF — 21 Grant Basile (6-9, 235, Sr., 13.8 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.5 bpg)

C — 15 Lynn Kidd (6-10, 235, Jr., 4.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 0.7 apg)

4 Wins Virginia Tech has against NC State coach Kevin Keatts in five games. The two teams split the series last year.

5 Double-doubles for Virginia Tech senior forward Justyn Mutts for points and rebounds this season. He had a season-high 27 points plus 11 rebounds in the 80-72 win vs. North Carolina on Dec. 4.

41.3 Rebounds per game in four ACC contests, which is the best in the league.

Virginia Tech senior post player Grant Basile is no stranger to NC State.

The Pewaukee, Wis., native had 23 points and 16 rebounds, and shot 2 of 4 on three-pointers in leading Wright State to a 84-70 win on Dec. 21, 2021. He averaged 18.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, and shot 49.8 percent from the field in leading Wright State (22-13 overall) to the NCAA Tournament. He had 21 points in a 87-70 loss vs. Arizona in the first round of the tournament, which proved to be his last game with the Raiders.

Basile picked Virginia Tech over Notre Dame and Wisconsin last offseason, and he’s averaging 13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game for the Hokies. He’s shooting an impressive 40.8 percent on three-pointers and 49.3 percent from the field.

Basile had 23 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in a 77-49 win over Dayton on Dec. 7. The 6-9, 235-pounder had 17 points, seven rebounds and three three-pointers in the loss vs. Clemson.

The injury to redshirt junior power forward Jack Clark has opened the door for Providence transfer Greg Gantt to get his shot this season. The 6-8, 215-pounder has battled injuries the last year and a half, but he clocked 30 minutes in the 84-60 win over Duke on Wednesday. He had four points, five rebounds, three steals and two blocks against the Blue Devils.

Follow on Twitter:

@NCStateRivals or @JaceyZembal

Subscribe for free on YouTube:

For Jacey Zembal or The Wolfpack Central

Like on Facebook:

www.facebook.com/TheWolfpackCentral

Follow on Instagram:

www.instagram.com/thewolfpackcentral

ATTENTION SUBSCRIBERS: Our NETWORK-WIDE, all-access pass allows you to read every premium message board in the Rivals.com network as part of a bundled add-on to your subscription!

Subscribers can add the All-Access Pass or a 3-Site Bundle in your account profile, under the Subscriptions tab: HERE