New on Sports Illustrated: No. 24 Virginia Tech looks to continue fast start vs. Miami

No. 24 Virginia Tech has leaned on its depth during its strong start to the 2020-21 season.

With four players scoring in double figures, the host Hokies (7-1, 1-0 in ACC) look for a fourth straight win as they begin the rest of their ACC schedule Tuesday against the Miami Hurricanes (4-2, 0-1) in Blacksburg.

Virginia Tech recently lost point guard Carter Diarra after he opted out prior to the Hokies' lone conference win over Clemson on Dec. 15.

But the trio of Keve Aluma (14.8 points, 6.8 rebounds per game), Nahiem Alleyne (11.6 points per game) and Tyrece Radford (10.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists per game) have kept the Hokies on track.

And recently, sophomore guard Jalen Cone has come off their bench to score 18 points in back-to-back games.

"Cone is better off the ball -- but certainly a capable secondary ball-handler and can grab a long rebound, loose ball and bring it (up the court) and make proper decisions moving at full speed," Young recently told The Roanoke Times.

Cone is averaging 10.0 points and shooting 38.5 percent (15 of 39) from 3-point range.

"Coach (Mike) Young has had unlimited confidence in me, and he's been telling me to shoot the ball -- that he wants me to get back in the groove," Cone said after Virginia Tech's 84-58 win over Longwood last week. "Just hearing that from the man in charge definitely gives me confidence to knock down shots and take the shots that I know I can make."

Making shots especially from long range has been a major issue so far for Miami, which after a solid win over Purdue lost its ACC opener against Pittsburgh and was dealt a non-conference defeat by Florida Gulf Coast.

Even after a better 6-for-20 finish in their recent win over Jacksonville, the Hurricanes ranked 329th among 335 Division I teams in 3-point shooting percentage (.235) entering Sunday.

Part of the reason for such a poor output has been injuries to guards Chris Lykes and Kameron McGusty.

However, Miami coach Jim Larranaga hinted last week that both players could return for Tuesday's game.

The Canes also got a boost from the return of freshman Earl Timberlake, who scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half against Jacksonville.

"His presence on the court, some of his passes, his ball movement, his athletic ability I thought was very helpful," Larranaga said. "I think one of the things about Earl Timberlake is he's a great competitor, and he's going to do everything possible to win the game."

Isaiah Wong and Anthony Walker have continued to pace the Hurricanes through their mostly short-handed early slate.

Wong finished with 25 points against Jacksonville and is averaging 19.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. Walker is averaging 10.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

"As games go on, my confidence continues to grow and I'm just going to keep on producing," Walker said. "This isn't the ceiling. I'm going to keep growing and we're going to keep improving as a team."

--Field Level Media