Virginia Tech looks for another upset at No. 12 Duke (Feb 13, 2018)
DURHAM, N.C. -- Virginia Tech owns a monumental result and now the Hokies have a chance for another rewarding experience.
Virginia Tech visits No. 12 Duke for Wednesday night's game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The Hokies upended rival Virginia in overtime on Saturday night, a road victory that took down the No. 2 team in the country. Despite the result, Virginia moved to No. 1 this week.
"Thankful, for sure, for the result," Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams said.
So how about a repeat shocker?
Winning at Duke will be difficult as the Blue Devils are home after a rough 1-2 stretch in three road games.
"Our approach for this week, regardless of opponent, will be the same," Williams said.
Virginia Tech (18-7, 7-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) has won two straight and five of its last six games.
The status of Duke freshman forward Marvin Bagley seems uncertain after he sat out Sunday night's 80-69 road victory against Georgia Tech as a precaution because of a mild knee sprain.
Williams marveled at Duke's reaction.
"I think they could have scored more," the Virginia Tech coach said. "... I think they could have scored more than 80. I think it just speaks to their personnel, to their coaching. ... (Without their) leading scorer and the leading rebounder and you're on the road and you could have scored more than 80."
Duke (20-5, 8-4) altered its starting lineup for the first time this season for the Georgia Tech game. Marques Bolden took Bagley's spot, while freshman guard Alex O'Connell drew the start in the backcourt in place of freshman Trevon Duval. However, Duval logged 25 minutes to O'Connell's 22.
"We felt like we needed to do something different," Duke associate head coach Jeff Capel said, noting the team had lost two in a row and three of four. "It worked. We got off to a really good start."
Duke senior guard Grayson Allen said the Blue Devils tried to keep their normal approach even without Bagley.
"We really played the same way offensively," Allen said. "Try to hit it inside with Wendell (Carter Jr.) or Marques because we really feel like they're a very good post presence down there."
Between Bagley's absence from the court and a two-game losing skid, the Blue Devils had plenty of motivation in that game.
"We just came out and played with a chip on the shoulder," Carter said.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said Duval had his best performance in a couple of weeks, but didn't indicate whether the guard's role will change.
The Blue Devils, who were the preseason No. 1 nationally, are in third place in the ACC.
This Virginia Tech-Duke game involves the ACC's two highest-scoring teams, with Duke at 88.8 points per game and Virginia Tech at 83.7.
"We'll be ultra-challenged at each position from the first possession," Williams said. "Whether they play one big or both bigs will, for sure, cause us problems."
Virginia Tech has visited Kentucky, Syracuse, Louisville and Virginia this season, so the array of venues has been massive. A trip to Duke is often unique.
"The ambiance at Duke, an incredibly tough place to win," Williams said.
Virginia Tech won last season at home against Duke. That was the ACC opener, with Allen sitting out a one-game team suspension for a tripping incident in the team's previous game.
These teams meet again Feb. 26 at Virginia Tech in the final week of the regular season.
