Providence and Virginia Tech Both Head to Mohegan Sun Trying to Make an Early Statement

We’re about to learn a lot about where Providence stands at this early juncture when the Friars head to Mohegan Sun to take on Virginia Tech (Saturday, Nov. 8 at 4pm on Peacock/WPRO).

Going off The Field of 68 trio of John Fanta, Rob Dauster, and Terrence Oglesby, the Hokies are in for a big-time bounce-back year after finishing 8-12 in the ACC a season ago (47 minute mark).

“This isn’t a kind of good team, this is a very good team. A team that should be dancing,” Oglesby raved about the Hokies revamped roster.

Mike Young’s team led by just four points at halftime in their opener against Charleston Southern, but looked the part in the second half — blowing the game open and rolling to a 98-67 victory.

This is a group that boasts size across its starting lineup, a tremendous athlete at the four, and a potential first-round pick they welcomed from Greece this summer.

Breaking Down the Roster:

The Headliner: This is an easy one. Young has one of the more intriguing players in the country in Greece import Neoklis Avdalas — a 6’9 guard who The Field of 68 crew talked about as a potential lottery pick next spring. Avdalas is a tremendous playmaker and serves as a creator for this group, as he finished their opener with nine assists and just one turnover in 29 minutes. He added two loud blocks on Monday.

“The comp I came away with when watching him was something between Franz Wagner and Igor Demin,” Dauster said of him. Wagner is one of the best young players in the league and, like Demin last spring, went eighth overall in his draft class.

While Avdalas’ size could be a problem, a Providence team looking to pick up fullcourt more this season may look to get up into him and pressure for 94 feet.

A Revamped Frontcourt: The return of Tobi Lawal was big. He’s a 6’8, 215 pound power forward who plays bigger thanks to his ridiculous athleticism (see: a 49 inch vertical). A native of England who started his career at VCU, Lawal averaged over 12 points and seven boards a game. He could be a handful for the Friar frontcourt.

Containing Lawal and new center Amani Hansberry will be massively important. The 6’8, 240 pound Hansberry is at his third stop in three years (Illinois and West Virginia). His long arms allow him to be effective at center. Hansberry averaged over two offensive rebounds per game at West Virginia, and Young has given him the green light to fire away from deep (he shot 3-9 beyond the arc against Charleston Southern in a game he finished with 19 points and 13 boards).