Before tip-off on Wednesday night at Maples Pavilion on the campus of Stanford, the news broke that Virginia Tech freshman point guard Ben Hammond was not going to play against the Cardinal to open up their first two-game ACC West Coast swing. Talk about a program that can’t seem to have luck at the guard position in the last two years.
Last season, Rodney Rice left the program before the 2023-24 season started leaving head coach Mike Young with just Sean Pedulla to run the point. After the season, he entered the transfer portal and is now running the show at Ole Miss. Over the summer, the Hokies got a commitment from Hammond to join Temple transfer Hysier Miller, but before the season started, Miller was dismissed from the team. That left Brandon Rechsteiner and Hammond as the point guards on the roster.
Rechsteiner started the year as PG1, but as the season has gone along, Hammond has slowly taken over the role and has been very good for the Hokies. His absence was felt in their 70-59 loss to Stanford after it was revealed that he had a stress fracture in his foot. His status against California on Saturday night remains up in the air as Virginia Tech looks to close out their two-game trip with a split.
How to Watch Virginia Tech at California men’s basketball
This will be a homecoming for California transfer Rodney Brown who came to the Hokies from the Bears last spring in the transfer portal. Like Hammond, as the season has gone along, Brown has been getting more playing time and making an impact at both ends of the floor.
Date: Saturday, Jan. 11
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Venue: Haas Pavilion
How to Watch: ACC Network, ESPN.com, or FuboTV
Virginia Tech Record: 6-9 (1-3 ACC)
California Record: 8-7 (1-3 ACC)
The Bears are coming off a 75-61 victory over Virginia at home on Wednesday night to pick up their first ACC win of the season and their eighth overall. With the way things have been going this season for the Hokies, any result here would not be surprising, but a win would make the cross-country flight back to Blacksburg an enjoyable one.