Virginia Tech basketball makes push for former NCAA Tournament hero against Virginia

Monday, the college basketball transfer portal opened and several players have already entered it. Despite being in the NIT, Virginia Tech men's coach Mike Young and his staff have been busy with the portal and showing interest in some players. Once the 2023-24 season ends, the Hokies will have nine players returning next season, but additions are needed from the portal.

There are pretty much needs everywhere for the Hokies and this feels like it's a critical offseason that Young will be entering and he needs to hit it big in the portal. One of the players that Virginia Tech has reached out to is a former NCAA Tournament hero last March against Virginia.

JP Pegues of Furman entered the transfer portal and the talented guard has heard from nearly a dozen schools, including Virginia Tech. This season, he averaged 18.4 points a game, 4.8 assists a game, 4.3 rebounds a game, and 1.2 steals per game. Last season in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Furman trailed Virginia, 67-65, when they got a Cavaliers turnover and Pegues hit a game-winning 3-pointer with two seconds left for a 68-67 victory.

Virginia Tech pushing for Furman guard

If Young is going to land Pegues, he's going to have to recruit him hard as several top programs are also in on him, including Virginia. Auburn, Arkansas, Illinois, Texas Tech, Missouri, Kansas State, Villanova, South Carolina, LSU, and Xavier.

The Hokies lose Hunter Cattoor this season, but Sean Pedulla, MJ Collins, Jaydon Young, Brandon Rechsteiner, and Tyler Nickel are eligible to return in 2024-25. Of course, some of those players could also enter the portal ocne the Virginia Tech NIT run is over.

Of course, the Hokies and Young need to get Pegues in for an official visit, but adding a talented guard who averaged nearly 19 points a game and would fit into the Virginia Tech system is something that he should recruit and recruit hard for.